MS Office

Hi Kevin,

I understand you are interested in upgrading your Office suite. I hope you're doing well today. Let me try to assist you with your concern. 

Office 365 suite is a subscription, where it allows you to use the most updated Office apps. You get to enjoy the full functionality of every app. With this kind of subscription, you get to pay monthly or annually depending on your choice. While Office 2019 is a kind of Office suite, wherein you get to pay onetime and the Office suite is yours forever. With regards to the Office apps usage, you get to use the present Office apps, however, there are no major upgrade options. For more information about the comparison of Office 365 suite and Office 2019 suite, you can check this article.

If you have other concerns, let us know.

Bob

Gooday

Thks for reply. I have downloaded Office '19 for FREE from Internet but not sure if successful in getting it to function. I see on package deals that Office '19 does not include Outlook. I have had Outlook since getting Internet. I do not need up to date Office as I only use basic functions at home. It has become a habit of sellers of software to have subscriptions. It cannot cost the same each yr just for updates. This is ripping the public off. I have seen alternatives for Office but will see.

Kelvin

Why is MS so persistent with Office 365?  The answer is very basic.  MORE MONEY!  365 is a cash cow for them.

If your needs are basic, you should look into free Office Online.

https://products.office.com/en-ca/office-online/documents-spreadsheets-presentations-office-online?rtc=1

This page is one way of accessing Office online. Just sign in, then click on the "Get started for free" button to take to a home page with buttons for all of the Office Online applications you have access to.

https://support.office.com/en-us/article/What-s-the-difference-between-Office-365-and-Office-2016-ed447ebf-6060-46f9-9e90-a239bd27eb96

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/office/forum/officeversion_other-office_install/how-to-install-office-in-windows-8-cp/04efe03a-e0c7-4d6c-b5e9-95f260ae9042

Change email address associated with online account

Log onto the online Microsoft Store www.microsoftstore.com and click on the Account link (top and bottom of page).  Changing your e-mail address will be a combination of the Profile link on the right and the Addresses link on the right.

I Bought Office Online – Replace Lost Product Key / Download Installation File

If you bought Office as an online download, return to the website you bought it from and use your “Windows Live” e-mail address to log in  to an account that was setup for you. The account lists all online purchases, product keys and installation file download links: The 2 most commonly used online stores are MS and Digital River:

·    www.microsoftstore.com) - Microsoft

·    <snip>

·    In the end, called Ms as the store would have been closed and s trek away anyway. They agreed to provide a replacement code if sent a photo of card and proof of purchase.

·    </snip>

Office 365 users may wonder about the online versions of the classic Office desktop programs. So how does Office Online measure up, and what is it good for?

Brief overview of the Online apps.

This article goes into the options you need to consider when deciding which Office bundle to buy (including Office Online):

The article got too long for the forum, so I moved it to a Word document and uploaded it to OneDrive.  You can view or download it from here:

https://1drv.ms/w/s!Am8lVyUzjKfpoGos7ovI66isqzKN?e=kqK1Qj

Unfortunately, "buying" Office has become a big decision tree.

.

You can take the easy way out and rent Office 365 forever (whether you really NEED the "extra" features you are paying for) or you can take some time to investigate all of the options to find the best deal for you.

.

If you meet the right conditions, you really can get Office for FREE or much cheaper than everyone else who is paying the full retail price.

Check out the wiki I go into more detail outlining these options:

·      "Free" MS Office

·      Office "came with" the new computer "for free"

·      MS discount for new computer buyers - (comes and goes)

·      Stand alone Office Programs

·      One-time payment Office 2019 Home and Student / 2019 Home and Business / 2019 Professional

·      Office 365 Home / Personal / University (is no longer offered)

·      Office 365 Education

·      Get a share from someone who has an Office 365 Home subscription ("free")

·      Office 365 Education / Office 2016 for Students and Faculty

·      Recent Graduate Discount

·      Business Office 365, several possible bundles

·      HUP discount - Home Use Program

·      "Office in The Windows Store" aka "Office Hub"

·      MS Office Online

·      Office Pro Plus through Volume License

·      Non Profit license

·      WordPad

·      Work 9.0

·      Free/low cost Office Alternatives

·      Buy a used copy of Office 2010 or 2013 "FPP" / Retail type licenses

You will have to decide for yourself. You can to trade off long term cost and features If your needs are very simple, you won’t need to spend much or work with one of the free options. But if you are a more “advanced” user, using multiple Office applications and sharing documents/files with others you will have to pay for one of the Office 365/2016 bundles.  

Right now for consumers there are basically 3 options for you to buy/rent:

·      365 Home US$100/yr

·      365 Personal US$70/yr

·      2019 Home and Student 1-time payment US$150

·      Office Online, FREE

Do you need 365?

Office 365 comes with the 1TB of OneDrive, Skype time and "new" (advanced) features, install on up to 5 computers at the same time

·      You can buy a 1TB external USB drive for around US$50.

·      Do you ever use Skype, ie to contact family? Probably not ...

·      Are you going to need the new "advanced" features that MS limits to 365? Probably not ...

·      Do you have more than 1 or 2 computers that you use Office on

·      Do you need Office Outlook, or is hotmail/outlookcom online adequate

Office 2019 will reach end of life in October 2025.

You need to do the "cost:benefit" assessment for yourself.  Which features do you absolutely NEED? Is the extra price worth the cost.

If you buy 2019 Home and Student today for use on one computer, $150/5.75 year approx $26 per year

If you rent 365 Personal it will cost $70/yr * 5.75yr is approx total $400

If you rent 365 Home (best case) $100/yr * 5.75yr is approx total $575, but for 6users is approx $95 per person.  (approx $17per person per year)

So, if you have family or friends you can share 365 Home with, to the 6 user total (yourself plus 5 shares) 365 Home is the most cost effective version. Especially if you can get some of the shares to actually pay you for it ie if you live in a seniors home, not so much with family. With family, even if you call it a "gift", the recipients get "used" to having it and discount it's value as a gift.

The final MS option is Office Online.  If you are doing simple work, simple documents and spreadsheets, then Office Online is worth considering.  But if you are used to using more than the basic features of your Office applications, you will find Office online frustrating to use.

Finally, there are free or low cost one-time payment alternatives to MS Office.

The 2 main free contenders are the Google Online applications, they close to functionally the same as Office Online applications.

Or you can get one of the installed Office Alternatives like LibreOffice. These applications are functionally very similar to installed Office. They are not identical, but with a little flexibility you can adapt to the differences.

Let us know if you are interested in the non MS options, I have an article with links to many other products and independent reviews and comparisons you can look at.