Microsoft Office

What is Microsoft Office?

Microsoft Office is a packet of server software, client software, and services developed by Microsoft. Using Microsoft Office, owners can analyze and visualize data using Excel, communicate through email by using Outlook, write documents in Word, and create presentations with PowerPoint. Over time these applications have become key within businesses worldwide. 

Microsoft Office: Versions

1. The Microsoft Office for Windows
2. Office 1.5
3. Office 1.6
4. Office 2.5
5. Office 3.0
6. Office 4.0
7. Office 3.2
8. Office 95
9. Office 97
10. Office 2000
11. Office XP
12. Office 2003
13. Office 2007
14. Office 2010
15. Office 2013
16. Office 2016
17. Office 2019
18. Office 2021

Microsoft Office: Editions

Since the release of Microsoft Office 2016, 5 different editions have been released every time a new version is released. These 5 editions all include different applications:

1. Microsoft Office Home & Student: PowerPoint, Word, Excel, and OneNote.
2. Microsoft Office Home & Business: PowerPoint, Word, Excel, OneNote, and Outlook.
3. Microsoft Office Standard: PowerPoint, Word, Excel, OneNote, Outlook, and Publisher.
4. Microsoft Office Professional: PowerPoint, Word, Excel, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access.
5. Microsoft Office Professional Plus: PowerPoint, Word, Excel, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, Access, and Skype. 

Microsoft Office: Applications

Word: over the years, word has become one of the most, if not the most, used Software worldwide. Word allows users to create, produce, and edit different types of documents. The more people work with Word the more possibilities come with the software such as hyperlink creation, bookmark setting, certain formatting techniques, and the inserting of audio, video, and images. 

Excel: Excel is a spreadsheet program where users can organize, format, and calculate data. It allows its users to create a clearer overview of data in the form of different spreadsheets.  

PowerPoint: PowerPoint has become the obvious choice when creating a presentation. Its different layouts, the creation of charts and tables, animations, and a lot more features provide an almost unlimited number of ways to customize business projects. 

Outlook: Outlook is mainly used for sending emails but can also be used for organizing calendars, creating appointments, assembling contact lists, and more. 

Microsoft Office: History

Microsoft Office was launched by the CEO of Microsoft Bill Gates in 1988. The first Microsoft Office version only contained Word, PowerPoint, and Excel and was created to help users write documents and create presentations and spreadsheets on their Windows PCs.  

In 1996 Microsoft released Office 97 which was the first version to receive extended support. Two years later, Office 2000 was released which was the first version to receive extended support of 5 years. 

Office 2003, which was released in 2003, was the first version that only supported NT-based operating systems. Windows New Technology (NT) is a bundle of operating systems Microsoft developed. Additionally, Office 2003 was the first version that included OneNote. 

Office 2007 was the first version of Microsoft Office that supported Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10. 

Office 2016 was the first version to support Windows 11 and the final version to receive an extended support of 5 years. Microsoft Office 2019 was the first version to only have an extended support of 2 years. The latest version, Microsoft Office 2021, was the first version that was released without an extended support date. 

Microsoft Office: End of Support

For the Microsoft Office versions that are still supported, these are the End of Support dates:

1. Microsoft Office 2016 received mainstream support until October 13^th, 2020. On that day the mainstream support was replaced by extended support and will last until October 14^th, 2025.
2. Microsoft Office 2019 received mainstream support until October 10^th, 2023. It was replaced by extended support which will last until October 14^th, 2023.
3. Microsoft Office 2021 still receives Microsoft’s mainstream support. The mainstream support ends on October 13^th, 2026, and will not be replaced by extended support.