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Dear Windows-Help.NET Subscriber,
According to beta testers, testing for Office 10 has begun.
Office 10 is a steppingstone to a future Office.NET product, and, as such, it will offer a number of .NET features, including Smart Links and a new Digital Dashboard portal. But Office 10 will be functionally similar to Office 2000 rather than a completely new product.
The recent release of Office 10 Beta 1 has unearthed a slew of new features, including a subscription software service, voice control, and numerous simplification improvements that will help shape this release into a compelling upgrade over Office 2000. Office 10 Beta 1, which Microsoft now says will be called Office 2002 when it ships, includes the client software, an Office Web Server, the Office Resource Kit, two Language Packs CDs, and a ClipArt CD; it's not clear which of these products will be separated out from the main Office product.
For more information check Paul Thurrott's Web site.
Microsoft Brings eBooks to Windows Users With the Free Microsoft Reader
Microsoft this week announced that Microsoft® Reader for desktop PCs and laptop computers is available free for immediate download at the Microsoft Reader Web site, delivering the promise of eBooks to users of the Microsoft Windows® 95 or later operating system.
Developed by Microsoft Research, Microsoft Reader greatly improves font resolution on LCD screens for users of Pocket PCs, laptops and desktop PCs running the Windows operating system. Beyond ClearType, Microsoft Reader includes patented reading enhancements that adhere to the best qualities of fine typography. It provides a clean, uncluttered display; ample margins; full justification; proper spacing, leading and kerning; and powerful tools for bookmarking, highlighting and annotation.
Microsoft Reader with ClearType™ display technology delivers an on-screen computer reading experience that approaches the convenience and quality of reading text on paper. With built-in access to the Barnes & Noble.com Web site, a book-like layout and active reading features such as electronic annotation tools, Microsoft Reader offers the user of Windows an unprecedented reading experience.
Barnes & Noble.com and Microsoft also announced the opening of the Barnes & Noble.com eBookStore for Microsoft Reader, the first online retail bookstore to offer commercial content for Microsoft Reader.
"Microsoft Reader is a truly remarkable product that offers an unparalleled reading experience for anyone from the avid book reader to the working professional on the go," Steve Riggio, vice chairman of Barnes & Noble.com said. "We believe our customers will find that the Microsoft Reader makes the reading experience so great, we are offering free downloads of 100 of the world's great classics - from Charles Dickens' 'A Tale of Two Cities' to Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter' - as an incentive for people to enter and embrace the world of eBooks."
TweakUI 2000 to time out - no release in sight
You may have downloaded and installed the TweakUI 2000 beta from my Web site. Be warned that it is set to time out next Tuesday, August 15.
According to Scot Finnie, there's a real possibility that Microsoft won't release a new (final) version of this unsupported product.
To get around this, I have a version of TweakUI 2000 available on my Web site, with the time out removed. You can also find instructions on how to remove the time out yourself.
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12 Aug. 2000, Vol 3 No. 32
