Do You Like Office 2013? Thoughts on Preview

By Nazmus Shakib Khandaker
in The Fast Ring (Insider Previews)

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Grand Master

+Frank B. Subscriber²

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First impressions:

  • The UI is too white. The lack of contrast between page and application background in Word for instance is awful.
  • What's with the animations when typing in Word, or moving around cells in Excel?
  • Save to SkyDrive as default? I can't be the only one thinking this is a bad idea.

I'll be playing some more with it for more in-depth impressions. Do I like it? Too early to tell.

Grand Master

Calum Veteran

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Considering it hasn't been available for even 24 hours yet, I don't think anyone has had enough time to give it a fair chance. First impressions aren't usually a good indicator; impressions after one has used it regularly for a certain amount of time are best to go on.

It seems great to me, so far, but I'll get back to you once I've used it regularly for some time.

Grand Master

Calum Veteran

Posted
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[. . .]

  • What's with the animations when typing in Word, or moving around cells in Excel?
  • Save to SkyDrive as default? I can't be the only one thinking this is a bad idea.

[. . .]

The animations are probably the main contributor to the user experience being more pleasant for me than in previous versions of Office :) I love them.

Why do you believe saving to SkyDrive by default is a bad idea? I'm not so sure. I like that Microsoft are betting on the cloud, and I think it's great that users will be able to save a document in the default location, then access that document as soon as they log onto another PC, without having to specifically go to the SkyDrive website at all. This change might cause some confusion, but I would hope Microsoft could educate them about this change. I believe it's a change that will have to happen at some point, so it happening now makes sense to me.

Grand Master

Calum Veteran

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[. . .]

  • What's with the animations when typing in Word, or moving around cells in Excel?

[. . .]

To add to my previous comment on this point, perhaps they should provide a way to turn the animations off (if they don't already)? I can see why someone might not mind them in Windows Phone (for example) but would mind them in such a productivity application. Is that the case with you, and if so, what do you see as the reason for that?

Grand Master

+Frank B. Subscriber²

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Why is saving to SkyDrive by default a bad idea? Think about this scenario:

  • Joe User works on a document on his laptop. Saves it to SkyDrive
  • The user then sits on a plane or train without internet connection and wants to continue editing the document.
  • Much to Joe User's chagrin the file is MIA.

See the problem?

Grand Master

Calum Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
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Why is saving to SkyDrive by default a bad idea? Think about this scenario:

  • Joe User works on a document on his laptop. Saves it to SkyDrive
  • The user then sits on a plane or train without internet connection and wants to continue editing the document.
  • Much to Joe User's chagrin the file is MIA.

See the problem?

That's a great point, and I agree with you, now you've pointed that out to me (thanks). Perhaps this shouldn't be the default until people can access free WiFi on all public transport and in all public places (if that day ever comes); or do you see further vital problems with this being the default?

Grand Master

Calum Veteran

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I would have preferred the UI match your window chrome color, rather than always be white. My current window chrome is red, and it's jarring how Office 2013 does not follow this.

It's important to remember that Microsoft have changed Aero in the RTM version. Looking back at the screenshot they provided of this, it's greatly white, just like this Office preview.

As this is only the first preview, perhaps they may add in something to match any chosen colour, at some point before the release, or at least an option to change the colour that uses the same colour pallet as Windows?

I hope they do :)

Grand Master

+Frank B. Subscriber²

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Security is a potential concern. I know Microsoft have heavily invested into making their products secure - but an element of risk remains. Can you guarantee me full security of my documents on SkyDrive? Or can Microsoft for that matter?

Veteran

rfirth

Posted
Posted

Security is a potential concern. I know Microsoft have heavily invested into making their products secure - but an element of risk remains. Can you guarantee me full security of my documents on SkyDrive? Or can Microsoft for that matter?

They are probably more secure on Microsoft servers than they are on users' computers. What percentage of Microsoft servers are compromised with viruses, versus end user computers?

I know what you're saying, but in most cases that doesn't matter. And in the cases it does, you simply tell Office to save it locally to your hard drive. Problem solved.

Veteran

rfirth

Posted
Posted

You have huge icons and text so it's awkward visually when you are using it with a mouse and it's not really properly optimized for finger where things need to be fairly big compared to desktop.. so they found some middle ground that just doesn't look like it's really working from design/usability perspective at all.

At least for me it's awful. Just another proof that trying to merge desktop and tablet into one OS and apps like Office is just a terrible idea.

Ummm... the huge icons and text? You're just noticing this now? It's called the Ribbon... it's been around since Office 2007...

I mean, really. Open Word 2010 and Word 2013. They are only different by a few pixels in alignment. Excel 2010 and Excel 2013? Several more pixels off, but still basically the same thing. Outlook? Basically the same, with more tweaks than the other Office apps.

So why are you attacking Office 2013 for this like it's something new - like it's a branch of Windows 8 touch madness - when these things have been this way for 5 years?

Grand Master

TheLegendOfMart

Posted
Posted

Oh my god, I just installed it, all I can see is a sea of white with grey outlines.

It looks like they let the new interns use paint to 'design' the UI.

Awful, truly awful. I fear for the future of Windows, an OS I have to use to play games on.

Collaborator

Subhadip

Posted
Posted

Why is saving to SkyDrive by default a bad idea? Think about this scenario:

  • Joe User works on a document on his laptop. Saves it to SkyDrive
  • The user then sits on a plane or train without internet connection and wants to continue editing the document.
  • Much to Joe User's chagrin the file is MIA.

See the problem?

This is not how it works. It saves it to the local SkyDrive folder, which syncs through the SkyDrive app.

So you have a local copy as well as a copy on your SkyDrive. I don't see any problem at all.

Of course, the SkyDrive app itself is in its infancy, I am sure it will grow to add much more functionality by Windows 8 / Office 2013 RTM time, such as syncing multiple folders.

Overall, loving the new visuals. Thank goodness all the cheese is gone, and especially loving the full screen mode.

Neowinian

Nathan Borger

Posted
Posted

I am glad someone pointed out how Skydrive works. It saves a local copy and then syncs to Skydrive. Awesome. I do not use a thumb drive any more for work or even for small things to and from work any more and I have shared things like my work roster with those who need to read it so they have read only access to information I allow them to. AMAZING.

Also I love the new animations.

I do have one issue. Has anyone tried setting up a Live or Hotmail account in the new Outlook? There is no Outlook connector like 2010 had and I assume its not needed any more but my emails are all over the shop. It shows that emails I recieved in 2009 are new and I have only gotten them today. Whats going on?

Grand Master

scumdogmillionaire

Posted
Posted

I do have one issue. Has anyone tried setting up a Live or Hotmail account in the new Outlook? There is no Outlook connector like 2010 had and I assume its not needed any more but my emails are all over the shop. It shows that emails I recieved in 2009 are new and I have only gotten them today. Whats going on?

Hotmail just works for me. No connector needed. (Remove your old hotmail account and re-add it though.) The only annoyance with it that prevents me from switching from 2010 to 2013 is that Hotmail doesn't pull down the calendars that the Hotmail Connector in 2010 did. My wife's calendar that is shared with me, Birthday Calendar and US Holidays aren't in there. So I have to stick with 2010 for now, which is too bad. Unlike most people, I like the look of 2013.

Grand Master

tsupersonic

Posted
Posted

I am undecided - I'm not fan of the overly huge ribbon, and the worst part is the interface is too "white." I miss the black theme from Office 2010! I don't like the current backgrounds - they remind me of the Zune themes. I don't think I'll be in a rush to upgrade, as it doesn't offer much for me over Office 2010. If it's offered cheap, I definitely will snag a copy, but not sure I'd install it.

Proficient

Harrison H.

Posted
Posted

Word's cursor inertia is by far the best feature imo. Stupid as it sounds, it make typing feel pleasurable.

I had a discussion with a friend over that yesterday. We both agreed it should be made that way in Windows 8. Who knows, it might be in the RTM version.

With Office 2013 preview being released yesterday, I finally pushed myself to move from Gmail to Office 365. It's that nice, and I can't wait until Office 365 is updated at the end of the year.

Grand Master

PGHammer

Posted
Posted

That's a great point, and I agree with you, now you've pointed that out to me (thanks). Perhaps this shouldn't be the default until people can access free WiFi on all public transport and in all public places (if that day ever comes); or do you see further vital problems with this being the default?

It's the default with Office365 - however, this can be changed even there.

And the reason it saves by default in Office365 is because Office365 is itself cloud-based.

If someone is preparing to board a plane, saving locally either by default or even in terms of a specific document makes sense - and has *always* been possible with Office365.

However, it means you have to actually think.

Grand Master

Jose_49

Posted
Posted

+ PowerPoint slides finally moving to 16:9 aspect ratio

16:9 aspect ration has been available since loooooong time ago.

You could go to the design tab, and at the left-most icon (if I don't badly remember) you could switch between a variety of aspect ratios including 16:10

Guest

Posted
Posted

I had a discussion with a friend over that yesterday. We both agreed it should be made that way in Windows 8. Who knows, it might be in the RTM version.

With Office 2013 preview being released yesterday, I finally pushed myself to move from Gmail to Office 365. It's that nice, and I can't wait until Office 365 is updated at the end of the year.

Although it would probably never get passed on to the Windows team, and it might be too late, I clicked the smiley face and noted that I loved this, hoping that they might be able to squeeze it in as a last minute feature if they haven't already done it :)

Grand Master

George P Global Moderator

Posted
  • Global Moderator
Posted

I hear some people saying the ribbon is bigger now? Maybe you've turned on the new touch mode which spaces the ribbon buttons out more? I don't think the 2013 ribbon should be any bigger than the 2010 one.

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If your passkey was saved only on one phone, computer, or security key, and you lose that device, then you may not have your half of the necklace anymore. In that case, you would usually need to use the website’s backup login or account recovery options. A lot of websites that support passkeys still let you fall back to your regular password. So if you lose access to your passkey, the site may still let you log in with your password, a code sent to your email, a text message, a recovery code, or some other account recovery process. That is convenient, but it is also important to understand: if the website still allows password login, then your password still matters. Passkeys are safer than passwords, but if your account still has a password as a backup, you should still use a strong, unique password and turn on two-factor authentication if the website offers it. This is why it is a good idea to have more than one safe way back into important accounts. For example, you might keep your passkey in a syncing password manager, add a second trusted device, save recovery codes somewhere safe, or set up a backup security key. A passkey is very secure, but just like a real key, you need a backup plan in case you lose access to it. Now, you might ask: “What stops a hacker from copying my half of the necklace?” That’s the important part: your half is protected. It is not something you type in, and it is not something the website gets to keep. Think of your half as being locked inside a tiny safe on your phone, computer, security key, or password manager. That safe only opens when you approve it with your fingerprint, face, PIN, or device password. When you log in, the website does not need to see your half. It only needs proof that your half matches its half. Your actual half is not handed over to the website. This is different from a password. With a password, you type the secret into the website. If you type it into a fake website, the hacker now has it. With a passkey, you are not typing your secret into the website. Your device is proving you have the matching half without giving the half away. That also helps protect you from fake websites. If someone makes a fake login page that looks like the real site, your device can tell it is not the real match. It will not use your passkey there. Now, could someone use your passkey if they stole your device, got into your password manager, or somehow unlocked the safe that holds your half? Yes, that is why your device password, PIN, fingerprint, face unlock, and password manager security still matter. But a hacker cannot just steal your passkey from the website or trick you into typing it into a fake page like they can with a password. That is why passkeys are safer than passwords. The two matching pieces have to come together, like two lovebirds who were once separated and are finally reunited.

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