Why doesn't my copy of Windows XP come with Microsoft Office?

[Guest]

I just got a new laptop, and my (legit) copy of Windows XP doesn't come with
Microsoft Office. At the moment I'm using OpenOffice for word processing
aswell as making/viewing slideshows.

I don't know if XP is supposed to come with it or not, I find it strange
that it doesn't come with Word, Powerpoint, or Excel, which I have always
assumed to be basic microsoft programmes.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I just got a new laptop, and my (legit) copy of Windows XP doesn't
come with Microsoft Office. At the moment I'm using OpenOffice for
word processing aswell as making/viewing slideshows.

I don't know if XP is supposed to come with it or not, I find it
strange that it doesn't come with Word, Powerpoint, or Excel, which
I have always assumed to be basic microsoft programmes.

What?

Microsoft Windows XP is an operating System.
It comes in several versions.
None of them include an office suite.
No Windows Operating System has ever come *with* an 'office suite'.

Microsoft Office is a set of applications.
It can include a word processor, a spreadsheet application, a database
application, an email client and a presentation application.
It depends on what version of Microsoft Office you purchase as to what you
get.
It is - and always has been - a separate product.

They are both "Microsoft" products. Microsoft makes MANY more products -
none of them are normally bundled together either - and none are "tied" to
Windows XP as a stand-alone operating system. I have no idea how you would
have ever thought that because you bought one Microsoft product - you'd get
another thrown in as well. =)

You are using Open Office - so that's good.

 

[Richard in AZ]

I just got a new laptop, and my (legit) copy of Windows XP doesn't come with
Microsoft Office. At the moment I'm using OpenOffice for word processing
aswell as making/viewing slideshows.

I don't know if XP is supposed to come with it or not, I find it strange
that it doesn't come with Word, Powerpoint, or Excel, which I have always
assumed to be basic microsoft programmes.

MS Office is a totally separate program, and $$ center for MS.
Office has never come with any version of Windows. WordPad is included, but it is not much of a
word processor.
If you got Office with a computer before, it was because the PC manufacturer included it, not
Windows.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I just got a new laptop, and my (legit) copy of Windows XP doesn't come with
Microsoft Office. At the moment I'm using OpenOffice for word processing
aswell as making/viewing slideshows.

I don't know if XP is supposed to come with it or not, I find it strange
that it doesn't come with Word, Powerpoint, or Excel, which I have always
assumed to be basic microsoft programmes.

Neither the Microsoft Office application suite, nor any of its
individual component applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access,
Outlook, etc.), have _ever_ been "part" of *any* Windows operating
system. They are, and always have been, separate applications, that
must be purchased and installed separately.

Microsoft Office comes pre-installed on new computers only when the
computer manufacturer chooses to offer it, and the purchaser is willing
to pay extra for it.


--

Bruce Chambers

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[DatabaseBen]

i think you have a point...

if i buy a can of corn from the
green giant, then i should be
entitled to climb that magic bean stalk
and get the cream for free.....

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I just got a new laptop, and my (legit) copy of Windows XP doesn't
come with Microsoft Office. At the moment I'm using OpenOffice for
word processing aswell as making/viewing slideshows.

I don't know if XP is supposed to come with it or not, I find it
strange that it doesn't come with Word, Powerpoint, or Excel, which I
have always assumed to be basic microsoft programmes.

No, it's not supposed to come with it.

Neither Windows XP, nor any other version of Windows, has ever included
Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Access, or any other significant application
software. Such programs have to be bought, either by themselves or as part
of Microsoft Office.

If your previous computer, running an older version of Windows, came with
these, it was because the vendor who sold it bundled them as part of the
package he sold you, not because that version of Windows came with it. Some,
but not all, vendors do the same with Windows XP.