Why would Microsoft release an amazing product and then load it up with so many plug-ins that it becomes unusable for its primary purpose?
I recently bought a new laptop with Microsoft Vista installed. While I like the interface and many of the new capabilities it offers, I have had problems with compatibility.
MS Office 2003 acted so strangely that I installed Office 2007 and hoped my problems would be solved.
They were in every program except Outlook (the one I use the most).
Outlook 2007 performed so poorly that it was literally unusable.
The cursor would frequently disappear.
Sending and receiving email took 20-30 minutes when it used to take seconds.
Every time I typed an email I couldn’t see the words I had typed for several minutes after typing them. Emails that had taken 30 seconds to answer before were now taking me 10 minutes!
I decided to search the message boards for a fix. For almost an hour I read post after post complaining of exactly the same problems. These posts dated back to mid-2006, the beta version.
I finally found a post that instructed me to disable all of the Outlook plug-ins except two.
All of my problems were solved. The program was lightening fast and I loved every enhancement Microsoft had made.
Microsoft has to know about this. The problems are discussed on every message board I visited – many of which I found through the Microsoft website.
Why aren’t they listening?
Why aren’t they changing the way the software is shipped (defaulting to plug-ins off and instructing users when and why they might need them)?
It seems as though the engineering view (“Wow, look at all these neat things our product can do!”) has trumped customer needs (“Great, but I can’t send an email)!
Hello Ming!!
It’s so nice to “see” you again!
I think you’re right. They put it all out there and see what people like. The problem is that they glutted their system and all those plug-ins stopped it dead (not just for me!).
I actually love Outlook 2007 now (after I’ve disabled everything).
They need to have some quality control on what they put out there – some of the plug-ins run constantly in the background and that’s what kills the performance.
I suppose if you’re MS, it’s good to be the King (at least for now).
Ann
that seems to be the trend with microsoft. i think they’re just trying to flood us with products so they can see what works.
Roger-
I really thought about it this time. In the end I was worried that since EVERY person with whom I do business uses a PC I would have problems transferring files (Office documents in particular). Do you have those problems?
Maybe I’ll get a Mac as a back up!
Ann
Another reason to own a Mac!