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I've gotta say something, the office icons are nice, but the program sucks as of this point. (Office 2007) As in I mean that all it is about looks, everything is changed and its not user friendly. Thats my opinion on Office 2007 at this point, (althought it is in early beta, right?)

Icons are nice though.

Office 2007 has already surpassed the Beta 2 release; I wouldn't consider that 'early'

I've gotta say something, the office icons are nice, but the program sucks as of this point. (Office 2007) As in I mean that all it is about looks, everything is changed and its not user friendly. Thats my opinion on Office 2007 at this point, (althought it is in early beta, right?)

Icons are nice though.

Really? Office 2007 is a whole lot user-friendly than any previous version of Office for me. After adjusting for about a week, I can't see myself going back to 2003.

OK I have to point out that the source of these so-called "new Vista UI", although come directly from Microsoft, may only be design concept shots. The poster did not specify where these screenshots came from. It is actually from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows.html

My feeling is that they are just "Screenshots" that are made-up as a design concept. The fonts are way too smooth. These screenshots should no way be reflective of what actually is to come in Vista.

Don't believe me? Here's my proof: http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows_live.html

Notice the "screenshot" of Windows Live Messenger and the orb in the top right. It is so obvious that these shots are early prototypes used to design the look and feel of Messenger (look at the old 'Shared Folder' icon). Similarly, the "screenshots" of Vista would also be made the same way and may not reflect the final UI, let alone to be called "new" at all.

However, the new Office 2007 icons would actually be true. This is also found on this link:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/office.html

On the page there's the new Theme, the new North-West corner, and even the New Branding style (the ones shown in the About window of Office applications). Of course, whether these are just prototype shots or real screenshots of the upcoming version remain unknown.

OK I have to point out that the source of these so-called "new Vista UI", although come directly from Microsoft, may only be design concept shots. The poster did not specify where these screenshots came from. It is actually from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows.html

My feeling is that they are just "Screenshots" that are made-up as a design concept. The fonts are way too smooth. These screenshots should no way be reflective of what actually is to come in Vista.

Don't believe me? Here's my proof: http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows_live.html

Notice the "screenshot" of Windows Live Messenger and the orb in the top right. It is so obvious that these shots are early prototypes used to design the look and feel of Messenger (look at the old 'Shared Folder' icon). Similarly, the "screenshots" of Vista would also be made the same way and may not reflect the final UI, let alone to be called "new" at all.

However, the new Office 2007 icons would actually be true. This is also found on this link:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/office.html

On the page there's the new Theme, the new North-West corner, and even the New Branding style (the ones shown in the About window of Office applications). Of course, whether these are just prototype shots or real screenshots of the upcoming version remain unknown.

I did specify where they came from, but added that as an update to the post.

Most pictures posted to Microsoft Design are screenshots, but they are updated much more regularly than the Microsoft website. There are also concept arts, but the concept arts can be obviously differentiated from the real screenshots through their style and layout.

The font smoothing is improved in Vista, so obviously they appear better.

The Messenger screenshots may be concept art, but could have been from an older build. Building concept art as polished as that is quite impractical for such late stages in development. Most changes are made to the real application to test the look & feel, there is no reason to mock up design changes not using applicable code.

OK I have to point out that the source of these so-called "new Vista UI", although come directly from Microsoft, may only be design concept shots. The poster did not specify where these screenshots came from. It is actually from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows.html

My feeling is that they are just "Screenshots" that are made-up as a design concept. The fonts are way too smooth. These screenshots should no way be reflective of what actually is to come in Vista.

Don't believe me? Here's my proof: http://www.microsoft.com/resources/design/windows_live.html

Notice the "screenshot" of Windows Live Messenger and the orb in the top right. It is so obvious that these shots are early prototypes used to design the look and feel of Messenger (look at the old 'Shared Folder' icon). Similarly, the "screenshots" of Vista would also be made the same way and may not reflect the final UI, let alone to be called "new" at all.

But, if you look at the icons in the QuickLaunch bar, you will notice a new Flip3D icon and a new show desktop icon. If you go back and look at the screenshots of the build (that's aero glass, but that doesn't matter) with the new Aero Basic UI, you will notice the same flip3d and show desktop icons. These icons have never appeared before the screens of the new UI. My point? That this "concept" screenshot would have to be fairly new, as in, within the past few weeks, and Microsoft isn't (well, shouldn't be) making anymore Vista concept shots this late in the game. Additionally, when Vista hits RC1, the code is pretty much locked down except for bugs - no more design changes, unless it's something major, or because of a bug.

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