What computer are you using?

I am not a gamer but I have a hobby of editing high definition videos; I use a Systemax desktop PC with an Intel i7-2600K CPU @ 3.40 GHz, with 64 bit Windows 7. This is 3 years old and I see that newer ones with the same specs are quite expensive so even though I have typically bought a new computer every 3 years in the past, I'm going to hold off this time because it does not appear to be outdated yet and works fine. I also have a Lenovo Laptop with an i5 processor, 64 bit Windows 8.1 but I don't use it very often since I got a Microsoft Surface Pro 2 for Christmas this past year. I usually do all my serious work, grading online work, etc., on the desktop with a nice big monitor. But this Surface Pro is convenient for travel and actually does everything I need it to do. I was about to write Microsoft off but now my daughter works for Microsoft and I admit that I love the Surface Pro 2, even with Windows 8.1 on it! I do use Classic Shell with Windows 8 which makes it behave and look a lot more like Windows 7, but I still have access to the Windows 8 Apps store.

 

In theory, that may be true. But in practice, somehow, Microsoft's implementation of the XML "standard" is not quite the same as anyone else's. For example, open a document in LibreOffice 4.2 and select "Save As". You'll get a choice of not one, but two .docx formats:

- Microsoft Word 2007/2010/2013 XML (.docx)
- Office Open XML Text (.docx)

Same is true for .xlsx and .pptx files. LibreOffice implies that that "Microsoft XML" is more popular than "Office Open XML", because the former option is near the top of the "Format" menu in "Save As", while the latter option is at the very bottom.

The problem is that it doesn't just have to work for you -- it also has to work for everyone else that you share files with. And the odds are very high that those people have Microsoft Office, rather than LibreOffice.

 

Here's the story, as I understand it:

The "open" standard for Office Open XML (OOXML) was introduced in 2006, as a Microsoft-supported alternative to the open ODF standard. The OOXML standard turned out to be extremely large and complex (the spec runs around 5000 pages). In practice, it has proven very difficult for anyone -- even Microsoft -- to fully implement the OOXML standard, despite its "openness".

Technically, the OOXML file formats used by Office 2007 and Office 2010 are "transitional" OOXML with legacy support -- not "strict" OOXML. So they are not in full compliance with the "open" standard.

Office 2013 finally provided full support for "strict" OOXML (only seven years after the standard was introduced). However, Office 2013 still saves files in "transitional" OOXML format by default. Users can switch to "strict" OOXML" instead -- but then there may be a loss of fidelity when legacy "transitional" OOXML files are imported. Turns out that everybody wants to keep their legacy OOXML files intact, so nobody actually uses "strict" OOXML.

So in theory, OOXML is an "open" standard, but in practice, everyone uses a special MS dialect of that standard. And nobody else can guarantee 100% compliance with either "transitional OOXML" or "strict OOXML". LibreOffice (and OpenOffice, AbiWord, Gnumeric, etc) are designed for the ODF standard.

 

I just picked up a Macbook Pro 13' with the retina display. It was $1,424 but I got $250 discount for being a college student through an Apple/ BestBuy promotional program.

So as a PC guy, I crossed over to the dark side. Its like learning how to walk again; while intoxicated, up hill, in the snow, while wearing diving fins.

 

Ha ha, loved the last line. I too use a MacBook Pro 15 at home, and a PC at work. I'm considering on purchasing the new Surface Pro Tablet, it loos pretty cool.

 

LAPTOP:
HP Pavilion g7 w/ 17" widescreen monitor
AMD A8-4500M 1.9GHz Quad-Core APU w/ Radeon HD Graphics
6GB RAM, DVD/CD burner, HDMI, USB ports, etc.
Altec Lansing speakers w/ Dolby Advanced Audio
Windows 8.1 (hated at first, but used to it now)
Original Price: $500
I Paid: $300 - Red tag clearance at Wally World (aka Walmart) - HAPPY DANCE GOES HERE :smile:
I've not had any problems with this laptop, even when watching or encoding HD video, but I bought an extended warranty just in case. The Toshiba Intel Core i3 laptop this replaced couldn't play or even encode HD video without overheating and shutting down to save itself, although it was supposed to be able to do both, so said Toshiba and Intel.

DESKTOP:
My desktop is my baby, because I spec'd it out and built it myself (2012). Yes, I am a nerd/geek GIRL (and proud). :yup:

OS: Dual boot of Windows 7 Pro and Linux Mint Cinnamon (I'm a Linux fangirl from way back & also am going to start learning Python)

Motherboard: ASUS M5A97 Socket AM3+ Full ATX DDR3

CPU: AMD FX-8150 8-Core 3.6GHz CPU Black Edition

Power Supply: Corsair Gaming 800 Watt PSU

Memory: 16 GB DDR3-10666 RAM

Cooling: Corsair H60 CPU liquid cooling + 4 case fans

Graphics: GeForce GTX 570 HD 1280MB GDDR5 Dual PCI-E 2.0 DVI/HDMI/DisplayPort SLI Ready graphics card

Hard Drive: (2) 1TB Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s & (1) 500GB Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s internal

CD/DVD Burner: Lite-On Blu-Ray (able to play *and* burn Blu-Ray DVDs as well as regular CDs and DVDs)

Monitor: 23" HP widescreen IPS LCD

Media Reader: Kingston USB 3.0 Media Card Reader (reads 4 different kinds of media cards)

I had to have a desktop strong enough to do pro video editing and processing when I was in film school*, and it was cheaper to build it than buy it since I already had the skills.

*I washed out because I wasn't healthy enough (lupus and complications) to do the month-long on-site residency, that was held only once a year and was the prerequisite to the rest of the courses, and therefore couldn't progress in the program. :disappointed:

 

It's funny that you pointed this out. My last computer/ software purchase was more than 6 years ago. So when I got my current system I noticed that the licensing for Microsoft had an expiration date which would force me to renew. I remember thinking, "WTF is up with that?" I guess I never heard that this was the growing trend for Microsoft. I was still under the impression that once you got the software that its yours forever. I guess ignorance is bliss, lol.

On a related note, I do like my new Macbook Pro with the Microsoft Office package. The computers build quality is sturdy and the display (although small) is pretty nice. Even though every once in a while I try to do something and I have no clue how to do it; but overall I'm happy with it.:banana:

 

Under the old system, if someone bought, say, Office 97, then in theory they owned it forever. But in practice, Office 97 didn't last forever -- after a few years, Office 97 owners would want to upgrade to Office 2000, and then to Office 2003, etc.

And of course, those weren't free upgrades. So in reality, Office owners would keep making regular payments to Microsoft -- even though their original software purchase was "forever".

The problem (for Microsoft) is that more and more people are getting tired of this perpetual upgrade cycle. They don't really see any point in paying Microsoft to upgrade from, say, Office 2007 or Office 2010 to the latest Office 2013 -- they are basically happy with the old version, which already has all of the features that they need. They really do plan to keep using their old software "forever".

So Microsoft has introduced the subscription model, to keep getting regular payments from Office users. If you don't like the idea that your software has an expiration date, then it's still possible to simply buy Office once, and to use it forever. You won't get the latest upgrades automatically (as you would with the subscription), but maybe you don't need them.

 

Here is my monitor set-up, which allows constant up-to-date information on degree mills from every sector of the globe. :wink:

 

Dam Bro . . . . you need a GF (That isn't Anime) :nana:

 

Ditto. I really need a light weight laptop and I'm finally ready to stop fighting against getting an Apple but not knowing how to use it, my need for Microsoft Office and the price terrifies me.

 

WHOA! Now that's what I call impressive.