Microsoft Office 2007: Highlights

Answers to common questions about Microsoft Office 2007 for small business. All Covered provides expert small business computer support for Microsoft Office 2007, Windows XP, and Windows Vista nationwide.

First, let's review what the different versions of Microsoft Office 2007 will include, then discuss specific features.

	Versions of Microsoft Office 2007
	Standard	Small Business	Professional	Professional Plus	Enterprise
Word 2007
Excel 2007
Outlook 2007
PowerPoint 2007
OneNote 2007
Publisher 2007
Outlook 2007 with Business Contact Manager
Access 2007
InfoPath 2007
Communicator 2007
Integrated Enterprise Content Management
Electronic Forms
Advanced Information Rights Management and Policy Capabilities
Groove 2007

The Ribbon helps you navigate

When you open any of the Microsoft Office 2007 programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, or Outlook, you will still be able to easily navigate through the tools using the Ribbon.  The old look of menus and toolbars have been replaced with tabs to get to the commands you already know how to use.

Instead of having 30 or so undisplayed toolbars, and commands buried on drop menus, you now have the Ribbon to bring the essentials together and make them very visual.  Research has shown that people using Microsoft Office favor a core set of commands, which they tend to use over and over. Those commands can now be the most prominent.

Your often-used commands that are not quickly available can easily be added to the Quick Access Toolbar, which is above the Ribbon when you first start your Office program.

The Button replaces the File menu

The Microsoft Office Button  will take the place of the File menu in several Office programs. It provides more options that are conveniently located together.

Key Tips, formerly known as keyboard shortcuts

The new keyboard shortcuts have a new name: Key Tips. You press ALT to make the Key Tip badges appear. You'll see Key Tips for all Ribbon tabs, the Quick Access Toolbar, and the Microsoft Office Button.

Press the key for the tab you want to display. This makes all the Key Tip badges for that tab's buttons appear. Then, press the key for the button you want.

Keyboard shortcuts of old that begin with CTRL are all still intact. For example, CTRL+C still copies to the clipboard, and CTRL+V still pastes from the clipboard.  Although, most of the old ALT+ menu shortcuts still work, you will need to know the full shortcut from memory — you'll have no screen reminders of what letters to press.

Think back to a previous version of Office, when you pressed ALT+E to open the Edit menu and then you pressed the underlined letter in one of the commands on the menu. You can still press ALT, and then press one of the old menu keys E (Edit), V (View), I (Insert), and so on. But a menu won't open. Instead, a box will pop up saying you're using an Office 2007 access key. If you know the entire key sequence, just carry on and initiate the command. If you don't know the sequence, press ESC and use the Key Tip badges instead. 

The Button controls the Options

In earlier versions of Office, you could set options in the Options dialog box, opened through the Tools menu. Many of those options can now be found when you click the Microsoft Office Button, where they are more visible and conveniently close at hand when you start work on old files or new ones.

Click Excel Options, or Word Options, and so on, at the bottom of the menu, and then click any of the categories in the list on the left. For example, in Excel, click Formulas to turn the R1C1 reference style on or off. In Word, click Proofing to turn on or off the feature to check spelling as you type.

What about the new file formats?

In Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 there's a new file format. Why? Increased security for your files; reduced chance of file corruption; reduced file size; and new features.  You will still be able to open a file that was created in Office 95 through 2003.

When you save a file created in a previous version, the default in the Save As dialog box is to save the file as a previous version. You can also select to save the file as a 2007 version.  When you save a file as a previous version, a Compatibility Checker will let you know of any 2007 features that may be disabled, or matched as closely as possible.  Colleagues who have Excel versions 2000 through 2003 (and the latest patches and service packs) can work in your 2007 files. When they click on your document, they will be asked if they want to download a converter that will let them open your document.

Access also has a new file format: .accdb. New databases you create in Access 2007 automatically use the format. You can open and work with the old .mdb format, if those files were saved in Access 2000 or Access 2002-2003. To use the new Access 2007 features in .mdb files, however, you must first use Save As to convert the database to the new format. You cannot open the new format with any version of Access except Access 2007.

What are some highlights of the individual programs?

• Word 2007: Using Building Blocks, you can quickly assemble documents from predefined content.
• Excel 2007: You can now have 1,000,000 rows in a worksheet so that you can import, organize, and explore massive quantities of data quickly and easily with Improved PivotTable®.
• PowerPoint 2007: The new SmartArt diagramming capability dramatically reduces the time needed to create high-impact presentations.
• Outlook 2007: Instant Search is a fast integrated inbox search, and the To-Do Bar efficiently centralizes calendar and task management.
• Access 2007: Tracking Application Templates help users get started faster, and integration with Microsoft Windows® SharePoint® Services improves manageability.
• InfoPath 2007: Office InfoPath 2007 email Forms streamlines information gathering through Office Outlook 2007 email messages.
• Office Publisher 2007: The new Getting Started experience includes a one-click application of branding elements.

Does the 2007 Microsoft Office system require Microsoft Windows Vista to work?

In a nutshell – no.  The 2007 Microsoft Office system is designed to run on Microsoft XP Service Pack 2 and later as well as Windows Vista.

The Microsoft Office 2007 suites contain powerful and easy-to-use productivity and contact management software with new tools to help you save time, stay organized, and deliver better customer service.  You can easily manage your prospect and customer information in one place. Quickly create dynamic documents, spreadsheets, and presentations.  Develop professional-looking marketing materials for print, email, and the Web, and produce effective marketing campaigns in-house.  You can manage your calendar, tasks, and email more efficiently, and filter out unwanted email messages to help keep your computer safe and secure.  And you will spend less time learning new features by using improved menus that present the right tools automatically.  It's definitely something to look forward to for next year.

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