AfterDawn: News

Microsoft to phase out Office 2010 Starter

It appears that Microsoft is ready to discontinue their free Office 2010 Starter edition.

Over the past few years, Microsoft has made an ad-supported version of their popular suite available to anyone with a new Windows 7 computer. The Starter edition comes with Word and Excel and lacks features of the fully paid version, but nonetheless the software was popular.



Into the future, starting with the release of Windows 8, new buyers will get links to trial versions of full Office, instead of a pre-loaded Starter like in the past.

Despite being the clear leader in the market, Microsoft has seen increasing competition in past few years. OpenOffice and LibreOffice offer full office suites, for free, and Google Docs is preparing to gain offline capabilities, making it another free alternative.

Microsoft Office ranges from $99 to $499 depending on the type of package.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 24 Jun 2012 18:59

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• 9 comments

• xnonsuchx

  People should just use OpenOffice/LibreOffice and tell MS to take a hike on their overpriced garbage.

  24.6.2012 23:20 #1

• JST1946

  I usually just delete all these wonderful freebies that are only good for 60 days anyways.What a joke.
  

  24.6.2012 23:28 #2

• dali

  Originally posted by JST1946: I usually just delete all these wonderful freebies that are only good for 60 days anyways.What a joke.
  Office Starter wasn't one of them. It was free Word&Excel, but ad-supported.
  

  "You know, it seems that quotes on the internet are becoming less and less reliable." -Abraham Lincoln.

  25.6.2012 07:13 #3

• bobiroc

  Originally posted by xnonsuchx: People should just use OpenOffice/LibreOffice and tell MS to take a hike on their overpriced garbage. For some people that is all they need but they cannot match the Power of Microsoft Office. Most people do not need Microsoft Office really but seeing as the corporate world and educational world uses it because of its power and features people at home choose to use it because they are familiar with it and OpenOffice and LibreOffice have sub par compatibility with Microsoft Office documents.
  

  AMD Phenom II 965 @ 3.67Ghz, 8GB DDR3, ATI Radeon 5770HD, 240GB OCZ Vertex 3, 2TB Additional HDD, Windows 7 Ultimate.
  
  http://www.facebook.com/BlueLightningTechnicalServices

  25.6.2012 21:59 #4

• robshi

  Originally posted by bobiroc: Originally posted by xnonsuchx: People should just use OpenOffice/LibreOffice and tell MS to take a hike on their overpriced garbage. For some people that is all they need but they cannot match the Power of Microsoft Office. Most people do not need Microsoft Office really but seeing as the corporate world and educational world uses it because of its power and features people at home choose to use it because they are familiar with it and OpenOffice and LibreOffice have sub par compatibility with Microsoft Office documents. that was going to be my point too.

  26.6.2012 08:46 #5

• Bozobub

  The biggest issue with Open/LibreOffice, in my eyes, is the lack of integration with Visual Basic/C/etc.

  26.6.2012 11:40 #6

• bobiroc

  Originally posted by Bozobub: The biggest issue with Open/LibreOffice, in my eyes, is the lack of integration with Visual Basic/C/etc. Oh that is just the beginning. OpenOffice and LibreOffice along with some other less popular suites lack integration and support with other 3rd party programs, websites and systems that many Businesses and Educational organizations rely on every day as well as do consumers.
  
  The day the open source alternatives can provide that type of integration with things like Tax/Accounting software and systems, Human Resource, business management, and student management systems along with countless others is the day it will get used more. These features are important to many people and companies like Microsoft, Lotus, Corel, and others work the the developers of those applications to provide support and pay fees if necessary. This all costs money and since OpenSource is against spending any money it will never happen.
  

  AMD Phenom II 965 @ 3.67Ghz, 8GB DDR3, ATI Radeon 5770HD, 240GB OCZ Vertex 3, 2TB Additional HDD, Windows 7 Ultimate.
  
  http://www.facebook.com/BlueLightningTechnicalServices

  26.6.2012 11:51 #7

• grathan

  Why is Microsoft news always sounding greedy?

  27.6.2012 19:36 #8

• Virgil_B

  Originally posted by JST1946: I usually just delete all these wonderful freebies that are only good for 60 days anyways.What a joke. Office 2010 starter edition does not expire after any preset time. I have been using it for a long time now and as a home user it provides everything that I need. Where Microsoft missed the boat was by not offering a starter version without the advertisements for a reduced price.

  28.6.2012 08:19 #9