While the just-released first service pack for Microsoft’s Office 2003 primarily rounds up security and bug fixes, it also enhances features in the 2003 versions of OneNote and InfoPath.
Security Is Focus of Office 2003 SP1
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Eugenia Loli
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How big of a problem has security been in Office 2003 thus far? In Access (about the only app I use), ya gotta tone down the security settings, which are turned on high by default, in order to run macros and such.
Am I the only one that thinks it strange that an office suite should be concerned about security? Isn’t that the domain of the operating system?
here is the list of fixes: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=842532
while security may have been the focus, the majority of the updates are bug fixes along with some minor enhancements.
You have to tone down Outlook too. I like Outlook 2003 because of the new interface and the different ways you can group messages. By default you don’t have images and clicking on links does nothing, you have to change the settings to allow it, otherwise for each message you have to state that you want the HTML graphics to display.
“Am I the only one that thinks it strange that an office suite should be concerned about security? Isn’t that the domain of the operating system?”
No, it IS strange. It’s evidence of the broken security model Microsoft follows when creating software.
This is to fix some of the Office components that break with Windows XP SP 2. Sure there are some security updates but I havent heard that many complaints with Office 2003.
am glad that if there are security problems, they’re being addressed. Security auditing is necessary at all levels, because something that is benign will turn into a potential exploit in combination with something else.
“Am I the only one that thinks it strange that an office suite should be concerned about security?”
I’m right with you.
Microsoft has this strange habit of adding wiz-bang features like do-it-all turing complete scripting languages to Office Suites and E-Mail readers… and are then stunned–STUNNED!–when it’s revealed to be a security problem.
Is it me or does it seem like Microsoft is making available security service packs for their new products. For example:
1) Service Pack 2 for XP
2) Service Pack 1 for office 2003
3) I believe that their is something for 2003 server or it was tightend up from the start.
Most people have XP on their machines if they bought them after 2001. What happens to the w2k users, we actually had to go out and buy the OS, it never came pre-installed. Their was no OEM discount passed along. In essence we paid full price.
Now what about the Office 2000 users? Its not like Office 2000 or Office XP are phased out. I sense that this is going to be an increasing trend for MS software, where only the newest software gets the security patchs. Seems like the user base has nothing to do with the whole security issue. I guess this might be a way for MS to force users to upgrade to the latest softare.
Please no comments about the size of the user base with relationship to win95 or win98. Those products are 6 to 9 years old. While Office 2000 and Office XP are only 4 and 3 years old. The life cycle is only what 5 years (originally) until MS extended the product life cycles.
I personally dont believe that these tatics are fair to the consumer. And for the record, I have been using MS products since DOS 2.x to early 3.x.
Office XP Service Pack 3 just came out about 2 months ago, and I am running that with XP Service Pack 2 now under XP Pro. No issues with that, and I run many apps on here. Office 2000 is getting phased out, however.
Windows Server 2003 is getting an SP1, and it will have features from XP SP2. IIS6 was tightened down on it, and it had XP Pro’s disk permissions. Otherwise, it will be getting a service pack enhancement before R2 as well.
Yeah no shit, I mean except for the 4 Service packs and countless updates MS made for win2k you guys are getting screwed!
Please yell when Impress (the equivalent to Powerpoint) can do more than MS Office 6.0 could. Right now the application is a complete joke…
Besides, isn’t Open Office really competing with MS Works?
Please yell when Impress (the equivalent to Powerpoint) can do more than MS Office 6.0 could. Right now the application is a complete joke…
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Right now Microsoft give you a big fat nothing for free (except maybe the honour of being locked into their platform). So what are we comparing again?
Sure some areas OpenOffice doesn’t measure up (while some others don’t exist in Microsoft’s Office that OpenOffice has), but that’s not the point. The point is open source freedom, multi-platforms, no activation mess, and not being tied into one vendor (for me). I’m sure early Office versions weren’t the best either, even with the benefit of Microsoft’s huge pile of monopoly money
This OpenOffice ‘joke’ is one I’m inclined to start deploying, regardless