UKC

Bought a book yesterday "Windows 8 for Dummies" but I can't seem to find any reference to using programs such as Excel and Word. Is there anything pre-installed on W8 to use for such tasks. I've got a fair bit of stuff on my old pc that I will need to be able to work on with the new one.

Thanks for any info.

Windows and Office are two different products. You may have had office come with your old PC but with your new one it looks like you will need to buy a new copy.

There is a perfectly usable free office software program called LibreOffice that will open and save in both the old and new Microsoft formats as well as the more advance open document format.

In reply to Philip: I've just found this which seems to suggest that there'll be something pre-installed:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel-help/find-and-start-office-applicat...

In reply to FesteringSore:
Most PCs will not come with Office pre installed, unless your computer happens to be a Windows RT tablet. You'll have to buy it yourself (expensive) or use a free alternative.

In reply to Only a hill: I have a Microsoft Office 2000 disk. Would I be able to use that?

Sorry for my ignorance

In reply to FesteringSore:

I'm pretty sure the O2K isnt compatable with W8. Office 2003 is compatable with 7/8 as I use it all the time on my PC's. Looks like you are having to buy or just use the free software as linked to.

In reply to FesteringSore: Worth a try.

In reply to FesteringSore: you may be able to download a trial version of office, but would still need to purchase a licence.

In reply to FesteringSore: Office 2000 is not compatible with Windows 8. The link you eluded to is what you do to load Office once you have installed it on Windows 8. You can purchase Office very cheaply these days. Pop into PC World, order online or you can download / pay for it directly from the Microsoft website. Alternatively, you can use the online version for free here:

http://www.outlook.com

However, if your PC is a bit clunky, you may struggle. You could also create basic docs / spreadsheets using Google Drive here:

http://drive.google.com

Have fun!