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From: U39648@uicvm.uic.edu (Darius Vaskelis)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.ms
Subject: Re: Word and Excel : academic version differences?
Message-ID: <91032.090816U39648@uicvm.uic.edu>
Date: 1 Feb 91 15:08:16 GMT
References: <1991Jan31.234517.1487@lia>
Organization: University of Illinois at Chicago
Lines: 31

In article <1991Jan31.234517.1487@lia>, pdh@lia (Peter Henry) says:
>
>Does anyone know what the real differences are between the retail and
>academic versions of Word and/or Excel for Windows?  The packaging is
>slightly different, and the WfW package comes with some templates for
>writing thesis papers, but without opening up a commercial copy, I
>can't tell if there's anything missing from either of these two.

I asked the folks at Microsoft this question once before.  I was told:

1) Smaller box for academic editions.

2) Documentation for academic editions is a softcover, commercial has a very
   nice hardcover book that can occasionally stay open to the page you are
   looking at without having you use another hand or a brick on top.

3) Academic Editions do not always have the software/hardware discount "BUY
   ME!" coupons in them, or not always as many.

These comments are for Word for Windows and Excel for Windows, some other
products actually were the regular products with *no* productive documentation.

Eg: QuickPascal.  It came with the program and some getting started info.  The
theory was you'd learn what you'd need in class and would get a textbook.
Current QuickPascal Academic Editions don't differ an IOTA from the regular
ones, so maybe enough people complained.

- Darius
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