Don92126 - Slashdot User

Comment CR Online is worth much more than print version. (Score 3, Insightful) 160

by Don92126 on Sunday December 09, 2007 @12:35PM (#21631667) Attached to: Making a Buck Online - Without Ads

As a current Consumer Reports Online subscriber it's obvious to me why I'm willing to pay as much as the print magazine: it's worth more to me. In fact I'd even pay more for online that print in this case. When I want to go find reviews, I don't want to go dig through a pile of print and hope I haven't lost the issue with the review I need, and if I'm a new subscriber to the online service I basically just got all the back issues for free. The online service is so handy I use it for basically every major purchase I make now.

Submission + - "Try-before-you-buy" is a trap. (channelregister.co.uk)

Submitted by

walterbyrd

on Saturday July 14, 2007 @03:11PM

walterbyrd writes: "Microsoft is pushing Office 2007 with 'try-before-you-buy'

Please spread the word: Micrososft's "try-before-you-buy" is a trap. Please don't let your friends and realitives install Microsoft "trial" software.

When Microsoft tells you "try-before-you-buy," Micrososft does not mean "try it, see if you like it, then buy it if you like it." The "buy" part is not meant to be an option. Here's the catch: once you "try" a Microsoft "upgrade" you can not easily go back. The Office-2007 "trial upgrade" will probably be even worse because all your documents will be saved by default in DOCX format which will be impossible to read with anything other than Office 2007.

I remember when my brother-in-law decided to try Office-2003. It was a complete mess. I didn't think I'd ever get it fixed. Here is the story:

Office-2003 installed over his office-2000. His outlook-2000 email was reformated to the new-and-improved Outlook-2003. And Outlook-2003 format is incompatible with everything except Outlook-2003. So when his trial period was over, he could no longer access his email — unless he wanted to buy Office-2003.

Of course, I could not fully remove the "trial" version of Office-2003. Once Office-2003 has been installed, it can not overwriten with an earlier version of Office. Also, you can not remove Office-2003 and re-install Office-2000, unless you know how to hack the registry or something. And you can not easily install Office-2000 and Office-2003 on the same PC.

What I eventually did to correct the situation:

Signed up for my own trial version of Office-2003

Used my trial version to import my brother-in-law's email file

Saved my brother-in-law's email in another format

Backed up his data

Wiped his HDD

Restored everything

In fairness, I have not used the trial version of office-2007. But, after my experience with the trial version of Office-2003, I would touch it with a ten foot pole. Please make sure your friends don't touch it either."

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