hertenberger.co.za

Where there’s a will, there’s a way. No truer is that statement than in my confounding quest to get hold of a legal copy of Microsoft Office for the Mac. You’ll recall the story: Office for the Mac in the home or student edition costs around about ZAR 2500. A hefty price by any standard, but even more ridiculous is the fact that the Entourage included in that pack is crippled and cannot access Exchange. POP3 support, but little else. Want Exchange support? No problem! But that’ll cost ZAR 5500. It’s a seriously crap, yet effective, way of making money. Own a Mac and want to use Exchange? Simply pay up and the pleasure is yours. It’s a bit like a hostage situation you’ll never get out of…

I did some digging and asking around. If you are in the corporate fold and happen to have access by way of your company’s licensing agreement to the Microsoft Home Use Program, then I suggest you take advantage of it. Depending on what the agreement covers, you may well discover that you have the opportunity to purchase Microsoft Office for a nominal fee. Believe it or not, but I paid ZAR 166 for a fully-fledged copy of Microsoft Office:mac 2008. It includes Exchange support, too. The kicker is that the ZAR 166 includes ZAR 55 for shipping, making the cost of the DVD ZAR 111 (Schnapszahl!)

The black and white cover art is the only way I can explain the saving. It’s spartan, yet functional. After all, it’s what’s inside that matters.

The software is licensed and may be used only for as long as the purchaser is part of the organization that owns the main license. It’s the cheapest way of gaining access to a legal copy of the Office suite until opensource initiatives challenge the ridiculous stranglehold Microsoft has on the messaging infrastructure of corporates.