Microsoft Office 2010

As we approach the end of 2009, we have a lot to look forward to in 2010, especially on the Microsoft front. We all experienced the release of Windows 7 earlier this year, with businesses already upgrading to take advantage of all the new features, promising to be more user-centric and easier to work with. Not only that, but some companies are making the most out of their Windows 7 purchase by upgrading to Server 2008 R2 and benefiting from features such as Direct Access*. Not to mention a range of other features including the Active Directory Recycle Bin, improved management tools and virtualisation support, including Live Migration.

Next year will see the release of three new products – Office 2010, SharePoint Server 2010 and Exchange 2010. Communication and efficiency will be the key behind these products, making it easier for team members to communicate and collaborate, no matter where they are based. Today I will focus on Office 2010.

Office 2010

The beta version of Office has been available to download for a little while now, and it boasts some cool new features. For example, Outlook 2010 will be able to manage multiple mailboxes from multiple services, including Hotmail and GMail. Also, there will be strong integration with SharePoint for collaboration purposes. Exchange 2010 will also work seamlessly with Outlook, allowing voicemails and faxes to be sent directly to your inbox.

PowerPoint 2010 need no longer be a simply case of slide after slide of text – there will be some advanced image editing features included, as well as the ability to add video.

Closing a Word document that you haven’t saved since you started working on it 3 hours ago can be a nightmare – Word 2010 boasts a feature that allows you to recover draft versions of recently edited files so that you can jump back to the most recently drafted version. Also, if more than one user needs to work on a document, you no longer need to edit, save, send, open and vice-versa – with an Instant Messenger application, or Office Communicator 2007, more than one user can work on a document at the same time, allowing for greater efficiency and collaboration.

Excel 2010 newest feature is caled Sparklines – the creation of small charts within a single cell that allows you to quickly identify patterns within your data and spot trends at a glance. The integration with SharePoint 2010 will also be greatly improved, allowing team members to share business critical data quickly.

From the screenshots, Office 2010 is looking great – however, Office Ribbon lovers will be eager to know that the Office Ribbon is back. However, Office 2010 is set to make things easier by allowing users to customise their ribbon to suit the way they work.

No release date has been given yet, but expect news in the early part of 2010. In the meantime, why not give it a try yourself? I’ve been testing the beta and I’ll say one thing – if you have been running 2007, the layout will be familiar and getting around will be easy. If you are running 2003, you have a learning curve ahead of you but you’ll get used to the new look in no time at all.

*Direct Access feature only with Windows 7 Ultimate / Enterprise