I recently received a copy of Microsoft Office 2007 Beta 2 from Microsoft just recently. I will spend the next two weeks using Office 2007 Beta 2 for multiple tasks to test its features.

However, the first few days using Word 2007, I was blown out of the chair. It is a complete remake of the entire office suite. The visual ribbons Microsoft dicussed during development exceeded what Microsoft promised in features.

The visual effects are also appealing, a reminder that we are in the 21st Century age of technology.

Some changes in Word 2007 are definitely noteworthy. First, the default font is no longer Times New Roman. It is now a new font in the sans-serif family, reflecting a trend that is moving away from serif fonts such as Times New Roman.

Another change is inserting pictures. You can use the ribbon to select the insert picture option, and once your picture is selected, you have more flexibility in where you would like to place your picture on the document. In previous versions of Word, aligning pictures used a snap-to-grid specification, so the jumpy alignment made designing your document more difficult. Well- not anymore. Another new feature is the frame feature for your document. Just double-click the photo on your document, and Word 2007 will pull up the frame ribbon, where you have the option of the mirror frame, 3D frame, white frame, shadow frame, black frame and slanted frame, which will make your document more professional as well as dynamic.

You can also insert a watermark easily via the ribbon. I will have more on Excel 2007 and Access 2007 in the coming weeks on www.okcpulse.com. Have a great weekend everyone!