Office 2007 All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

I reviewed this book while at the same time using it to familuarize myself with the new office options and layout. The book is very helpful and at this point I use it for reference as needed.

The biggest changes in Office 2007 seem to be the new GUI (Graphical User Interface) which Microsoft calls the Ribbon. This is a complete change from the earlier GUI which we have all come to know and love. The Ribbon organizes the commands into what Microsoft calls contextual tabs. Each tab has a logical grouping of commands. This is not unlike the way you used to click on the Edit or View command and then got a list of commands, but in 2007 there are far more commands that you can reach without having to go to subsidiary menus.

The Ribbon is, of course, the result of many hours of definition, testing before audiences and of course a lot of programming effort. There's the old saying that 'user friendly is programmer difficult.' The ribbon is a common interface that is used in all of the Office applications, so learning about it is mandatory for using Office 2007.

Of course there are an awful lot of new features added to each of the applications. It's easier to get a 'Live Preview' of what you are doing in word. It's easier to do Pivot Tables in Excel, and so on. These applications have been around so long that they are not getting big massive upgrades. I frankly don't know what more they could add. ==Of course this is a 'For Dummies' book. This means that the writing is good, the proof reading catches all the mispellings, and there's even a bit of humor.

There are two Office 2007 For Dummies books. This is the bigger, Desk Reference, version, that is about twice as long as the other one. Part of this is because this book covers Publisher 2007 as well as the other software. Part of this is because each subject is covered in a bit more depth. My honest selection is that you buy both books. They are by different authors and they have a different way of expressing themselves. Often when there is a stumbling block, having two sets of words helps to understand the problem. If you're only going to buy one book, then it's this one, simply because there is more here.

Office 2007 All-in-one mostly is an introduction to all the various components of Microsoft Office. This is a 9 in 1 at less than 900 pages so it doesn't go into any depth on any one subject.

Don't buy this one if you're looking for a in depth book - this isn't it. It spends a fair amount of time introducing

Word
Excel
Access
PowerPoint
Outlook
Publisher
OneNote
SharePoint

Recommended if you're looking for a starting point with Office 2007 but not otherwise.