#Microsoft 365 Subscription

[fes-cloud]

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[patchwork-crow-writes]

Hey guys remember when you could... OWN Microsoft Office?

Like, you'd pay for it one time, and you just... had it. And you could just use it whenever, for whatever purpose.

I'm not gonna pretend that charging £60+ for these programs was good, but at least you only had to pay for it ONCE.

And now it's all "oooh, pay us £5.99 a month for the privilege of using our fine product offline on a continual basis and all this additional crap you didn't want" and it just makes me want to bite something very hard because NO, we USED to be able to just have the thing, and pay for it, and then we had the thing forever, and that was FINE. But noooo, unless we're always paying these corporations all the disposable money we have at regular intervals until the heat-death of the universe, how will these multi-billion dollar conglomerates EVER be able to fund their subpar products and services to sell and resell back to us at exorbitant prices forever and ever a-goddamn-men?!

...I need Word for my proofreading course because of the Track Changes feature, in case anyone was wondering.

[naomiknight-17]

Pulled out my work laptop to update my resume and realize it doesn't have Microsoft Word on it

Man

Remember when Microsoft computers came with basic programs installed?

[mbrainspaz]

currently dying of laughter over the way the automated reader in my judiciously acquired non-subscription model edition of Microsoft Word pronounces the word "Yeah." He's so stale and robotic for every other word but woe should a 'yeah' appear because suddenly he's got attitude. I can't even describe how funny it sounds. Imagine a wall of text being read by a robot and suddenly a 90's punk teenager jumps in to read the word 'YEAH' and then vanishes again. Totally inappropriate for almost every instance of the word so far. I love it.

[alllelements]

All I want is some peace and quiet but instead I'm forced to interact with Microsoft software

[indigosoftwares]

Is Microsoft Office 2016 or 2019 a One-Time Lifetime Purchase? What You Need to Know

When it comes to office productivity software, Microsoft Office is often the go-to choice for individuals and businesses alike. Among the many versions available, Microsoft Office 2016 and 2019 are popular choices, especially for those who prefer a one-time purchase model.

But what exactly does a one-time purchase entail, and is it a lifetime solution? This blog will delve into what you need to know about buying Office 2016 and Office 2019.

Understanding the One-Time Purchase Model

The one-time purchase model for Microsoft Office means you pay a single upfront cost to buy the software. Unlike the subscription-based Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), which requires monthly or annual payments, a one-time purchase gives you perpetual access to the software.

Key Points:

Single Payment: You pay once and own the software forever.

Perpetual License: The license doesn’t expire, so you can use it indefinitely.

Office 2016: A Closer Look

Release Date and Features:

Released: September 2015

Included Apps: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook

New Features: Real-time co-authoring, new chart types in Excel, improved version history, and enhanced collaboration tools in Outlook.

Office 2019: A Closer Look

Release Date and Features:

Released: September 2018

Included Apps: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook

New Features: Improved inking features, new data analysis capabilities in Excel, advanced presentation features in PowerPoint, and updated user experiences across all apps.

One-Time Purchase: Is It Lifetime?

When you buy Office 2016 or Office 2019 as a one-time purchase, it means you have a perpetual license. However, there are some nuances to consider:

Lifetime Use on One Device:

The license is tied to the device you install it on. If you upgrade your computer, you might need to buy a new license unless Microsoft allows you to transfer the license.

No Feature Updates: While you get security updates, you won’t receive new features or major updates that Microsoft releases after your version.

Support Lifecycle: Each version of Office has a support lifecycle. For example, Office 2016's mainstream support ended in October 2020, with extended support lasting until October 2025. Office 2019 will have similar timelines. Once support ends, you won't receive any updates, including security patches.

Benefits of Buying Office 2016 or 2019

Cost-Effective:

If you don't need the latest features or regular updates, a one-time purchase can be more economical in the long run.

Offline Use: You don't need an internet connection to use Office apps.

Ownership: You own the software forever, without worrying about subscription renewals.

Drawbacks of Buying Office 2016 or 2019

No Continuous Updates:

You miss out on new features that Microsoft adds to Office 365 apps.

Compatibility Issues: Over time, newer file formats and features might not be fully compatible with older versions.

Limited Support: Once the support lifecycle ends, you won't receive any updates, which could pose security risks.

Who Should Buy Office 2016 or 2019?

Ideal for:

Individuals or businesses who prefer a one-time payment and don’t need the latest features.

Users with stable, long-term needs that don’t require frequent updates.

Those who prefer offline access without dependency on an internet connection.

How to Buy Office 2016

If you’ve decided that a one-time purchase is right for you, here’s how to buy Office 2016:

Official Microsoft Store: Check if Microsoft still offers Office 2016 for sale.

Authorized Retailers: Purchase from trusted retailers or online stores.

Product Key: Ensure you receive a genuine product key to avoid counterfeit software.

How to Buy Office 2019

Office 2019 is more readily available and can be purchased from:

Microsoft Store: Directly from Microsoft's official website.

Authorized Retailers: Physical stores or online platforms like Amazon.

Indigo Software: For a reliable source of Office software, Indigo Software offers customized solutions for companies in many sectors. Their knowledgeable staff produces scalable, reliable software, ensuring quality and client satisfaction.

Conclusion

Buying Office 2016 or Office 2019 as a one-time purchase can be a cost-effective solution for many users. While it offers the advantage of a perpetual license and offline use, it’s essential to consider the lack of feature updates and limited support lifecycle. 

Assess your needs and preferences to decide if this model aligns with your requirements.

For those looking for innovative office software solutions, consider Indigo Software. Their expertise in developing state-of-the-art software tailored to various sectors ensures you get the most reliable and efficient tools for your business. 

Explore their offerings and leverage technology to enhance your productivity and growth.

[radiantindia]

Comprehensive Support of Radiant Info Solutions for Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus

 Learn about the comprehensive support provided by Radiant Info Solutions for Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus, ensuring smooth operations and maximum productivity.

[inova-solutions]

Microsoft 365 subscription in Curaçao - Inova Solutions

Discover Microsoft 365 subscriptions in Curacao with Inova Solutions – your trusted Microsoft Cloud solution provider.

[infinian]

Microsoft 365 Product and Solution Provider in India | Price/Cost Tariff Plan

[alliancepro-blog]

Microsoft Software | Office 365 Software | Alliance PRO

Providing you the best range of Office 365 Software with effective & timely delivery. Office 365 Software

We at Alliance Pro have carved a niche for ourselves in the segment of Microsoft Office 365 products and solutions. We are specifically into offering Microsoft Office 365 product that suits your organizational needs. Alliance Pro assesses, determines and evaluates the scope for Office 365 requirements of your organization and correspondingly derives customized solutions that meet your specific needs. We proudly boast in our long felt association with Microsoft as their authorized Office 365 migration consultants and Cloud Solutions Provider (CSP) in the Indian circuit and we are now taking our offerings and services to the global markets.

Get Latest Price: https://alliancepro.in/

[fescloud]

[autolenaphilia]

The main reason to use Firefox and Linux and other free and open source software is that otherwise the big tech monopolies will fuck you as the customer over in search of profits. They will seek to control how you use their products and sell your data. When a company dominates the market, things can only get worse for ordinary people.

Like take Google Chrome for example, which together with its chromium reskins dominate the web browser market. Google makes a lot of money from ads, and consequently the company hates adblockers. They already are planning to move to manifest V3, which will nerf adblockers significantly. The manifest V3 compatible chrome version of Ublock Orgin is a "Lite" version for a reason. Ublock's Github page has an entire page explaining why the addon works best in Firefox.

And Google as we speak are trying to block adblockers from working on Youtube, If you want to continue blocking Youtube ads, and since Youtube ads make the site unuseable you ought to want that, it makes the most sense to not use a browser controlled by Google.

And there is no reason to think things won't get worse. There is for example nothing stopping Google from kicking adblockers off their add-on stores completely. They do regard it as basically piracy if the youtube pop-ups tell us anything, so updating the Chrome extensions terms of service to ban adblocking is a natural step. And so many people seem to think Chrome is the only browser that exists, so they are not going to switch to alternatives, or if they do, they will switch to another chrominum-based browser.

And again, they are fucking chromium itself for adblockers with Manifest V3, so only Firefox remains as a viable alternative. It's the only alternative to letting Google control the internet.

And Microsoft is the same thing. I posted before about their plans to move Windows increasingly into the cloud. This already exists for corporate customers, as Windows 365. And a version for ordinary users is probably not far off. It might not be the only version of Windows for awhile, the lack of solid internet access for a good part of the Earth's population will prevent it. But you'll probably see cheap very low-spec chromebookesque laptops running Windows for sale soon, that gets around Windows 11's obscene system requirements by their Windows being a cloud-based version.

And more and more of Windows will require Internet access or validation for DRM reasons if nothing else. Subscription fees instead of a one-time license are also likely. It will just be Windows moving in the direction Microsoft Office has already gone.

There is nothing preventing this, because again on the desktop/laptop market Windows is effectively a monopoly, or a duopoly with Apple. So there is no competition preventing Microsoft from exercising control over Windows users in the vein of Apple.

For example, Microsoft making Windows a walled garden by only permitting programs to be installed from the Microsoft Store probably isn't far off. This already exists for Win10 and 11, it's called S-mode. There seem to be more and more laptops being sold with Windows S-mode as the default.

Now it's not the only option, and you can turn it off with some tinkering, but there is really nothing stopping Microsoft from making it the only way of using Windows. And customers will probably accept it, because again the main competition is Apple where the walled garden has been the default for decades.

Customers have already accepted all sorts of bad things from Microsoft, because again Windows is a near-monopoly, and Apple and Google are even worse. That’s why there has been no major negative reaction to how Windows has increasingly spies on its users.

Another thing is how the system requirements for Windows seem to grow almost exponentially with each edition, making still perfectly useable computers unable to run the new edition. And Windows 11 is the worst yet. Like it's hard to get the numbers of how many computers running Win10 can't upgrade to Win11, but it's probably the majority of them, at least 55% or maybe even 75%. This has the effect of Windows users abandoning still perfectly useable hardware and buying new computers, creating more e-waste.

For Windows users, the alternative Windows gives them is to buy a new computer or get another operating system, and inertia pushes them towards buying another computer to keep using Windows. This is good for Windows and the hardware manufacturers selling computers with Windows 11 pre-installed, they get to profit off people buying Windows 11 keys and new computers, while the end-users have to pay, as does the environment. It’s planned obsolescence.

And it doesn’t have to be like that. Linux distros prove that you can have a modern operating system that has far lower hardware requirements. Even the most resource taxing Linux distros, like for example Ubuntu running the Gnome desktop, have far more modest system requirements than modern Windows. And you can always install lightweight Linux Distros that often have very low system requirements. One I have used is Antix. The ballooning Windows system requirements comes across as pure bloat on Microsoft’s part.

Now neither Linux or Firefox are perfect. Free and open source software don’t have a lot of the polish that comes with the proprietary products of major corporations. And being in competition with technology monopolies does have its drawbacks. The lacking website compatibility with Firefox and game compatibility with Linux are two obvious examples.

Yet Firefox and Linux have the capacity to grow, to become better. Being open source helps. Even if Firefox falls, developers can create a fork of it. If a Linux distro is not to your taste, there is usually another one. Whereas Windows and Chrome will only get worse as they will continue to abuse their monopolistic powers over the tech market.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Convicted monopolist prevented from re-offending

This Sunday (Apr 30) at 2PM, I’ll be at the San Francisco Public Library with my new book, Red Team Blues, hosted by Annalee Newitz.

In blocking Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, the UK Competition and Markets Authority has made history: they have stepped in to prevent a notorious, convicted monopolist from seizing control over a nascent, important market (cloud gaming), ignoring the transparent, self-serving lies Microsoft told about the merger:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/644939aa529eda000c3b0525/Microsoft_Activision_Final_Report_.pdf

If you’d like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here’s a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/27/convicted-monopolist/#microsquish

Cloud gaming isn’t really a thing right now, but it might be. That was Microsoft’s bet, anyway, as it plonked down $69b to acquire Activision-Blizzard — a company that shouldn’t exist, having been formed out of a string of grossly anticompetitive mergers that were waved through.

Activision-Blizzard is a poster-child for the failures of antitrust law over the past 40 years, a period in which monopolies were tolerated and even encouraged by the agencies that were supposed to prevent monopolies from forming and break up the ones that slipped past their defenses. Activision-Blizzard is a giant, moribund company whose “innovation” consists of endless sequels to its endless sequels, whose market power allows it to crush its workers while starving competitors of market oxygen, ensuring that gamers and game workers have nowhere else to go.

Microsoft is another one of those poster-children, of course. After being convicted of antitrust violations, the company dragged out the legal process until George W Bush stole the presidency and decided not to pursue them any further, letting them wriggle off the hook.

The antitrust rough ride tamed Microsoft…for a while. The company did not use the same dirty tricks to destroy, say, Google as it had used against Netscape. But in the years since, Microsoft has demonstrated that it regrets nothing about its illegal conduct and has no hesitations about repeating that conduct.

This is especially true of cloud computing, where Microsoft is using exclusivity deals and illegal “tying” (forcing customers to use a product they don’t want in order to use a product they desire) to lock customers into its cloud offering:

https://www.reuters.com/technology/google-says-microsofts-cloud-practices-anti-competitive-slams-deals-with-rivals-2023-03-30/

Locking customers into Microsoft’s cloud also means locking customers into Microsoft surveillance. Microsoft’s cloud products spy in ways that are extreme even by the industry’s very low standards. Office 365 isn’t just a version of Office that you never stop paying for — it’s a version of Office that never stops spying on you, and selling the data to your competitors:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/11/25/the-peoples-amazon/#clippys-revenge

Microsoft’s Activision acquisition was entirely cloud-driven. The company clearly believes the pundits who say that the future of gaming is in the cloud: rather than playing on a device with the power to handle all the fancy graphics and physics, you’ll use a low-powered device that streams you video from a server in the cloud that’s doing all the heavy lifting.

If cloud gaming comes true (a big if, considering the dismal state of broadband, another sector that’s been enshittified and starved by monopolists), then Microsoft owning the Xbox platform, the Windows OS, and the Game Pass subscription service already poses a huge risk that the company could grow to dominate the sector. Throw in Activision-Blizzard and the future starts to look very grim indeed.

It’s a nakedly anticompetitive merger. As Mark Zuckerberg unwisely wrote in an internal memo, “it is better to buy than to compete.”

(These guys can not stop incriminating themselves. FTX got mocked for its group-chat called “Wirefraud,” but come on, every tech baron has a folder on their desktop called “mens rea” full of files with names like “premeditation-11.docx.”)

Naturally, the FTC sued to stop the merger (after 40 years, the FTC has undergone a revolution under chair Lina Khan and is actually protecting the American people from monopoly):

https://www.vice.com/en/article/ake97g/ftc-sues-to-block-microsoft-acquisition-of-call-of-duty-publisher-activision-blizzard

The FTC was always in for an uphill battle. “Cloud gaming,” the market it is seeking to defend from monopolization, doesn’t really exist yet, and enforcing US antitrust law against monopolies over existent things is hard enough, thanks to all those federal judges who attended luxury junkets where billionaire-friendly “economists” taught them that monopolies were “efficient”:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/08/13/post-bork-era/#manne-down

But the FTC isn’t the only cop on the beat. Antitrust is experiencing a global revival, from the EU to China, Canada to Australia, and South Korea to the UK, where the Competition and Markets Authority is kicking all kinds of arse (see also: “ass”). The CMA is arguably the most technically proficient competition regulator in the world, thanks to the Digital Markets Unit (DMU), a force of over 50 skilled engineers who produce intensely detailed, amazingly sharp reports on how tech monopolies work and what to do about them.

The CMA is very interested in cloud gaming. Late last year, they released a long, detailed report into the state of browser engines on mobile phones, seeking public comment on whether these should be regulated to encourage web-apps (which can be installed without going through an app store) and to pave the way for cloud gaming:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/13/kitbashed/#app-store-tax

The CMA is especially keen on collaboration with its overseas colleagues. Its annual conference welcome enforcers from all over the world, and its Digital Markets Unit is particularly important in these joint operations. You see, while Parliament appropriated funds to pay those 50+ engineers, it never passed the secondary legislation needed to grant the DMU any enforcement powers. But the DMU isn’t just sitting around waiting for Parliament to act — rather, it produces these incredible investigations and enforcement roadmaps, and releases them publicly.

This turns out to be very important in the EU, where the European Commission has very broad enforcement powers, but very little technical staff. The Commission and the DMU have become something of a joint venture, with the DMU setting up the cases and the EU knocking them down. It’s a very heartwarming post-Brexit story of cross-Channel collaboration!

And so Microsoft’s acquisition is dead (I mean, they say they’ll appeal, but that’ll take months, and the deal with Activision will have expired in the meantime, and Microsoft will have to pay Activision a $3 billion break-up fee):

https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/big-tech-blocked-microsoft-stopped

This is good news for gaming, for games workers, and for gamers. Microsoft was and is a rotten company, even by the low standards of tech giants. Despite the sweaters and the charity (or, rather, “charity”) Bill Gates is a hardcore ideologue who wants to get rid of public education and all other public goods:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/13/public-interest-pharma/#gates-foundation

Microsoft has a knack for nurturing and promoting absolutely terrible people, like former CEO Steve Ballmer, who has played a starring role in Propublica’s IRS Files, thanks to the bizarre tax-scams he’s pioneered:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/24/tax-loss-harvesting/#mego

So yeah, this is good news: Microsoft should have been broken up 25 years ago, and we should not allow it to buy its way to ongoing dominance today. But it’s also good news because of the nature of the enforcement: the CMA defended an emerging market, to prevent monopolization.

That’s really important: monopolies are durable. Once a monopoly takes root, it becomes too big to fail and too big to jail. That’s how IBM outspend the entire Department of Justice Antitrust Division every year for twelve years during a period they call “Antitrust’s Vietnam”:

https://onezero.medium.com/jam-to-day-46b74d5b1da4

Preventing monopoly formation is infinitely preferable to breaking up monopolies after they form. That’s why the golden age of trustbusting (basically, the period starting with FDR and ending with Reagan) saw action against “incipient” monopolies, where big companies bought lots of little companies.

When we stopped worrying about incipiency, we set the stage for today’s Private Equity “rollups,” where every funeral home, or veterinarian, or dentists’ practice is bought out by a giant PE fund, who ruthlessly enshittify it, slashing wages, raising prices, stiffing suppliers and reducing quality:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/16/schumpeterian-terrorism/#deliberately-broken

Limiting antitrust enforcement to policing monopolies after they form has been an absolute failure. The CMA knows that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure — indeed, we all do.

From Apr 26–28, Barnes and Noble is offering a 25% discount on preorders for my upcoming novels (use discount code PREORDER25): The Lost Cause (Nov 2023) and The Bezzle (Red Team Blues #2) (Feb 2024).

Catch me on tour with Red Team Blues in Mountain View, Berkeley, San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, DC, Gaithersburg, Oxford, Hay, Manchester, Nottingham, London, and Berlin!

[Image ID: A promotional image from the Call of Duty franchise featuring a soldier in a skull-mask gaiter giving a thumbs up on a battlefield. It has been altered so that he is giving a thumbs-down gesture. Superimposed on the image is a modified Microsoft 'Clippy' popup; Clippy's speech-bubble has been filled with grawlix characters; the two dialog-box options both read 'No.']

Image: Microsoft, Activision (fair use)

[fewtrell]

do yall think my uni can see im using their microsoft 365 subscription to write smut

[melyzard]

Own Your Life - Books

In the spirit of gift giving and because @dalleyan made me think about it today, here's a list of articles and websites that may be of interest to those who like to read digital media, and do NOT like when the digital media that they paid for simply vanishes. (The future the tech companies want is 'everything is a subscription, and if you don't pay, you lose everything you ever had or did on this system'):

Anyway. I just thought this was interesting.