Multiple Office Versions

[AG]

I have multple versions of Office installed on my machine. Prior to Office
2007, whichever version of Excel that I used last is what Windows would open
an xls file with. E.G. If I last used Excel 2003, then opened Windows
Explorer and double click on an xls file, it would open in Excel 2003.
Now that I have installed Office 2007, an xls file is ALWAYS opened with
Excel 2007. This is not desirable.
Is there any way I can get the 'old' behavior back?

Thanks,

 

[Spencer.Sadkin]

Dont know exactly how to do the behavior you describe but two options
are :

1) If you want excel 2007 to be used just open the file, but if you
want 2003 to be used open excel 2003 and then open the file (doesnt
have to be from excel 2003, can be from windows explorer) if you have
both 2003 and 2007 open at the same time whichever one is active will
be where the file opens

2) Set your default for .xls extension with windows

 

[AG]

Thanks for the quick reply.
I am aware of those options, but they are not really practical for my
situation.
I am a developer and have versions 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2007 installed. I
often write routines for my clients to export data from different versions
of Access (97, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2007) to Excel. I always try to test
using the same version that my client has and under similar conditions (like
Excel not already open).
There was never a problem prior to Office 2007 and I am hoping someone has a
fix.

 

[Peter T]

whichever version of Excel that I used last is what

Windows would open an xls file with

I assume by that you mean, with multiple versions running, clicking on an
xls from file will load in the last active instance. Otherwise I assume,
with no instances running the file will open in whichever version is
registered as the current version, typically the last installed.

Are you saying for example, with an old version of Excel running and Excel
2007 not running, when you click on an xls it will open in a new instance of
Excel 2007.

Regards,
Peter T

 

[AG]

Thanks for the reply Peter.

I do not (and would not purposely) have more than one version open at the
same time, as I know that there are some registry settings that change
depending on which version is running. Evidenced by the 'Installing' dialog
that pops up with some versions.

With Word, Access and Excel (prior to 2007), the 'last opened', not 'last
installed' version is registered as the current version.
In other words, prior to 2007, if I opened Excel 2002, then closed it and
double click on an xls file, it would open with Excel 2002.
If I closed Excel and opened Excel 2000, then double click on the same xls
file, it would open with Excel 2000.
If I closed Excel and opened Excel 2003, then double click on the same xls
file, it would open with Excel 2003.

Now that I have installed Office 2007, whenever I double click on an xls
file, it opens with Excel 2007, no matter which was the 'last opened'
version.
Only Excel is exhibiting this behavior. Access and Word still use the 'last
opened' version.

 

[Jialiang Ge [MSFT]]

Hello AG,

The behavior of double-clicking Office files in Windows Explorer when
multiple versions of Office are installed on one computer is documented at
the KB article:

Information about using 2007 Office suites and programs on a computer that
is running another version of Office
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928091/en-us
and
Information about running multiple versions of Office with Office 2003
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/828956/
and
How to run multiple versions of Office on one computer
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q290576/

(See the section "Double-clicking files in Windows Explorer")

*1. For Microsoft Access and Microsoft Word*

If no version of the program in which the document was created is running,
the document is opened in the version of the program that was most recently
open. As you have seen, this behavior persists in Microsoft Access 2007 and
Microsoft Word 2007.

To change the association of Access and Word, we need to refer to the KB
article http://support.microsoft.com/kb/141275/.

*2. For the rest Microsoft Office applications.*

The document mentioned that Office 95, 97, 2000, or XP replies on the "last
installation", and to reassociate documents with the programs included with
a particular version of Office, we need to run the Office Setup program and
click Reinstall (for versions 95 or 97) or Repair Office (for Office 2000
or Office XP). Doing this registers the file associations for that version
of Office.

In other words, the recommended/official approach to reassociate Excel
workbooks with a certain version of Office is by re-installing/repairing
that version of Office. Also note that, if you install a software update
for a version of Office, the software update repairs that version of
Office. You may have to repair some or all Office products after you
install a software update to restore the file associations.

I believe that these KB articles are clear enough to explain the symptom
you are experiencing, and they provide a resolution of the problem. I can
also understand your concerns that Excel makes the file re-association more
difficult than Word and Access. It is my pleasure to help send a wish to
our product designers via internal channel and convey your concerns. You
are also welcome to add your supplements to make Microsoft products easier
and more powerful to use by submitting a ticket in
https://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio. Please let me know if you have
any other concerns, or need anything else.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

==================================================
Get notification to my posts through email? Please refer to
http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/managednewsgroups/default.aspx#notif
ications.

Note: The MSDN Managed Newsgroup support offering is for non-urgent issues
where an initial response from the community or a Microsoft Support
Engineer within 1 business day is acceptable. Please note that each follow
up response may take approximately 2 business days as the support
professional working with you may need further investigation to reach the
most efficient resolution. The offering is not appropriate for situations
that require urgent, real-time or phone-based interactions or complex
project analysis and dump analysis issues. Issues of this nature are best
handled working with a dedicated Microsoft Support Engineer by contacting
Microsoft Customer Support Services (CSS) at
http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/support/default.aspx.
==================================================
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[AG]

Thanks for the info Jialiang.
The articles are very informative, but basically, you are saying the the
behavior is 'by design' and I am stuck with it.
What happened to consistency, standardization and promoting developer
productivity?
Even if I right click an xls file and select 'open with', there is no other
version of Excel available in the list to choose from.

I have posted the issue to the Connect site, though I don't believe it is
the correct forum for the issue.
--

AG
Email: discussATadhdataDOTcom

Hello AG,

The behavior of double-clicking Office files in Windows Explorer when
multiple versions of Office are installed on one computer is documented at
the KB article:

Information about using 2007 Office suites and programs on a computer that
is running another version of Office
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928091/en-us
and
Information about running multiple versions of Office with Office 2003
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/828956/
and
How to run multiple versions of Office on one computer
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q290576/

(See the section "Double-clicking files in Windows Explorer")

*1. For Microsoft Access and Microsoft Word*

If no version of the program in which the document was created is running,
the document is opened in the version of the program that was most
recently
open. As you have seen, this behavior persists in Microsoft Access 2007
and
Microsoft Word 2007.

To change the association of Access and Word, we need to refer to the KB
article http://support.microsoft.com/kb/141275/.

*2. For the rest Microsoft Office applications.*

The document mentioned that Office 95, 97, 2000, or XP replies on the
"last
installation", and to reassociate documents with the programs included
with
a particular version of Office, we need to run the Office Setup program
and
click Reinstall (for versions 95 or 97) or Repair Office (for Office 2000
or Office XP). Doing this registers the file associations for that version
of Office.

In other words, the recommended/official approach to reassociate Excel
workbooks with a certain version of Office is by re-installing/repairing
that version of Office. Also note that, if you install a software update
for a version of Office, the software update repairs that version of
Office. You may have to repair some or all Office products after you
install a software update to restore the file associations.

I believe that these KB articles are clear enough to explain the symptom
you are experiencing, and they provide a resolution of the problem. I can
also understand your concerns that Excel makes the file re-association
more
difficult than Word and Access. It is my pleasure to help send a wish to
our product designers via internal channel and convey your concerns. You
are also welcome to add your supplements to make Microsoft products easier
and more powerful to use by submitting a ticket in
https://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio. Please let me know if you have
any other concerns, or need anything else.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

==================================================
Get notification to my posts through email? Please refer to
http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/managednewsgroups/default.aspx#notif
ications.

Note: The MSDN Managed Newsgroup support offering is for non-urgent issues
where an initial response from the community or a Microsoft Support
Engineer within 1 business day is acceptable. Please note that each follow
up response may take approximately 2 business days as the support
professional working with you may need further investigation to reach the
most efficient resolution. The offering is not appropriate for situations
that require urgent, real-time or phone-based interactions or complex
project analysis and dump analysis issues. Issues of this nature are best
handled working with a dedicated Microsoft Support Engineer by contacting
Microsoft Customer Support Services (CSS) at
http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/support/default.aspx.
==================================================
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
rights.

 

[Jialiang Ge [MSFT]]

Hello AG,

I can understand that you are frustrated by the experience of multiple
versions of Office on one computer. In order to re-associate the xls files
with a particular version of Office, the documented approach is to
Reinstall or Repair that version of Office (see the section 2 "For the rest
Microsoft Office applications" in my last reply). The "open with" method
only works for Microsoft Access and Word (see the section 1 "For Microsoft
Access and Microsoft Word" in my last reply).

The product team indeed has spent a lot of "invisible" efforts on improving
the developer's productivity when multiple versions of Office are installed:

KB: Office automation when multiple versions of Office are installed
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/292491
(See the "Additional Notes" section.)
<quote>
For testing purposes, developers can force a specific version of an Office
application to register by using the /regserver switch on the command line.
For example, to force an Excel version to register without running setup,
you can use a command line that resembles the following:
"c:\program files\microsoft office\office\excel.exe" /regserver
Although you can implement this switch for testing and development
purposes, it is not recommended that you rely on this switch in production
scenarios.
</quote>

Regarding your concerns on our products' consistency and standardization, I
do not find Microsoft document that says "whichever version of Excel that I
used last is what Windows would open
an xls file with". On the contrary, the KB articles in my last reply
explicitly tell that, for the current Microsoft Office applications, except
Microsoft Word and Access, the file opens in the version of the program
that you most recently installed. And to associate files with the programs
that are included with a particular version of Office, run the Office Setup
program, and then click Repair Office. When you do this, the file
associations for that version of Office are registered. I hope my response
to your concerns does not hurt or disappoint you. I'm doing my best to
explain the issue to you openly and objectively, and I will surely convey
your concerns to the product group. Thanks.

Last but not least, I'd appreciated it if you send your feedbacks on my
quality of support service to my manager: (e-mail address removed). Your
suggestions will be where I can improve myself and personalize my services
for you in our future collaborations. Thanks for your time.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
=================================================

 

[Peter T]

Hi Jialiang,

I am slightly confused by the documentation and your respective posts. This
may be due to slight difference in how respective Office applications
respond with multiple installed versions.

My experience with multiple Excel versions, but not Excel 2007, is as I
outlined in my first post, namely -

If no instance of Excel is running, clicking an xls from file will open in
the "current version", irrespective as to which version was last running.
For me, as I installed in oldest to newest order, the current version is the
newest version.

However, if one or more versions are running, clicking an xls from file will
open in whichever was the last active instance.

Your first post and the documentation appeared confirm the OP's different
experience to mine, that an xls will open in which ever version was last
running (if no versions are currently running).


Although I don't have Excel 2007 to test, I assume the OP can ensure his xls
the opens in the desired version by dragging the file into an already
running instance. Alternatively could set up shortcut icons on the desktop
to each Excel-ver.exe, and drag the file onto the shortcut.

Regards,
Peter T

Hello AG,

I can understand that you are frustrated by the experience of multiple
versions of Office on one computer. In order to re-associate the xls files
with a particular version of Office, the documented approach is to
Reinstall or Repair that version of Office (see the section 2 "For the rest
Microsoft Office applications" in my last reply). The "open with" method
only works for Microsoft Access and Word (see the section 1 "For Microsoft
Access and Microsoft Word" in my last reply).

The product team indeed has spent a lot of "invisible" efforts on improving
the developer's productivity when multiple versions of Office are installed:

KB: Office automation when multiple versions of Office are installed
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/292491
(See the "Additional Notes" section.)
<quote>
For testing purposes, developers can force a specific version of an Office
application to register by using the /regserver switch on the command line.
For example, to force an Excel version to register without running setup,
you can use a command line that resembles the following:
"c:\program files\microsoft office\office\excel.exe" /regserver
Although you can implement this switch for testing and development
purposes, it is not recommended that you rely on this switch in production
scenarios.
</quote>

Regarding your concerns on our products' consistency and standardization, I
do not find Microsoft document that says "whichever version of Excel that I
used last is what Windows would open
an xls file with". On the contrary, the KB articles in my last reply
explicitly tell that, for the current Microsoft Office applications, except
Microsoft Word and Access, the file opens in the version of the program
that you most recently installed. And to associate files with the programs
that are included with a particular version of Office, run the Office Setup
program, and then click Repair Office. When you do this, the file
associations for that version of Office are registered. I hope my response
to your concerns does not hurt or disappoint you. I'm doing my best to
explain the issue to you openly and objectively, and I will surely convey
your concerns to the product group. Thanks.

Last but not least, I'd appreciated it if you send your feedbacks on my
quality of support service to my manager: (e-mail address removed). Your
suggestions will be where I can improve myself and personalize my services
for you in our future collaborations. Thanks for your time.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
=================================================

 

[Jialiang Ge [MSFT]]

Hello Peter,

Your first post and the documentation appeared confirm the OP's
different experience to mine, that an xls will open in which ever
version was last running (if no versions are currently running).

In my first reply, I'm trying to say that Word and Access document will
open in whichever version that was last run (see my point 1 "For Microsoft
Access and Microsoft Word"), but this does not apply to the other Office
applications (e.g. Excel). For xls, the recommended way to re-associate the
files is to reinstall/repair that version of Excel. (see my point 2 "For
the rest Microsoft Office applications.) I'm sorry if my words were not
clear and caused your misunderstanding.

Although I don't have Excel 2007 to test, I assume the OP can ensure
his xls the opens in the desired version by dragging the file into an
already running instance. Alternatively could set up shortcut icons
on the desktop to each Excel-ver.exe, and drag the file onto the
shortcut.

Yes, dragging the file (xls) into an running instance of Excel can open the
file in that specific version of Excel. However, I think AG's concern is
not on it. AG, am I right? I think your concern is on the default
application (Excel 2003 or Excel 2007) used to open a xls when the xls is
double clicked in Windows Explorer. The recommended solution to adjust the
default application (Excel 2003 or Excel 2007) is by reinstalling /
repairing that version of Excel.

Peter and AG, if you still have anything unclear, please DON'T hesitate to
tell me.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
=================================================

 

[AG]

Jialiang,

Thanks, I will try the command line. If that works, I can put it into a bat
file. At least it is better than reinstalling.

I tried exporting some data from Access 2000 to Excel using the switch to
open the new file, while I had Excel 2003 already open. Guess what, the file
still opened in Excel 2007. That left me with two versions of Excel open,
which I believe Microsoft recommends against. If so, then that is a bug, not
a 'feature'.

BTW, I got a response to my 'Connect' post. I was correct in that it is the
wrong forum for an Office issue. The correct forum is here, in a managed
newsgroup. Therefore, as the 'Microsoft Support Professional', I think it is
up to you to submit the issue to the product team.
Yes, I understand that they put a lot of effort into improving productivity,
but it seems that whenever they give us something, they take something else
away.

--

AG
Email: discussATadhdataDOTcom

Hello AG,

I can understand that you are frustrated by the experience of multiple
versions of Office on one computer. In order to re-associate the xls files
with a particular version of Office, the documented approach is to
Reinstall or Repair that version of Office (see the section 2 "For the
rest
Microsoft Office applications" in my last reply). The "open with" method
only works for Microsoft Access and Word (see the section 1 "For Microsoft
Access and Microsoft Word" in my last reply).

The product team indeed has spent a lot of "invisible" efforts on
improving
the developer's productivity when multiple versions of Office are
installed:

KB: Office automation when multiple versions of Office are installed
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/292491
(See the "Additional Notes" section.)
<quote>
For testing purposes, developers can force a specific version of an Office
application to register by using the /regserver switch on the command
line.
For example, to force an Excel version to register without running setup,
you can use a command line that resembles the following:
"c:\program files\microsoft office\office\excel.exe" /regserver
Although you can implement this switch for testing and development
purposes, it is not recommended that you rely on this switch in production
scenarios.
</quote>

Regarding your concerns on our products' consistency and standardization,
I
do not find Microsoft document that says "whichever version of Excel that
I
used last is what Windows would open
an xls file with". On the contrary, the KB articles in my last reply
explicitly tell that, for the current Microsoft Office applications,
except
Microsoft Word and Access, the file opens in the version of the program
that you most recently installed. And to associate files with the programs
that are included with a particular version of Office, run the Office
Setup
program, and then click Repair Office. When you do this, the file
associations for that version of Office are registered. I hope my response
to your concerns does not hurt or disappoint you. I'm doing my best to
explain the issue to you openly and objectively, and I will surely convey
your concerns to the product group. Thanks.

Last but not least, I'd appreciated it if you send your feedbacks on my
quality of support service to my manager: (e-mail address removed). Your
suggestions will be where I can improve myself and personalize my services
for you in our future collaborations. Thanks for your time.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
rights.
=================================================

 

[Jialiang Ge [MSFT]]

Good morning AG,

I tried exporting some data from Access 2000 to Excel using the switch
to open the new file, while I had Excel 2003 already open. Guess what,
the file still opened in Excel 2007. That left me with two versions of
Excel open, which I believe Microsoft recommends against. If so, then
that is a bug, not a 'feature'.

First of all, I'm sorry if this problem ends up with an issue of our
product.
I'm trying to reproduce the symptom in my environment: Office 2003 + Office
2007 + Windows XP with all the patches. Would you please check whether my
steps are the same as yours?

I installed Office 2003 prior to Office 2007.
1. I opened my Excel 2003 from the Start menu. (no Excel 2007 instance is
running at the moment)
2. I created a mdb with a table "Table1" in Access 2003.
3. I right clicked the table and choose "Export" in the context menu.
4. In the "Export Table To¡­" dialog, I selected "Microsoft Excel
97-2003(*.xls)" as the file type, input "File name" and checked both "Save
formatted" and "Autostart".
5. After clicking the "Export" button, the xls is opened in the running
Excel 2003 instance, instead of starting a new Excel 2007 instance on my
side.

By the way, our previous discussions were based on the behavior:
double-clicking a xls in Windows Explorer. Those rules may not apply to
other scenarios like:

<quote>
*Office OLE objects in other programs*
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928091/en-us
On a computer that is running multiple versions of Office, if you insert an
Office object into another program, the latest versions of the programs are
used. For example, if you insert a Microsoft Excel worksheet object into a
Word document, the latest versions of Word and of Excel are used. This may
cause problems if you share the container file with users who are not using
2007 Office programs.

BTW, I got a response to my 'Connect' post. I was correct in that it
is the wrong forum for an Office issue. The correct forum is here,
in a managed newsgroup. Therefore, as the 'Microsoft Support
Professional', I think it is up to you to submit the issue to the product
team.

I submitted your concerns to the product group's database after I said "It
is my pleasure to help send a wish to our product designers via internal
channel and convey your concerns." in my first reply. I recommended the
Microsoft feedback site because the product group may elevate the priority
of this feedback if it arrives at the team through both internal and
external channels. Now that the feedback site does not have the Office
entries for the moment, I will stick to the internal channel.

Yes, I understand that they put a lot of effort into improving
productivity, but it seems that whenever they give us something,
they take something else away.

I agree with you to some extent. Regardless of Microsoft's deeds for
improving the productivity, keeping backward compatibility is a very
difficult and cumbersome job for the entire software industry.
Software/Service providers are confronting the same/similar issues,
especially when their products become bigger and bigger. Microsoft's
developers and designers are doing their best to keep the balance between
feature enhancements and products' consistency. There may still be some
points that were neglected in the design/development phases, but
Microsoft's support service will serve as a good supplement. We are
listening to every customers' feedbacks earnestly. We take care of every
compliments or criticisms and convey them to the product team so that
better products will be provided to meet the customers' needs.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
=================================================

 

[AG]

Thanks, Jialiang.

My export was of a form using the 'Office' toolbar button. In any case, I
don't think it worth any more time belaboring the point.
It is, what it is, unless MS decides to change it.
I have created shortcuts for each version with the /regserver switch. This
is better than nothing and will suffice for now.
So, let's just end this thread, unless MS does change it.

--

AG
Email: discussATadhdataDOTcom

Good morning AG,

I tried exporting some data from Access 2000 to Excel using the switch
to open the new file, while I had Excel 2003 already open. Guess what,
the file still opened in Excel 2007. That left me with two versions of
Excel open, which I believe Microsoft recommends against. If so, then
that is a bug, not a 'feature'.

First of all, I'm sorry if this problem ends up with an issue of our
product.
I'm trying to reproduce the symptom in my environment: Office 2003 +
Office
2007 + Windows XP with all the patches. Would you please check whether my
steps are the same as yours?

I installed Office 2003 prior to Office 2007.
1. I opened my Excel 2003 from the Start menu. (no Excel 2007 instance is
running at the moment)
2. I created a mdb with a table "Table1" in Access 2003.
3. I right clicked the table and choose "Export" in the context menu.
4. In the "Export Table To¡­" dialog, I selected "Microsoft Excel
97-2003(*.xls)" as the file type, input "File name" and checked both "Save
formatted" and "Autostart".
5. After clicking the "Export" button, the xls is opened in the running
Excel 2003 instance, instead of starting a new Excel 2007 instance on my
side.

By the way, our previous discussions were based on the behavior:
double-clicking a xls in Windows Explorer. Those rules may not apply to
other scenarios like:

<quote>
*Office OLE objects in other programs*
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928091/en-us
On a computer that is running multiple versions of Office, if you insert
an
Office object into another program, the latest versions of the programs
are
used. For example, if you insert a Microsoft Excel worksheet object into a
Word document, the latest versions of Word and of Excel are used. This may
cause problems if you share the container file with users who are not
using
2007 Office programs.

BTW, I got a response to my 'Connect' post. I was correct in that it
is the wrong forum for an Office issue. The correct forum is here,
in a managed newsgroup. Therefore, as the 'Microsoft Support
Professional', I think it is up to you to submit the issue to the product
team.

I submitted your concerns to the product group's database after I said "It
is my pleasure to help send a wish to our product designers via internal
channel and convey your concerns." in my first reply. I recommended the
Microsoft feedback site because the product group may elevate the priority
of this feedback if it arrives at the team through both internal and
external channels. Now that the feedback site does not have the Office
entries for the moment, I will stick to the internal channel.

Yes, I understand that they put a lot of effort into improving
productivity, but it seems that whenever they give us something,
they take something else away.

I agree with you to some extent. Regardless of Microsoft's deeds for
improving the productivity, keeping backward compatibility is a very
difficult and cumbersome job for the entire software industry.
Software/Service providers are confronting the same/similar issues,
especially when their products become bigger and bigger. Microsoft's
developers and designers are doing their best to keep the balance between
feature enhancements and products' consistency. There may still be some
points that were neglected in the design/development phases, but
Microsoft's support service will serve as a good supplement. We are
listening to every customers' feedbacks earnestly. We take care of every
compliments or criticisms and convey them to the product team so that
better products will be provided to meet the customers' needs.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
rights.
=================================================

 

[Jialiang Ge [MSFT]]

OK, AG.

This is the first collaboration between you and me. I look forward to more
and more successful ones in our future cooperation. I will surely update
you if there are any changes in design of this multi-Office scenario. When
you have any other Office-related questions, please also DON'T hesitate to
tell me.

Regards,
Jialiang Ge ([email protected], remove 'online.')
Microsoft Online Community Support

=================================================
Delighting our customers is our #1 priority. We welcome your comments and
suggestions about how we can improve the support we provide to you. Please
feel free to let my manager know what you think of the level of service
provided. You can send feedback directly to my manager at:
(e-mail address removed).

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
=================================================