Well … I finally took the plunge. About two weeks, I finally installed Microsoft Office 2007. Not that I scared to take the plunge, or that I was being "old school" and not willing to change; because I've been looking forward to checking it out for a while. It just wasn't time for me until now - I had other priorities that needed more of my attention (no big deal - love you, though.)
But now that the time has come, my first impressions are extremely good. The new interface looks so good, but it's so different - particularly the new ribbon bar. However, the bottom line is that I was able to take care of my tasks without much of a learning curve and just as fast as I would have with Office 2003. Not only is it comfortable, but it's a joy to use - even my wife likes to use it. As a software developer, it is hard to make software enjoyable to the user; in my opinion, Microsoft Office 2007 has accomplished that.
There's a lot of great new stuff that I'm looking forward to learning about. However, I will not submit a post on every single new feature offered (plenty of other sites already do that very well). Instead, I will continue to focus on the features that enhance the document process. One thing I've noticed is that there's a lot of features in Office 2007 that can be found in Office 2003; however, the improvement and placement of them make these features more accessible and easier to use - you will definitely hear more about these in the future.
Another new experience that I've already taken advantage of is using Microsoft Office OneNote. I already know that OneNote will single handedly change the way I organize all aspects of life. Everything on my desk, in my portfolio, and everywhere else I have important info will be reduced to my laptop. This will make my information easier to pull, and I'll be able to keep much more information much more effectively.
I look forward to continuing to share my Office 2007 joy with you in the months to come. In the meantime, I encourage you to take the plunge and see for yourself.