Microsoft unveils Office 2013, Office 365 - video
Published Jul 16 2012, 21:47 BST | By Mark Langshaw
Microsoft has unveiled its next generation Office suite.The computing giant's CEO Steve Ballmer lifted the lid on Microsoft Office 2013 and its subscription-based iteration Office 365 during a press conference today (July 16).
Both editions of the software include overhauled versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, OneNote, and other applications.
One of the most significant features of the new Office is deep SkyDrive integration. Users can access their documents on a range of devices such as PCs, tablets, and smartphones running Windows Phone 8, with their preferences and templates saved.
Office 2013 and Office 365 have been optimised to run on Windows 8-powered PCs and ARM devices, though other versions of Windows will be supported. The programmes are touch-screen compatible, and can be manipulated using a digital pen or stylus.
© Microsoft
© Microsoft
Social features have been incorporated into the mix to help users work collaboratively through deep Skype and Yammer integration. The SharePoint app features a Facebook-esque layout with a news feed and timeline to facilitate content sharing.
Word 2013 comes with a raft of new features, notably a vastly improved 'reading mode' with a Kindle-like layout. Multimedia content such as videos can now be seamlessly embedded into a document's layout, and content from SkyDrive and Bing search added with a single click.
Outlook now recognises addresses and dates, and will open Bing Maps and its calendar where appropriate. People Cards have LinkedIn, Facebook, Yammer, Skype and SharePoint details embedded.
© Microsoft
© Microsoft
"We are taking bold steps at Microsoft," said Ballmer. "The new, modern Office will deliver unparalleled productivity and flexibility for both consumers and business customers. It is a cloud service and will fully light-up when paired with Windows 8."
Microsoft is yet to announce when the software will be available for purchase or how much it will cost. Preview builds of Office 2013 and Office 365 are available to download via the Office website.
notice skype in the vid under the title 'stay connected'?
ha yes, microsoft is now shipping it as a paid for product with office.... way to go. Knew it was coming though. Oh well VOIP or google talk for me.
July 17th 2012 at 1:11pm
To anyone moaning that it's only going to work for touch should know that touch mode has ti be enabled but when it is disabled the rest of Microsoft office stays almost identicle to 2010 with the nice ribbon format and a few good new features such as cloud saving
July 17th 2012 at 10:12am
Office gets worse with every iteration.
July 17th 2012 at 12:28am
Microsoft Office moving to the cloud will certainly allow better control over our licenses. The fact we can add and/or remove a remote user at the click of the mouse will have an immediate effect on our bottom line. The folks over at WorkSpace Communications who provide our help desk tell us that deployment of new users will be reduced by 60% along with substantial increase in resolving remote support issues. Microsoft Office has become so entrenched within our organization we could not move to any other application without causing a total collapse of our operations. I?m happy to see Microsoft moving more aggressively to the cloud and look forward to a long and now lower cost solution.
July 16th 2012 at 11:36pm
The exact same comment (word for word) as above was posted on ZDNet about Office 2013. See http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-defends-desktop-while-moving-office-2013-to-the-cloud-7000000973/#comments
July 17th 2012 at 12:21am
I've yet to upgrade to 2007. I taught it briefly to students a couple of years back but I absolutely hated everything about it. It's 2003 or an OpenOffice build such as Libre for me, thanks! Throw all the fancy ribbons and features on it that you want Microsoft - we all know it's about the money for you and not the end user.
July 16th 2012 at 11:01pm(+2 likes)
You mean to say a business exists with the aim of making money? What IS this world turning into.....
July 17th 2012 at 7:27am