Silicon Valley StRUT (Students Recycling Used Technology)

Office 97, Office 2000, Office XP, Office 2003, and Office 2007 (all version types standard, business,  profession, enterprise) are almost identical in their basic core functions.  It would take a lot of effort to find out the differences.  For most users, we only use the basic core functions. 

Installing prior versions of Office (not Office 2007) on Windows XP or Windows 2000 should not be an issue.  Office 2007 may be installed on Windows XP System but sure the computer is running at least dual core microprocessor. Office 2007 has been completely revamped.  Most noteable is the "look and feel" change.  It does not look anything like any prior versions of Office you expected to see.   Before making the switch from Office XX to Office 2007, find out as much you can about Office 2007 via Microsoft web site or go a Google search.

Most of you may be aware of a free software available on the web called Open Office.  This is a Office alternative if your technology budget is very small and becomes a major issue for your classroom or lab computers.  It works very similar to Microsoft Office.  If you plan to use Open Office, be sure to save your files in Office format (*.doc, *.xls, *.ppt).