So many of you guys and gals are so much more knowledgeable about computer stuff than I am, I'm hoping someone can answer this basic question.
I just bought a new laptop (finally!),which came pre-loaded with a basic Office suite w/Word, Excel and Powerpoint. Because of the anti-trust stuff, M'soft no longer bundles the software for free, but offers a 60-day trial period. I actually want that basic Office suite, and was told by the Best Buy sales dude that if I had another computer with the Office discs, that M'soft allows up to three installations of the software. Sure enough, I bought my wife a Dell computer a few years ago, and it came pre-loaded with the 2003 version of that software, as well as the original installation disc.
a) Can I legally install this program on our new laptop?
b) Will it work with Vista?
c) If a & b are yes, do I have to uninstall the Office suite now on the laptop and install fresh from the CD, or can I just use the product key from the Office 2003 software?
Todd, I work for a computer store and we sell this suite. If it is the RETAIL home/student version, it does come with 3 licenses and as long as you haven't used them all up, you are home free. If it came as part of Dell's package, it may not work since their stuff is usually proprietary and one user only. Look for documentation to see if it says 3 users.
If you attempt to install on your new PC, go into the control panel first and click on add/remove programs and uninstall the trial version to prevent conflicts. Then install from the disk your wife has and you are all set. You can't use the keycode you have with the pre-installed stuff, it won't work. My initial thought though is that Dell pays MS for the license and it is 1 user.
Thanks, Jack, that's very helpful info. Is there any way to tell if it's a one-license or three-license version short of installing the software?
Posted by Jack Garrett on May 11, 2009 at 12:26 AM
The package we sell in the store says right on it that it includes 3 activations. The key code is the same and when you go online to activate it, Microsoft keeps track of the number of times it has been activated. The problem with proprietary packs like Dell is they have a volume license so if you try to install their pack on a non Dell product, you most likely won't be able to activate it. I'm almost certain that you have a single user license since it was purchased through Dell. Only the retail version has a multiple user license....and only the Student/Home version has it...none of the other office suites have it. sorry!
Thanks! It's only $150 new, plus I have a sister-in-law who works at M'Soft, and she gets a family discount. Being in the programming side of things, she didn't know the answers to my questions.
Todd, The dell license of M$ Office should work just fine on your new laptop as long as you haven't installed it too many times. If you have installed it too many times it just requires a phone call to tell them that you got a new computer and are installing it because your old one died. I have a stack of them at my desk that all came from dell and they all work just fine.
It appears you've gotten to the answer you needed, but for future reference there are a couple great alternatives to MS Office.
1 - free - Open Office includes all the basic Office stuff except outlook. The current version 3 even opens the new xml formatted files (.docx, xlsx, etc...) I use this on my home computer though I can get office free now through my work. I can even integrate .doc and .xls files created in open office with InDesign. Mozilla makes a mail app like Outlook if you have a POP3 mail service, also free.
2 - more than free but much less than Office ~$40 - Star Office. Same as above but more features.
Discussion
9 repliesI just bought a new laptop (finally!),which came pre-loaded with a basic Office suite w/Word, Excel and Powerpoint. Because of the anti-trust stuff, M'soft no longer bundles the software for free, but offers a 60-day trial period. I actually want that basic Office suite, and was told by the Best Buy sales dude that if I had another computer with the Office discs, that M'soft allows up to three installations of the software. Sure enough, I bought my wife a Dell computer a few years ago, and it came pre-loaded with the 2003 version of that software, as well as the original installation disc.
a) Can I legally install this program on our new laptop?
b) Will it work with Vista?
c) If a & b are yes, do I have to uninstall the Office suite now on the laptop and install fresh from the CD, or can I just use the product key from the Office 2003 software?
Thanks!
If you attempt to install on your new PC, go into the control panel first and click on add/remove programs and uninstall the trial version to prevent conflicts. Then install from the disk your wife has and you are all set. You can't use the keycode you have with the pre-installed stuff, it won't work. My initial thought though is that Dell pays MS for the license and it is 1 user.
Jack
Jack
Jack
1 - free - Open Office includes all the basic Office stuff except outlook. The current version 3 even opens the new xml formatted files (.docx, xlsx, etc...) I use this on my home computer though I can get office free now through my work. I can even integrate .doc and .xls files created in open office with InDesign. Mozilla makes a mail app like Outlook if you have a POP3 mail service, also free.
2 - more than free but much less than Office ~$40 - Star Office. Same as above but more features.