Microsoft to Extend Support for Office 2004 Until 2012

Gotta love .docx

So... why don't they just update 2008 for VBA support?

This is a good thing. Let's not turn this into the inevitable Microsoft bashing.

Well, that's impressive. Glad to hear it.

This is some rare good news from Microsoft.

I have a suggestion for you, MS. Do a software update on O-M-04 to bring it compatible with current file formats from that point rearward, just like Apple did a "last known photo" update for Tiger at 10.4.11 before the early-mid-life Leopard updates started ramping.

Then 8 years into O-M-08 do the same file and media format compatibility update before tossing it to the curb in favor of whatever is next.

Real people need real file compatibility. Computers are tools to users just like they are revenue sources to MS. Heck, do something radical yet welcome. Charge $19.95 for the "final compatibility update" for the elder package. Bring new revenue from old software. Some people have BOTH 04 and 08 so you will get double the money.

Last I checked, you were in business to make money and satisfy customers. Maybe it's time to focus on your modal customers.

Just a suggestion from the people at Rocketman.

Rocketman

So... why don't they just update 2008 for VBA support?

They have said that re-writing the visual basic runtime for Mac OS X-Intel is extremely resource intensive due to the amount of low-level code that it uses. Keep in mind that the original PPC code has been around for a decade or more (Office is a carbon application).

Therefore, Microsoft considers an Intel-native Mac OS X Visual Basic runtime to be a major feature and worthy of a paid upgrade, not a free upgrade to Office 2008.

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no no no I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

This is some rare good news from Microsoft.

I have a suggestion for you, MS. Do a software update on O-M-04 to bring it compatible with current file formats from that point rearward, just like Apple did a "last known photo" update for Tiger at 10.4.11 before the early-mid-life Leopard updates started ramping.

Then 8 years into O-M-08 do the same file and media format compatibility update before tossing it to the curb in favor of whatever is next.

Real people need real file compatibility. Computers are tools to users just like they are revenue sources to MS. Heck, do something radical yet welcome. Charge $19.95 for the "final compatibility update" for the elder package. Bring new revenue from old software. Some people have BOTH 04 and 08 so you will get double the money.

Last I checked, you were in business to make money and satisfy customers. Maybe it's time to focus on your modal customers.

Just a suggestion from the people at Rocketman.

Rocketman

Based on the reviews, I'll never buy 2008. Hope 2010 is better, or I'll still be using 2004.

I wonder if this will put more pressure on Apple to fix the "Rosetta bug" or whatever makes Excel 2004 and other non-Intel programs do the auto-logout thing, when you lose everything you were running and really wack any vmware sessions.

It was for this reason alone I was thinking I need to update to 2008.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2143178&start=0&tstart=0

Apple has acknowledged this supposedly, but no reports of a fix.

It's important to note that Microsoft was also facing a potential class action lawsuit if the company did not reverse its premature end of support on Microsoft Office 2004. Their previous EoS announcement violated their own support lifecycle statement, a statement which Office 2004 buyers relied on when they made their purchases.

But, that said, Microsoft still deserves praise for reversing their bad decision.