We have had Microsoft Works installed on our computers for years, but I have never gotten really fond of it. The word processor is usable but not terribly user-friendly, and I found we were missing Word a lot more than I realized we would when I lost custody of the computer that had Word during my recent divorce.

I have four children in school, and I am also a part-time student. I had decided we needed to have Word in this house again, and went searching at Amazon a few weeks ago. I had never heard of the Microsoft Office XP Standard for Students and Teachers before, but I was impressed. And at a price of $149 with a $40 rebate I figured we couldn't go wrong.


Pluses to Purchasing This Program

This is a scaled-down version of Microsoft Office, but it has the four main programs that are used by most people. These are: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft PowerPoint. My kids use Word at school, and while they were able to make the word processor in Works function adequately, it still made things incredibly difficult if they needed to transfer data from school to home via diskette.

Expense. The full-size version of Microsoft Office can cost several hundred dollars. If all you are looking for is a home-version for your kids and/or you to use for educational purposes, the Microsoft Office XP Standard for Students and Teachers is a great way to go. It ends up costing approximately $100 after the mail-in rebate offered currently at www.Amazon.com, and for that price how can you go wrong? You do have to print the rebate form off the web site and mail it in; be sure to do this if you want to save the extra money.

Useability. This program is easy to use and very user-friendly. It comes with three CD's; the installation CD, a content CD, and a Step by Step Interactive Training CD. We are all pretty much Word-friendly, so I have not had to use the training CD at this point. I do think my kids might decide to when they first put together a PowerPoint presentation, however, so I am quite sure it will come in handy. The content CD contains more than 24,000 images, animations, and sounds to help make your schoolwork impressive and memorable; what a great feature!

Soft Cover Manual. I find it incredibly frustrating when I purchase a computer program and there is no hard-copy users manual. I really hate having to go online or even to the CD and print my own copy of a manual; it is just not the same as having an actual book that stands up appropriately on the computer bookshelf and is easy reference material. Microsoft Office XP Standard for Students and Teachers comes with a nicely-designed users manual that contains 191 pages and contains very helpful information for the user of this program. We have referred to it several times and I envision that we will continue to refer to it in the future.

Installation. Installation of this product was very easy to accomplish; simply insert the CD and follow the instructions. I rather like programs like this; it does most of the work for you. Nice!


Negatives About This Product

Upgrade Status. This program cannot be upgraded. I consider this a minor negative, as I can't really envision that we will need to upgrade it. The program has so far proven useful and I expect that we will continue to use it for a long time to come without needing to upgrade it.


Important Thing to Know

This version of Microsoft Office is a non-commercial version for Students and Teachers only. This means it can't be used by businesses or for commercial purposes. If that is your reason for owning Microsoft Office, you will want to avoid purchasing this product. The guidelines are very specific as to the appropriate and inappropriate uses of this product.


Final Assessment

If you want Word, Excel, Outlook, or PowerPoint at home for educational use this is a wonderful program to purchase. The price is right, and you get a lot of bang for your buck. My kids are delighted to have Word in the house again, as am I. A wonderful purchase, and I am very happy with every penny spent.

I purchased my copy of Microsoft Office XP Standard for Student and Teachers from Amazon.com. I am sure it is available elsewhere online and in real-life stores that sell computer software; it is undoubtedly an excellent purchase.





Recommended: Yes