First Look: Microsoft Office 2007

Moving forward

Businesses are going to want to upgrade to 2007 Office eventually. There will be as many user complaints about the new interface when you announce the upgrade as compliments after you roll it out. Jensen Harris, the lead program manager responsible for the Office user experience, admits you may see a temporary dip in productivity for a week or three as people adjust. The interface is least popular with power users who have invested time in tracking down obscure features and do not appreciate the contextual commands, which only appear when you can actually use them.

Getting the best value from 2007 Office means choosing the right version to buy, as there are now eight different SKUs. Office Standard is the minimum install of common applications, Office Small Business attempts to deserve the name by bundling in Publisher and the basic CRM of the Business Contact Manager and Office Professional is the full set of core apps including Access.

Initially businesses are more likely to be upgrading for services beyond those desktop tools, which means the Ultimate, Professional Plus and Enterprise editions. The difference here is that new Ultimate edition adds OneNote and Groove - novel applications worth considering for businesses with users who are not tied to a single desk. Ultimate is a new way to get the full range of tools without signing up for Software Assurance. Enterprise has the same list but swaps Business Content Manager for Live Communication Server's Office Communicator 2007 client (due in the middle of 2007). The three SKUs all include InfoPath 2007, which is of minimal value now that InfoPath forms can be hosted in Outlook or Internet Explorer; it becomes a developer tool only a few users will take advantage of.

Overall, the new file formats have big advantages for saving storage space and improving resiliency. Files with macros can be identified immediately, helping with both management and security. In addition, the documented XML format makes it easier to index files and extract information without having to actually open files. Nevertheless, it is still a new format to support and older versions of Office need a free conversion tool to work with them so you may end up losing space as your users have to save copies in both old and new formats. Consider turning on the group policy that makes the old binary formats the default.

Easier access to the information inside document files is just one benefit for businesses who view the new Office as more than just a new look for the old word processor. Rights management services for Windows Server will help you implement basic content management policies and deter casual breaches of security. There are hooks for business-grade encryption; it's not built in because Microsoft says businesses want to choose for themselves. It's the collaboration tools - from access to SharePoint libraries in Outlook to shared notebooks in OneNote and off-line collaboration with Groove - that offer the most opportunities. If you want to take advantage of those, you'll be ready to upgrade quickly.