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Microsoft recently made the successor to the popular Microsoft Office 2007, Office 2010, open for public beta. Available for both 32 bit and 64 bit systems, this new package is poised to become the standard once it moves on to its final stage.

To download the beta, you must be subscribed to MSDN (Microsoft Developer Network) or TechNet.

Be advised that it is not recommended to access the beta across P2P networks, with obvious concerns about using such services for the exchange of copyrighted software.

Whether you’ve just encountered a catastrophic error that results in a system crash or find yourself upgrading to the latest operating system, reformatting your hard drive is an extreme measure that’s often unavoidable over the course of your computer’s life.  When doing so, it’s of paramount concern that you’re able to retain the data stored on your computer.

While backing up certain data is as simple as transferring it to another form of storage, many of your applications will require re-installation, a process that can often be hindered by the sheer number of apps installed on your PC.

Mitigating this chore is a helpful website that keeps a tally of the applications installed on your computer, allowing you – when ready – to re-install those items with the click of your mouse.

The site is called AllMyApps.com

For now, the only issue I’ve found is that it limits applications to those which are free, excluding commercial software (Microsoft Office applications, i.e.). While understandable, given copyright concerns, this does leave you to install those programs individually. Still, despite that omission, this site logs every other free application that’s installed on your computer.

To the surprise of many, I’m sure, our computers are host to dozens of free applications that we’ve installed over time. Many of these facilitate what are now mundane activities, such as Adobe Flash or AIM. By using this site, after having reformatted your hard drive, you’re immediately returned to the previous composition of your computer – excluding, of course, those commercial applications.

The unavailability of commercial software aside, this is a novel idea that is long overdue.

Should you have any other questions related to preservation of data on your computer, especially you think your hard drive needs to be reformatted, we’re here to aid you.

Whether we’re typing out a quick memo or writing a letter to a friend, word processors are invaluable tools that provide the means to draft documents when needed. Word is the most widely used solution in this regard, but it’s packaged with Microsoft Office, a software suite that includes a host of other applications – Excel, Powerpoint, etc. — that you may not require.

Free and easy to use, Abiword is an alternative for those who need just a word processor, freeing your computer from needless software that’s along for the ride.

Abiword works with every major operating system:

• Windows
• Linux
• Mac

After editing a Word document at work, Abiword can continue editing it at home, allowing for seamless transitioning between the two formats.

This is a nice solution for those looking to keep their system limited to the barest essentials. If you ever have any questions about its use, feel free to contact one of us.

Abiword can be downloaded here.