(Read the entire column on Office Online)

Sometimes you just need a little something to tide you over until a new version of Office is released: an add-in, an update, a white paper to prevent your Office programs from going all flabby on you. A nip here, a tuck there ... a quick visit to Office downloads can make you feel alive again.

Think of a trip to the Microsoft Office Downloads Web site like a trip to the bank, the grocery store, or even the cosmetic surgeon: Sometimes you just need to boost your power, stock up on necessities, or perhaps add a little fluff and well-being to your computing lifestyle. Office offers a variety of downloads designed to give you all of that and much, much more.

There's a significant difference between a trip to Office Downloads and a trip to, say, the plastic surgeon: All of our downloads are free. That's right: F-R-E-E. As in complimentary, gratis. On the other hand, as I view it, there are two parallels between plastic surgery and Office downloads:

  1. Certain cosmetic procedures (Botox injections, liposuction, chemical peels) and certain Office downloads (PowerPoint Viewer 2007, Office Sounds, and Microsoft Save As PDF or XPS) tend to be more popular than the other offerings among the general population.
  2. Conversely, certain cosmetic procedures (such as buttocks implants) and certain Office downloads (such as the Microsoft Visual Keyboard add-in, where you can type in more than one language on the same computer) are often overlooked, hidden gems — things that you should perhaps explore more fully before passing judgment.

Define the terms

If you're a regular Crabby reader, you know that I sometimes like to define some terms before jumping into the topic at hand. That way I know we're all on the same page. Rather than pelt all of you with that dry information, I've stuck it on a different page that you can refer to at your leisure: Gimme the lowdown on downloads: Defining the terms.

When you just gotta have it

If you feel you must have the Live Search Maps Add-In for Microsoft Office Outlook because you jealously noticed that your office-mate has it and you don't (known as "add-in envy"), you can just march right on over to the Office Downloads site and get it!

Add-ins are an example of a type of download that you can decide if you want to download or not; they tend to be yummy nuggets of enhanced features designed to make your life more fun, such as:

  • Microsoft Math an add-in for Word 2007 that makes it easy to create graphs, perform calculations, and solve for variables with equations created in Word
  • Get Started Tab for PowerPoint 2007 is an add-in for PowerPoint that gives you easy access to free content on Office Online that helps you learn PowerPoint 2007. (The Get Started Tab add-in is also available for Excel 2007 and Word 2007).

And let's not leave out the other sorts of downloads, such as viewers (that allow you and others to view Word, PowerPoint, Excel, or Visio documents without having those programs installed), publications (providing you with in-depth information on the various Office programs), demos (that let you see how a product, service, or feature works), and even audio downloads (hear The Crabby Office Lady talk about OneNote — why it's the program choice for taking notes).

The how, when, and where of downloads and installations

Now that we have some of the major terms figured out, when it comes to how to find, when to find, and where to find Office downloads, I'm here to tell you that there is more than one way to skin a cat. However, being a lover of all animals (except Lancey, the next-door-cat who snatched a baby bird from its nest right in front of my daughter), I won't be sharing that information with you today (even if I knew, myself — which I don't ... and isn't that a shame for baby birds everywhere). I can, however, give you some advice — or at least ideas — about the how, when, and where of Office downloads.

To learn more about what sorts of downloads are available, where to find them, and  how to tell if your computer is up to date, read my Crabby Office Lady column on Office Online.

 

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." — Thomas Edison

-- Crabby

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