MS Office Full Version vs. Office 365

Discussion in 'Writing Software and Hardware' started by Laurin Kelly, Oct 28, 2018.

Tags:
  1. Caffrey

    Caffrey Member

    Joined:
    Apr 9, 2018
    Messages:
    17
    Likes Received:
    17
    Location:
    London
    I use the basic 365 package across a number of machines (up to 5 are covered). I'll be honest; if Microsoft really want to take the risk stealing my absurd dirty stories for their own gain, then their needs must be greater than mine.

    I save all my work locally, then bung a zip file in One Drive and sync the files in OneNote as well.
     
    Shenanigator likes this.
  2. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2016
    Messages:
    388
    Likes Received:
    475
    Leaving aside the legalities of their T&C's, my main stumbling block is the sheer number of different options you have to wade through to decide what to get. I found this gem in the Microsoft Community Forums, of all places: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/msoffice_install-mso_other-msoversion_other/i-need-office-what-should-i-get-pros-vs-cons-you/2e75ea21-f8d0-4cde-9764-13b02cde46a7

    Keep in mind that on top of all these (somewhere clearly spelled out, though often not summarised) options there are other issues, which I have read on some product reviews on 3rd party vendors like amazon (which may or may not be true), such like there are frequent licensing issues, frequent login issues (even for the stand-alone versions, you'll need a Microsoft account at least for licensing and installation. It may be possible that the mentioned issues affect you even after that), or that the stand-alone editions are further locked down than just the always mentioned feature updates/upgrades (one review I read indicated that the stand-alone version couldn't be personalised, even for stuff like changing the toolbar, and the reviewer claimed that Microsoft Support told him he'll need a subscription version for that. Again, this may be untrue, but...)

    On top of all that, the Mac versions (which I am most interested to get) are apparently even more buggy and feature-reduced than the Windows counterparts (and some components of the Office package are not even included, yet one pays the same price...)

    [NB: Not that I care much at this point: The one component of Office that has no feature-compatible alternative anywhere is Excel. And in particular Excel:Mac is quite frequently mentioned as being so buggy as on the verge of unusable, and so feature-reduced compared to Excel:Win that it makes no sense to get.]

    My personal conclusions are this:

    - I would, currently, at most need Word. I do not need anything else from the Office package. Just Word. And I do not see that I ever go back to it as main text processing or writing tool. It will only be a supporting app for me.
    - Given the current state of things – Microsoft's pricing policy of offering this ginormous number of options, the general high price of Office (compared to the alternatives I currently use), and the technical difficulties that do seem apparent – I'm personally staying away from Office (and Word) as far as I can, as long as I can.
    - If I ever decide to get one, or need one, I'm leaning towards the lowest priced business subscription of full, i.e. downloadable, Office (if only because I can get a tax deduction for business expenses with it), or the stand-alone Word (if I can ever find out beforehand what the technical differences between it and its Office 365 subscription counterparts are, exactly... or the exact licensing. Microsoft, on their store pages, do not even tell one if it's licensed for personal or business use [tax deduction, again], or which version one will get. It's just called "Word". Not "Word 2019" or "Word 2016" or... Given that they say it will not get free upgrades, it should be said which version number one actually gets, no?)
     
    Last edited: Nov 7, 2018
  3. Glen Barrington

    Glen Barrington Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 18, 2018
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    493
    Location:
    Missisippi Valley
    @Martin Beerbom - Since I bought the 5 license Office 365 (Windows 10, primarily for the 5 1TB OneDrive Accounts), I get access to all versions of Office, I'm not a heavy user of Word, but since I'm paying for it, I use it whenever I need an office suite. I have not noticed the problems you have mentioned. Naturally, I can't speak to the Mac version. However, I've not found it to be any less reliable than the Windows version of LibreOffice.

    In truth, I do most of my writing in Atomic Scribbler, with a major assist from Scrivener. Both are far superior to Word for creative writing.
     
  4. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    I use the Mac version of Word all the time for work. No issues regarding reliability or bugs. I don't use it for creative writing, however.
     
  5. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    2,521
    Likes Received:
    4,054
    I wound up getting Office 365 from Amazon on Black Friday. My new laptop arrived yesterday and everything seems to be working quite well. Thanks to everyone for their advice!
     
    Shenanigator, jannert and Steerpike like this.
  6. exweedfarmer

    exweedfarmer Banned Contributor

    Joined:
    Dec 19, 2016
    Messages:
    844
    Likes Received:
    620
    Location:
    Undecided.
    Ahm... Open Office is free and very easy to use. It doesn't seem to crash. Easy on computer resources. I'm not a big MS fan if you couldn't tell.
     
    LazyBear likes this.
  7. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    2,521
    Likes Received:
    4,054
    Per my OP, I was never going to consider a non-MS Office option.
     
    Shenanigator and Steerpike like this.
  8. AdrianG

    AdrianG New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 26, 2018
    Messages:
    4
    Likes Received:
    0

    Hey,

    I would rather choose Office 365 a it will allow me more features and remote accessibility which will boost up my productivity.

    Regards,
    Adrian Gates
    Editor
     
  9. Tristan's Opa

    Tristan's Opa Senior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 22, 2018
    Messages:
    274
    Likes Received:
    480
    Location:
    Hickville in Virginia
    Took the words right out of my mouth. As a retired tech manager I can say one thing with absolute confidence.... 365 sucks! Sucks money, time, and emotional strength from the user. I'm still running 2010 on my machine, transferred from previous systems. KEEP the suite. I do save my files on other media and in the cloud so I do have a belt and suspender setup.
     
  10. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    Still going well? I have 365. It’s good. We are switching to it at work as well.
     
  11. Tristan's Opa

    Tristan's Opa Senior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 22, 2018
    Messages:
    274
    Likes Received:
    480
    Location:
    Hickville in Virginia
    Adding to my comment.....

    For remote or away from my computer, I use Google docs and then import it to whatever I'm working on. Google docs will also import word but I prefer Word for edit and review along with tracking changes. I can also import several edited versions from readers and incorporate the changes and comments into a single working document.

    Yes, 365 will do this as well but the goal is to bleed money from users.
     
  12. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    2,521
    Likes Received:
    4,054
    Yes, I'm very happy with 365 so far! Activating was a snap and the transition was virtually seamless.

    Combined with the fact that my new laptop is lightning fast compared to the old one (new machine has a solid state hard drive), I'm in computer heaven at the moment.
     
  13. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2013
    Messages:
    17,674
    Likes Received:
    19,889
    Location:
    Scotland
    It's always fun, isn't it? That brief period when you are as up-to-date with your computer system as you can possibly be! It doesn't last, but it's fun while it does.
     
  14. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    Good! The main reason I have a personal subscription is to keep up with the latest versions. I knew we were going to be switching over at work, and I do a lot of my work on my personal laptop. The various versions are usually compatible, but this way I'll be on the same version as work. Plus, the subscription comes with five licenses, so my family members can have copies of 365 as well.
     
    Laurin Kelly and Shenanigator like this.
  15. Glen Barrington

    Glen Barrington Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 18, 2018
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    493
    Location:
    Missisippi Valley
    I subscribe to 365 for the OneDrive subscription. The Office Suite is just an extra for me. I like OneDrive and how it works with Win10. MS Office is OK, but I use Atomic Scribbler and Scrivener to write with. (Can't decide which I like better)
     
  16. AdrianG

    AdrianG New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 26, 2018
    Messages:
    4
    Likes Received:
    0
    I`m just waiting for Office 19 update and soon gonna have a word with O365CloudExperts regarding the tips to upgrade. I`m so excited about the update :D ;)

    Regards,
    Adrian Gates
     
  17. Cass Parker

    Cass Parker New Member

    Joined:
    May 16, 2019
    Messages:
    14
    Likes Received:
    12
    I tried 365. I found it sluggish. PLus, if my internet went down or I was in a location with poor connectivity I couldn't use it at all. Ultimately I contacted Microsoft store and was able to purchase a full version of just Microsoft Word.
     
  18. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    You can use Office 365 without internet access. I do it all the time. You just have to download the desktop versions from MS and activate them through your Office 365 plan.
     
    Shenanigator likes this.
  19. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    2,521
    Likes Received:
    4,054
    Yeah, the desktop version is what I use. It was pre-loaded onto my laptop and all I had to do was activate it. Mine works without internet access as well, and I'm sure it depends on the computer, but mine is super fast and reactive.
     
    Shenanigator and Steerpike like this.
  20. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    Mine too. I think the sluggishness is what some people experience running the browser-based versions of the software. Could be anything from computer specs to internet connection, I suppose. But with 365 you can download the desktop version right to your computer and avoid that problem.
     
    Shenanigator likes this.
  21. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2016
    Messages:
    388
    Likes Received:
    475
    I wish to point out that it needs to re-activate from time to time. The standard is at least every 30 days, which should work for almost all people in this day and age... HOWEVER, the activation is (like the whole of Word) buggy, and it may happen to stop working at in-opportune times, with no easy or fast way to resolve.

    Further, the Microsoft apps are the only ones I have on my Mac that need to do this online activation, or at least do it in a way that hinders my work. Even the current Adobe apps, with subscription, are better behaved than Office.

    (One of the more annoying habits of Office I just read about: If you run into a re-activation request while working with Word, for example, it only re-activates Word! The other apps – Excel, Powerpoint etc. – are not re-activated at the same time.)
     
  22. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    2,521
    Likes Received:
    4,054
    I don't know if this issue is specific to Macs, but I've had Office 365 installed on my Win 10 laptop for about 6 months and I've never been asked to reactivate any of the programs. My husband also has been using it for the same amount of time (since it can be used on up to 6 devices) and it's never happened to him either (I believe his is running Win 8).
     
    Steerpike likes this.
  23. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    I’ve had it installed for a few years on Windows and Mac computers and never had to reactivate unless I’m putting on a new machine. It has been on my current MacBook almost a year and a half and I’ve never had to reactivate it once.
     
  24. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2016
    Messages:
    388
    Likes Received:
    475
    If you have been online at some point within the 30 days, you will not encounter it (bugs excluded). It's not Mac specific; read the T&C's. There are people out there, however, who do not use some of the apps in the package for such long stretches and run across it. Ditto if you have special software installed (for instance, VPN's and security related apps can trigger it, and have much shorter grace periods [days, sometimes 12 hrs]. They expect you to be online all the time.) Though this is mostly just for corporate users. Read this, in particular the comments, as to what happens in corporations.

    On top of that you have bugs, both on your local machine and on the server side. Again, as a private user, you seldom notice it, because you have the 30 days, which is plenty, in which it can check the authorization without asking you, and the reported outages have 'only' been days. But it can happen.
     
    Steerpike likes this.
  25. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2010
    Messages:
    13,984
    Likes Received:
    8,557
    Location:
    California, US
    Oh, I see. I don't go more than a couple days without being on the internet at some point, and I almost always happen to be connected when I use Office. We switched to 365 at work as well, and those computers are likewise always online.
     

Share This Page

  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
    Dismiss Notice