MS Home Use Program

[SHADOWFOX]

MS Home Use Program

Good morning folks,

Anybody ever obtained MS Office thru this program? I work in an IT department for a huge corporation but nobody in our business unit IT department ever heard or knows anything about this. I heard you can get MS Office Pro for as low as $20.00, is this true? Appreciate any info.

Thank you!

[Alex Franke]

Yeah we use it at our university. I think it's about $15 for a home use version. You need to stop using it and return the media if you leave the company and it's only to be used for work. I have it on a "work" partitiion, but I usually end up remoting in anyway.

You can get it with their software assurance licenses, like open and select.

[JR]

...and it's only to be used for work.

According to the Fair Isaac case study found on teh referenced page ", Fair Isaac can maximize its software investment by making the latest Microsoft Office System software available to its employees for their personal or business use at home."

I don't know if you've got a different license from Fair Isaac's but the web site seems to play up the idea of the Empoyee Benefit aspect of the program, as opposed to the company benefit of having employees working from home.

JR

[darrellcraig]

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...DisplayLang=en

Coincidence, I managed the launch of this program for MS back in '03... take a look at the FAQ, should answer all your questions. In a nutshell, for each Office product (Office, Project, Visio, etc.) for which your company has Software Assurance coverage (like thru an Enterprise or Select licensing agreement) you can buy one license @ basically cost of fulfillment (think it is $21.95). You can use for personal use as well. The license coterminates with employment, or your company's Software Assurance (e.g., your company doesn't renew an Enterprise licensing agreement with MS), but last I knew this was just honor system, no technical enforcement. When new version comes out you can upgrade for another $21.95.

[darrellcraig]

Academic licensing is different for the equivalent home use benefit... might restrict to work-related use. On corp side, you can use for anything, biz or personal as of last time I read the license agreement, maybe the FAQ has the definitive answer. Somewhere on MS website you can download Office license agreements (look for the home use program specific license) if you want to read before ordering.

[Kristofor]

Microsoft previously had a home-use condition in the licenses, then they were removed, and now have been added in again in a more limited fashion.

In my opinion the cost of supporting home users is FAR greater than than business benefit that a handful of people without laptops might do some work at home. Unless it's changed, Microsoft won't support the home users of those applications and requires the business to provide that support. You'd have to be in a much more afluent company than any I've worked in before that looks like a good deal.

[LinuxRandal]

Why not just use OpenOffice?

[jessrice]

We use Microsoft government license program, which is throught the Washingotn State contract, and at our level of users, a home licnses costs 110.00 for the office pro, and 20.00 for the media.

It considered a work at home license, and uses the same volume license install key issued to us.

I think pricing depends on the Micrsoft program you are on and the volume of licenses in the plan. Academic licenses are always cheaper, no matter if on a contract or not

Jesse

[JoeyGee]

I have purchased MS Office 2003 Pro for the $22, and it's a heckuva deal. IIRC, you don't HAVE to use it for work, but it technically expires when you leave the company, or they go belly up, etc. It's not enforced, it's still honor based.

As far as support, my compnay basically said, if you get it, you're on your own, which is fine with most people.