Luke Brown
Assistant Online Editor
As new technology continues to transform the world we know each and every day, Springfield College also continues to upgrade the material that they provide for students. An agreement between Springfield College and Microsoft Corporation has given students the ability to download the MS Office 365 suite for free!
“The program itself is an extension that Microsoft offers only to enrolled students,” explains Trish Dalessio, who is the director of the technology solutions center at Springfield College.
Students are required to uninstall applications upon graduation to avoid fines and other sanctions noted in the Microsoft licensing agreement.
The Office 365 bundle contains Microsoft versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote. The subscription is valid for up to five devices, including Windows and Macs, smartphones, and tablets.
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, or forms of it, have become essential applications for school, while Outlook and OneNote are rather new and therefore not as well known but just as important.
MS Outlook is principally used as a personal information manager, which can show emails, calendars, task manager, contacts, note taking, and web browsing. It takes most of the things that we do on a computer and puts them into one application to simplify everyone’s life.
Many students have taken advantage of the Microsoft bundle, including Springfield College sophomore Sam Catalano. “I never knew what Outlook was until recently, but it really helps put all of life’s obligations into one area,” Catalano elucidates. “I can put class and sport schedules, homework, reminders, and other responsibilities into one area so I know I won’t overlook anything.”
MS OneNote is a computer program that is seemingly essential to a classroom setting. Once information is gathered, the application is beneficial for multi-user collaboration. The information is shared over a network, which is commonly referred to as the cloud. Things such as notes, drawings, stories, screenshots, audio, video, and many other forms of information can be shared with peers and professors via Microsoft’s OneNote.
“OneNote makes doing group projects much easier,” said Springfield College freshman Nick Warner. “Whenever I have a group project, my schedule always seems to conflict with people in my group, but with OneNote that doesn’t matter. I can do my part of a project whenever is best for me and they can do their part whenever is best for them. It’s awesome.”
The subscription is the newest version of each application. Compared to previous versions of each plug-in, Dalessio says, “The transition is very minimal, but there is one for sure. Any upgrade is going to have changed, but I think that our students will be able to handle it.”
The awesome programs can be easily downloaded by going to PrideNet; click “TechHelp,” which is located on the top bar; then on the left sidebar press “Tech News: Fall 2014;” and finally press the top link, which reads “Microsoft Office FREE for Students IS HERE.”
If any questions arise, Dalessio says that the tech center is more than willing to help.