Microsoft gets a lot of flack for big bloated software and in many cases I’ll be the first one to agree. What they don’t get a lot of praise for is the software that they get right.
In that camp most definitely has to be Windows Live Writer. While this isn’t a program that would appeal to a large base of users for bloggers it is one of the best blog editors out there. The other really nice thing about it is that it is a part of the large free Windows Live Essentials pack.
Now the one thing that I would love even better is if Microsoft took their OneNote application out of the bloated expensive Office suite and made it available for free as part of the Essentials pack. For those of you not familiar with the program it is one of the best note taking applications around.
I would even be happy if they made it a slimmed down version – say with out the sharing feature. Granted you can buy the full blown version separately from Office for $99; but seriously if they want to even come close to being a competitor to something like Evernote that kind of sticker price is going to be a holdback.
So how about it Microsoft. How about a slimmed down version and including it with the Essentials pack. I can almost promise you that if you did you would have another big hit of a program on your hands.
Hey Steven, OneNote is included with Office 2007 Home & Student edition (with Word, Escel, and PowerPoint). List price is $149 (US) but it’s regularly discounted to $99 or less. (I’ve seen it as low as $79.)
Microsoft is including OneNote in every edition of Office 2010, which means they think it’s a flagship product and they think people will pay for it. Lots of nice improvements!
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I’m grabbing the 2010 Beta right now (Home Office edition) and maybe I’ll be able to afford to buy it before the beta key runs out in October.
Still think a slimmed down version would be a good idea
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Kent Newsome, Steven Hodson, WinExtra, WinExtra, WinExtra and others. WinExtra said: Post: One of the things I would really like to see Microsoft do – http://clicky.me/AkL [...]
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I personally tend to favour SSuite Office’s free office software. Their software also don’t need to run on Java or .NET, like so many open source office software, so it makes their applications very small and efficient.
http://www.ssuitesoft.com
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