How to Get Microsoft Office for Free (or Under $50)
You can get Microsoft Office free or cheaper than you might think. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
Though there are free alternatives available, for many, there’s nothing quite like the familiar, comfortable workings of Microsoft Office, from Word’s superior spell and grammar check to the ease and sense of security of storing files locally on your own PC and not online.
Before you can get Office for free, cheap or any price, you should know there are two main variants. Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) gives you constant updates but requires a monthly or annual subscription fee. Office 2019 is a fixed package of software, but you only have to pay for it once. Microsoft really wants you to use the subscription-based Microsoft 365 service, of course.
The Office 2019 package is slightly different than Microsoft 365. On top of that, there are companies besides Microsoft selling Office for free (both Microsoft 365 subscriptions and Office 2019 keys) or cheaper than Microsoft. And you can even run Office apps for free online. So what’s the best and cheapest way to get your productivity on?
From Office for free to paying $150 or subscriptions, here’s a breakdown of the best and cheapest ways to get Office (we focus on personal versions, rather than business ones).
Office 2019 vs. Office Online vs. Microsoft 365
| Buy Office 2019 From Microsoft | Buy Office 2019 Key From a Third Party | Microsoft Office Online | Microsoft 365 Personal | Microsoft 365 Family | Microsoft 365 Education | Third-Party Microsoft 365 Keys | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $149.99 | ~ $45 | Free | $69.99/year or $6.99/month | $99.99/year or $9.99/month | Free | Personal: $49.99/yearHome: $79.99/year | |
| Apps | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook; PC only: Publisher, Access | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook; PC only: Publisher, Access | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook; PC only: Publisher, Access | |
| Cloud Services | X | X | OneDrive, Skype, Flow, Forms, Sway | OneDrive, Skype | OneDrive, Skype | OneDrive, Teams, SharePoint, Sway, Forms, Stream, Flow, PowerApps, School Data Sync, Yammer | OneDrive, Skype | |
| Devices | 1 PC or Mac | 1 PC or Mac | Unlimited | Unlimited: PCs/Macs, tablets, phones | Unlimited: PCs/Macs, tablets, phones | Unlimited: PCs/Macs, tablets, phones | Unlimited: PCs/Macs, tablets, phones | |
| Free Trial | X | X | N/A | X | 1 month | N/A | X | |
Download Office 2019 From Microsoft: $149.
99
Despite shifting focus to Microsoft 365, which used to be called Office 365, Microsoft still sells Office Home & Student 2019 for a one-time charge of $149.99 . This includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote but lacks some solutions Microsoft 365 has. These missing solutions may or may not be relevant to you: Outlook, Publisher (PC only), Access (PC only) and the OneDrive and Skype cloud services.
You can buy some pieces of the Office suite individually, but considering Word 2019 is $139.99 , if you plan on using even 1 more Office app, it’s a better deal to buy the whole platform.
No matter where you get Office 2019, it won’t be updated monthly like Microsoft 365 is. That means you’ll never see new features added. What you buy is what you get. However, you will get security patch updates “as required,” Daniel Vargas, Microsoft director of product marketing, told Tom’s Hardware.
Buying Office from Microsoft will cost you $149.99. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
It’s very possible that you don’t care if your Office software is updated regularly.
Heck, you may even be okay with an older version of Office, say Office 2016, which you can still find keys for from third-party sellers for cheaper than Office 2019. However, Office 2016 has reached end of life (EoL) , meaning Microsoft no longer provides security updates for it. If you can settle for the 2016 version of Office, you can, as of this writing, get it from Kinguin for PCDestination for about $50. But customer service may be lacking (more on that later).
Remember, to use Office 2019, you need to be running Windows 10. Luckily, we’ve already detailed how to get Windows 10 for free or cheap.
If Office 2019 is your preferred choice, you can get it for significantly cheaper than the $149.99 Microsoft charges by buying it from a third-party retailer.
Download Office 2019 Key From a Third-Party: ~$45
Microsoft charges $149.99 to download Microsoft Office Home & Student 2019, but you can save a lot of money if you’re willing to buy it from a different store.
Newegg sometimes sells the same download key for $123.99, so it’s worth checking . If you can wait for a physical key, Walmart currently sells the key card for $124, Amazon occasionally has it for $125 and Kinguin has it for a shockingly low $36.
But before you take out credit card, let’s talk about the reasons you might want to avoid these retailers.
The Downsides
Saving over $100 on Office 2019 sounds like a no-brainer. However, since you’re not buying from Microsoft, you’ll have to exert some caution. You’re probably comfortable shopping at a well-known retailer like Newegg or Amazon; however, you’ll want to check their return policy on software.
You may be more hesitant to buy from key reseller website like Kinguin. Many question their legitimacy or morality behind such deals. To learn more about its Office 2019, we spoke with Kinguin directly.
“Only the original developer or publisher of a digital product can generate keys, so all of the Office 2019 keys come from this source.
From there, either a seller buys them directly from the publisher or from the wholesaler, who also got them directly from a publisher, and sells them on Kinguin for a fair market price,” Michał Puczyński, PR Manager at Kinguin, told Tom’s Hardware in September 2019.
Puczyński admitted there are “a few bad apples” in its marketplace but said this is inevitable since there are “tens of thousands of Office 2019 keys sold by thousands of sellers on Kinguin.” However, he claimed that only one out of 700 postings aren’t legitimate, and an even smaller percentage of shoppers actually get scammed.
“Our fraud prevention team manages to stop nearly 100% of these attempts before they take place. When a scammer is detected through our custom fraud technology, that person is banned for a lifetime from selling on Kinguin,” Puczyński explained.
Kinguin also offers a $5.69 “Buyer Protection, ”which guarantees you a refund if you get a bum key.” However, even if you don’t buy this protection, Kinguin is willing to work with you for a potential refund if your key doesn’t work.
“We always put the customer first and work to find a solution for any problem the customer has encountered, which may include issuing a refund,” Puczyński said. “The Kinguin Buyer Protection is an optional feature designed to provide added protection while purchasing in our store, as well as additional services, but that doesn’t mean the customer will get inadequate treatment without it. Kinguin does reserve its right not to accept any returns of already delivered items or game keys to protect itself from scams.”
Regardless, we’ve heard of customer complaints regarding slow customer service or the company offering refunds rather than dealing with individual complaints. We haven’t been able to get in touch with Kinguin for a response.
Get Microsoft Office Free: Online and Mobile Apps and More
You can use Office for free through apps available on Office Online. (Image credit: Microsoft))
As its name implies, Microsoft Office Online doesn’t live on your PC.
Instead, you can only access these services with an internet connection. You also have to have a Microsoft account. You can get to Office Online by signing in with your Microsoft account here . Once you do so, you have access to free Office tools.
The service is a good alternative to G Suite, especially if you don’t like some of that platform’s limitations. Your files will still be at the mercy of the web, but you’ll be able to use Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, OneDrive, Skype, Flow, Forms and Sway without paying any money. Plus, since everything is internet-based, you can access it from any computer connected to the web.
As of November, Microsoft consolidated Word, Excel and PowerPoint into a single mobile app on both Android and iOS smartphones. The app is available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store .
Free Office Online may not be a good fit for your largest or most complex projects, since features are more limited than what’s offered in Microsoft 365.
It has less menu options. For example tabs like Draw and Design are missing from Word online.
The free Office Online does come with 5GB of OneDrive storage, but that’s actually skimpy compared to the 15GB of free storage you get with Google Drive.
Similarly, there are free iOS (varies from iPhone to iPad) and Android (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Outlook, OneNote and SharePoint) versions of Office software that are also available for free but with fewer features.
Note that you may also end up getting Microsoft 365 for free through a sale. For example, from now until April 18, LG is offering a 12-month subscription of Microsoft 365 Personal for free if you buy a 2021 LG Gram laptop.
Buy Microsoft 365 From Microsoft: $69.99 or $99.99/year
You can get Office for free by doing a one-month free trial of Microsoft 365. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
On April 21, Microsoft renamed Office 365 to Microsoft 365. In addition to a new name, Microsoft 365 brings new features, including artificial intelligence, new templates and content and «cloud-powered experiences,» according to Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate Vice President, Modern Life, Search & Devices at Microsoft.
Microsoft 365 Personal, which is for one person across multiple devices, is $6.99 a month or $69.99 a year. You can use Microsoft 365 Home for free through a one-month trial. Microsoft 365 Family , for up to six people, is $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year.
Microsoft 365 is a great option if you don’t mind paying for your productivity suite on an annual or monthly basis. It won’t be long until you’ve paid more for Office 365 than you would have for Office 2019, but it does come with more apps than Office 2019. In addition to Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote, Office 365 includes Outlook, Publisher, OneDrive and Skype. PC users also get Publisher and Access.
Perhaps the best part is you can install Microsoft 365 on an unlimited number of devices and log into your subscription on up to 5 of those devices simultaneously. Additionally, Office 365 Personal subscribers get 1TB of OneDrive storage for up to 1 user, and Office 365 Home users can share their cloud storage with 6 users.
You also get 60 minutes of Skype calls to real phone numbers for 1 or 6 users, depending if you get Office 365 Home or Personal.
Another advantage Microsoft 365 has over traditional Office 2019 is its monthly updates, which vary but can include new features, functionally and security updates, “ and often it is all of those each month,” Microsoft’s Vargas told us in September 2019.
“Most importantly, Microsoft 365 is connected to the cloud, so you can access your content from any device, co-author with anyone in real-time (regardless of whether or not they’ve purchased a copy of Office) and use the power of artificial intelligence to create more impactful content with less effort,” he added.
You can get a free trial for Office 365 Home (only), but it’ll last a mere month.
Buy Microsoft 365 From a Third-Party: $49.99 or $79.99/year
You can also buy or renew your Microsoft 365 subscription from a third-party retailer in one-year packages that are cheaper than what Microsoft charges for its one-year subscriptions.
At the time of writing, Newegg has a 15-month Microsoft 365 Personal subscription for $69.99 if bought with another product or $60 for a 12-month Office 365 subscription, (note that you won’t get the features of the current Microsoft 365), which will have to be delivered.
Amazon has Microsoft 365 Personal for $40 but is charging the same price as Microsoft for Microsoft 365 Family . It doesn’t offer the older Office 365.
Note that you still get free Microsoft technical support for the duration of your subscription, even if you buy your subscription outside of Microsoft. But Microsoft won’t handle subscription or billing issues, such as cancellations or refunds. This is because “Microsoft has limited access and visibility over subscription purchased through a third-party retailer,” according to Vargas.
Get Office Free: Microsoft 365 Education for Students, Teachers
If you’re a student or teacher, you can actually get an Microsoft 365 subscription for free, if your school qualifies.
The subscription includes SharePoint, Sway, Forms, Stream, Flow, PowerApps, School Data Sync, Yammer, which aren’t included in regular Office 365 subscriptions. However, you miss out on Outlook, Publisher and Access.
To see if you’re eligible for free Microsoft 365 Education, head to Microsoft’s website .
Microsoft Office is a productivity staple. If you insist on the traditional procurement method of buying and owning the software for life and don’t need the software to be updated monthly, you should stick with Office 2019, just know that EoL will eventually come. You can also buy a legitimate key from a key reseller for as low as about $45, saving you around $105 from Microsoft’s pricing.
If you’re not doing big projects but instead just basic documents, spreadsheets, presentations etc., you may be able to get away with free Office Online or mobile apps. Just be sure you have an Internet connection.
But for heavy-duty productivity, the world is moving toward subscription-based software.
Microsoft 365 comes with more offerings than Office 2019, monthly updates, the ability to share among multiple devices, plus a heaping 1TB of free cloud storage. You can get it for cheaper if you buy it outside of Microsoft, for as little as $50 for a year. But make sure it’s a retailer you trust, in case of billing or subscription questions. If you’re okay with making monthly or annual payments to continue creating and editing files, Microsoft 365 — is tomorrow’s productivity suite.
Today’s best Microsoft Office 365 deals
Microsoft 365 Personal
$6.99
/mth
View Deal
at Microsoft US
Microsoft 365 Family
$9.99
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Scharon Harding has a special affinity for gaming peripherals (especially monitors), laptops and virtual reality.
Previously, she covered business technology, including hardware, software, cyber security, cloud and other IT happenings, at Channelnomics, with bylines at CRN UK.
5 Ways to Get Cheap Microsoft Office and Microsoft Word Licenses
Microsoft Office is a useful tool for both study and work, but it doesn’t come cheap. If you’re looking for the cheapest way to get Microsoft Office, there are methods you can use to get the productivity suite for a fraction of the price.
Here are some ways to get Microsoft Office cheaply versus buying it full-price at the store.
1. Use Microsoft’s Student Office Plans
If you’re wincing at Microsoft Office’s price because you’re a student, you may be entitled to Office 365 for free. Not all students can claim this offer, as your institute needs to enroll with Microsoft to benefit from this plan. However, it’s worth giving it a shot to see if you can get Office for free.
To check if you’re eligible, head to the official Office 365 Education page and enter your school email address into the box.
If you’re eligible, you should receive a code for Office 365, which you can use right away.
It’s worth noting that this isn’t a lifetime gift. Once you graduate from your current school, Microsoft may check up on you to see if you’re still eligible.
If you’re not, you’ll have to buy Office out of pocket. Not to worry, however; you’re still eligible to purchase Microsoft’s alumni deal at $12 for a year.
While we’re on the topic, why not explore some amazing discounts you can get with a student email account? They’re a great way to save some cash on a student budget.
2. Use Microsoft’s Office Online Website
Did you know that you can use Microsoft Office online for free? It’s not getting an Office license per se, but it’s an excellent way to use Word without paying anything.
If you head over to Office.com, you’ll find the entire Office suite ready for you to use. All you need to do is log in with a Microsoft account, and you can start using Office at no extra cost.
Office Online supports uploading, editing, and downloading Office files from your computer. If you have a Word document you want to read, but you have no word processor, you can upload it to Office Online to read it.
So, what’s the catch? Office Online does not have the full range of features that Office 365 has, and it lacks several useful features.
Microsoft will continuously remind you of this as you use it, prodding you to purchase a subscription while you use Office Online. However, for a free alternative to Microsoft Office, it fits the bill.
3. Use the Mobile Office Apps for Android and iOS
Speaking of free Office software, you can also find each component of Office for free on mobile. Again, it’s not strictly getting an Office license, but it’s still advantageous if you want to save money legally.
Both the Android and the iOS app stores have them, and Microsoft is working on a more extensive, all-encompassing Office app for release later down the line.
Download: Word | Excel | PowerPoint | OneNote | OneDrive (Android)
Download: Word | Excel | PowerPoint | OneNote | OneDrive (iOS)
4. Use Third-Party Retailers and Hunt for Sales
If you want to purchase Microsoft Office legitimately, it’s worth checking for Microsoft Office deals from verified sellers. Some of them may have some great Microsoft Office 365 deals, and others may even list Office for a lower price than Microsoft themselves.
For example, the Microsoft Store currently lists Office 2019 at $149, but how much is Microsoft Office on, say, Amazon?
As it turns out, you can buy a digital download on the Amazon store for a lesser amount. This is a great way to save money on Office while still going through legitimate channels.
Alternatively, from a reputable seller like Mr Key Shop, you can purchase Microsoft Office suite licenses from just $44.99, delivered digitally in seconds. Ranging from Microsoft Office 2010 to Office 2021 Professional; there’s a wealth of options for personal, student, and business use.
Buy Office 365 from Microsoft.com
5. Get Microsoft Office Cheap on Gray Market Stores
If none of the above work for you, the gray market is your best bet. Gray market websites can offer a huge Microsoft Office discount that’s hard to resist.
These websites are called a «gray market» because people sell keys without the blessing or authorization of the original developer or publisher. This means there’s no surefire guarantee that you’ll get what you pay for, or that the developer will support the purchase.
So, why bother with gray markets? Simple; their unbeatable price.
While Microsoft sells Office 2019 for $149, and Amazon sells it for $109, Kinguin currently sells keys for as low as $35—a saving of $115 over Microsoft.
The Moral Issues of Gray Market Stores
However, before you grab a key from a gray market store, consider why these keys are so cheap in the first place. A price cut like this doesn’t come without a few downsides, after all.
First, make sure you know who you’re buying from. Gray market stores will often work like eBay, where individual people and small companies list the products. As such, scams can happen, to the point where some gray market stores ask for an additional cost to protect your purchase.
Also, a seller may put a key up for a low price because it’s an OEM key. These aren’t as desirable as retail keys, as you can only install an OEM on one machine, and one time only. If that machine is lost or breaks down, you’ll need to wrestle with Microsoft tech support to get a reactivation. If they say no, you’ll have to buy Office again.
Finally, gray market stores are a goldmine for thieves. Criminals can steal credit and debit cards and then use the funds to purchase many Office keys. They can then flip the Office keys on gray market websites for a lower price than retail, then direct the profits to their bank account.
What Is an OEM Key?
We briefly touched upon OEM keys above, so it’s worth going into detail on what these are.
You should consider OEM keys when buying a license to avoid any future headaches.
OEM stands for «Original Equipment Manufacturer,» and keys labeled as OEM are intended for computer builders. If you’ve ever bought a computer or a laptop that came with Office pre-installed, there’s a good chance that it uses an OEM key.
Computer manufacturers and builders purchase the OEM key and immediately install it onto a device. You can’t use an OEM key to install Office on multiple machines; that’s what the retail version is for.
As such, if a computer with an OEM version of Office is stolen or fails, you can’t re-use the key on a new computer. Some OEM keys will even identify if you change the hardware on your machine and make the OEM invalid.
OEM keys are cheaper than buying retail Office suites, so manufacturers can supply Office with their computers without hiking up the price. This is how manufacturers can sell laptops with Office pre-installed at around the same price as the retail version of Office.
Despite using them outside their intended use, buying an OEM key by itself isn’t illegal. Just as long as the key was bought through legitimate means, there’s no reason to worry about the legality of buying OEM keys.
Improving Your Productivity for Less
Microsoft Office’s price can be prohibitive, but it doesn’t have to burn a hole in your pocket. By using the free versions, finding a cheap deal, or using a gray market website, you can get your hands on this powerful productivity suite for less.
If you’d rather use a free alternative to Office, don’t worry. There are plenty of alternatives out there, and a huge number of them are worthy of your time.
How to download and use Microsoft Word for free
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Forget pesky paywalls, download and use Microsoft Word for free and get access to the familiar experience you know and love anytime, anywhere
(Image: © Shutterstock / monticello)
Did you know that you can download and use Microsoft Word for free? It’s true! When it comes to word processing, Microsoft Word continues to reign supreme and let’s be honest, for those of us who are staunch Apple fans, it’s probably the one loss that brings tears to our eyes.
In our Microsoft Word review, we’re clear that it’s extensive range of features and intuitive design makes this little beauty completely indispensable. Since its launch in 1983 it has been a staple of homes and offices around the world and there’s not another word processing application on the planet that can come close to doing what this one can.
When it comes to Microsoft, Word (along with the whole Microsoft 365 suite) offers everything you could possibly want when it comes to productivity, communication and collaboration. But perhaps the most frustrating thing about it is that it’s been hidden behind a paywall for most of the past 3+ decades.
Thankfully, that’s all changing. With applications like Google Docs now on the scene, gone are the days when you have to hand over your hard-earned cash and invest in the entire Microsoft suite just to get your hands on Word. And in fact, Google Docs proved so popular that a few years ago Microsoft decided to jump on the bandwagon and finally offer you the option of using Word for free — hurrah!
Yes, it’s true that you’re more limited in scope and some features aren’t available, but on the whole, the free version of Microsoft Word will get the job done nicely for most people.
There’s no longer any requirement to buy a copy or sign up for Microsoft 365 to use Microsoft Word, which is a huge relief if you’re on a budget, but if you do decide you’d like to invest, our guide to the best Microsoft Office and Microsoft 365 deals will ensure you get the lowest price possible.
If you’re currently shopping the best MacBook and Macs and feel like that’s going to be enough of a financial outlay for now or you already have a laptop and just can’t justify any extra expenses at the moment, the easy step-by-step instructions below will help you download and use Microsoft Word for free.
Best Microsoft 365 and Office deals
1. Microsoft 365 Family $84.99 at Walmart US
Microsoft 365 Family is the best way to join Office. For as little as $0.04 per day, up to six people can enjoy premium apps such as Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook and OneNote with up to 6TB cloud storage to back up files and photos.
2. Microsoft 365 Family + McAfee Total Protection $89.99 at Argos UK
Not available anywhere else is a barely believable offer. Get the power of Office plus McAfee Total Protection security suite for under £90, a 50% discount off the suggested retail price. Total Protection comes with free VPN, password manager and lots more.
(Image credit: TechRadar)
How to use Microsoft Word for free on Windows 10, Mac, Chrome OS, and Linux
The easiest way to download and use Microsoft Word for free is right in your web browser. Whether you’re on Windows 10, Mac, Chrome OS, or Linux, using Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari, or any other major browser, you can access a free-to-use version of Microsoft Word.
All you need is a Microsoft account and a data connection. Head to ‘the official Office website in your browser of choice, enter your login credentials and choose ‘Microsoft Word’.
Office Online offers more than just Microsoft Word, too, with Excel, Powerpoint, and much more also available for free.
Using Microsoft Word online is a lot like Google Docs, in that you have automatic cloud backups of your work with OneDrive. You also have the ability to collaborate with other people in real-time. This isn’t the full version of Microsoft Word, but it looks the same and has all the basic suite of features that the majority of people will need access to.
(Image credit: Microsoft Office Mobile)
How to use Microsoft Word for free on iOS and Android
More advanced features are available to users with a Microsoft 365 subscription, but if all you’re looking for is basic access to Microsoft Word on your smartphone or tablet, this will do the job very well. You can download and use Microsoft Word for free from either the Apple App Store or Google Play Store .
Using Microsoft Word on a smartphone or a tablet might not be your first choice, but it’s possible and it’s also free.
Previously, Microsoft had a standalone Word app for both iOS and Android, but it has now merged Word with Excel and Powerpoint on mobile in the single Microsoft Office application.
Again, to use it you only need to log in with a Microsoft account for free access to basic features, as well as online collaboration, backup to OneDrive, and the ability to create PDF files from your documents.
Summary
Not only is there no requirement to pay to use Microsoft Word anymore, but there’s also no requirement to even install it if you’re using it on a PC. The development of the browser-based application for Windows 10, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS users makes it easy and convenient to work solo or in collaboration.
The mobile application also provides free access to basic editing features from your pocket, and all of this only requires a Microsoft account to keep everything in sync. So, what are you waiting for? Download and use Microsoft Word for free today!
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Hello! The world’s first automatic data storage in DNA molecules — Microsoft
| Press Center
Researchers at Microsoft and the University of Washington have demonstrated the first fully automated readable storage system for engineered DNA. This is a key step in moving new technology from research labs to commercial data centers.
The developers confirmed the concept with a simple test: they successfully encoded the word «hello» in fragments of a synthetic DNA molecule and converted it back into digital data using a fully automated end-to-end system, which is described in an article published on March 21 in Nature Scientific Reports.
DNA molecules can store digital information at a very high density, that is, in a physical space that is many orders of magnitude smaller than modern data processing centers occupy.
It is one of the promising solutions for storing the vast amount of data the world generates every day, from business records and videos of cute animals to medical and space images.
Microsoft is exploring ways to bridge the potential gap between the amount of data we produce and want to store and our ability to store it. Such methods include the development of molecular computing algorithms and technologies for encoding data in artificial DNA. This would fit all the information stored in a large modern data center into a space roughly the size of a few dice.
“Our main goal is to launch a system that, to the end user, will look almost the same as any other cloud storage system: information is sent to the data center and stored there, and then simply appears when the client needs it — says Microsoft senior researcher Karin Strauss. “To do this, we needed to prove that it makes practical sense from an automation point of view.”
The information is stored in synthetic DNA molecules created in a laboratory, not in the DNA of humans or other living beings, and may be encrypted before being sent to the system.
While complex machines such as synthesizers and sequencers already perform key parts of the process, many of the intermediate steps have so far required manual labor in the research lab. «It’s not suitable for commercial use,» said Chris Takahashi, senior fellow at the Paul Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of the United States (Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering).
“People can’t run around the data center with pipettes, it’s too high for human error, too expensive, and takes up too much space,” Takahashi explained.
For this method of data storage to be commercially viable, both the cost of DNA synthesis, the creation of fundamental building blocks with meaningful sequences, and the sequencing process required to read the stored information must be reduced. Researchers say that in this direction there is a rapid development.
Automation is another key piece of the puzzle to enable commercial scale storage and make it more accessible, according to Microsoft researchers.
Under certain conditions, DNA can survive much longer than modern archival storage facilities, which decay over decades. Some DNA managed to survive under less-than-ideal conditions for tens of thousands of years—in mammoth tusks and in the bones of early humans. This means that data can be stored in this way as long as humanity exists.
The DNA automated data storage system uses software developed by Microsoft and the University of Washington (UW). It converts the 1s and 0s of digital data into nucleotide sequences (A, T, C, and G) that are the «building blocks» of DNA. The system then uses inexpensive, mostly standard, laboratory equipment to supply the necessary fluids and reagents to the synthesizer, which collects the fabricated DNA fragments and places them in a storage container.
When the system needs to extract information, it adds other chemicals to properly prepare the DNA and uses microfluidic pumps to push fluids into the parts of the system that read the DNA sequences and convert them back into computer-readable information.
The researchers say the goal of the project was not to prove the system could be fast or cheap, but simply to show that automation was possible.
One of the most obvious benefits of an automated DNA storage system is that it frees up scientists to solve complex problems without wasting time looking for bottles of reagents or the tedium of adding drops of liquid to test tubes.
«Having an automated system to do repetitive work allows labs to get straight into research, develop new strategies to innovate faster,» said Microsoft researcher Bichlin Nguyen.
A team at the Molecular Information Systems Lab (MISL) has already demonstrated that it can store cat photos, great literature, videos, and archival DNA records and extract these files without error. To date, they have been able to store 1 gigabyte of data in their DNA, breaking the previous world record of 200 MB.
Researchers have also developed methods to perform meaningful computations, such as finding and extracting only images containing an apple or a green bicycle, using the molecules themselves, without converting the files back to digital format.
“It’s safe to say that we are witnessing the birth of a new type of computer system that uses molecules to store data and electronics to control and process. This combination opens up very interesting possibilities for the future,” said Louis Cese, a professor at the Allen School at the University of Washington.
Unlike silicon-based computing systems, DNA-based storage and computing systems must use fluids to move molecules. But liquids are inherently different from electrons and require completely new technical solutions.
The University of Washington team is also working with Microsoft to develop a programmable system that automates laboratory experiments by using the properties of electricity and water to move droplets on a grid of electrodes. The complete suite of software and hardware, dubbed Puddle and PurpleDrop, can mix, separate, heat or cool a variety of liquids and perform laboratory protocols.
The goal is to automate laboratory experiments currently performed manually or by expensive liquid-handling robots and reduce costs.
The next steps for the MISL team include integrating a simple, end-to-end automated system with technologies such as Purple Drop, as well as other technologies that allow searching within DNA molecules. The researchers deliberately made their automated system modular so that it can evolve as new technologies for DNA synthesis, sequencing and manipulation emerge.
“One of the advantages of this system is that if we want to replace one of the parts with something new, better or faster, we can just plug in the new part,” Nguyen said. “This gives us more flexibility for the future.”
Top image: Researchers at Microsoft and the University of Washington recorded and counted the word « hello » using the first fully automated DNA storage system. This is a key step in moving new technology from labs to commercial data centers.
Microsoft programs in Russian schools today are stupidity and ignorance. Lamp slave
Hello.
The topic arose from a question from our reader: what is the way to pay for an MS Office 365 subscription, children cannot attend computer science classes at a Moscow school.
The very posing of the question struck me to the core, as if there were no sanctions around, Microsoft’s statements that the company stops all sales on the Russian market until July 1, and then how it goes. Russian schoolchildren, as if nothing had happened, continue to study the office suite from Microsoft, forcing their parents to look for an opportunity to install or purchase it. After I was asked this question, pulled on teachers I knew, asked my children what applications are in their classes, the answers struck me with their monotony — MS Office is installed everywhere. Moreover, my question itself was bewildering: what, there could be something else there, and not Office from Microsoft? But what? Teenagers, who in theory are supposed to be inquisitive, aware of alternatives, and trying new things, are boring and predictable in this regard. They know for sure that there is only one program for preparing presentations, spreadsheets and typing. For many years, Microsoft has been promoting its solutions day and night at all levels, including in schools, making them the cornerstone of the office suite standard.
In fact, Microsoft formed a habit that was instilled from a very young age. Free software for schools, educating teenagers, and then into adulthood, people who imagine only products from Microsoft, are familiar with them and simply do not know anything else.
The task is not as simple as it seems at first glance. Imagine that one of the manufacturers of hammers suddenly learned how to do something similar. And people, in order to hammer a nail, do not take any hammer that is at hand, but look for a hammer from Hammer Incorporated, as they are used to it since childhood. Sounds stupid enough?
But let’s take a look at what happens with office applications, for example, with the same text editor. My work is related to text, every day I collect letters into words, and those into sentences. Perhaps most people do not type as much text in a year as I do in a week. For me, this is a professional skill, but unlike the vast majority of people, the computer, the convenience of its keyboard, is important to me, but not the program in which the text is being typed.
I will reveal a terrible secret, which Microsoft is afraid of like fire, you can type text in almost any application, from notepad to some kind of text editor. Throughout my life, in addition to the standard text formatting, I needed additional editor features several times when I released books (annotations, footnotes, complex table of contents construction). Moreover, in theory, I could simply not do this, but leave it to the editor in the publishing house, he would do all this for me.
More than ten years ago, I moved from a Windows computer to a MacBook, dragging MS Office with me, it was so familiar and simple, a familiar environment. I was no exception, as I was a lamp slave and chose what I was used to and what I considered a necessary part of the workspace. To some extent, I was lucky that the MS Office applications turned out to be very poorly written for MacOS, while on a trip, MS Word crashed and began to crash stupidly, it didn’t work. On a business trip, when there was an exhibition and I had to write a lot and at a frantic pace, it irritated me to no end.
It was not possible to install the update, there was a free Pages editor in the MacBook’s memory, in which I am typing this text today. I started using it involuntarily and unexpectedly discovered that I did not suffer at all, this editor has everything I need. And it is absolutely free for me, plus, like most of these programs, it can save files in MS Word format. No problem, they were contrived. The transition to a new application took less than a week, it turned out to be familiar.
Involuntarily, I was able to look at my experience from the outside, I was the same slave to the lamp as most people today are used to MS Office products that the company hooked them on. People who sincerely consider their choice independent, think that no one influenced it and they only chose the best, in my opinion, they are mistaken. For many years, Microsoft has consistently built the habit of using its applications, going to any lengths to achieve this. Only incorrigible idealists can represent big business as something good and eternal.
We can recall the revelations of employees and outsiders about Apple, Amazon, Uber and other companies that are built around maximizing profit. Read at least about Amazon’s business practices, which many sincerely consider quite normal and adequate (and why not?).
Many people transfer the wealth of the company and the level of earnings to those people who work inside such corporations. For example, anyone working at Apple is extremely wealthy, although in fact the average salary of an Apple employee is lower than that in the market. Apple employees should be proud to work for a well-known company.
Over the years, Microsoft has repeatedly been caught by the hand in bribes, that the company promotes its products at any cost. And there are many such revelations, both from former Microsoft employees and from outside observers. Often buyers of software from Microsoft are so eager to promote Microsoft’s products that they break the law. From the latter, one can recall the same purchases of Microsoft software for a number of educational institutions in Russia, when these purchases were already prohibited by presidential decree.
But, apparently, the president is far away, and the desire to receive earthly goods is very close.
With this approach, there are only two explanations for the choice of applications from Microsoft, which was made by education officials — stupidity and unprofessionalism, or corruption. Radish crap is not sweeter, and the first and second options show that these people simply cannot be in charge of anything in education.
Let’s go back to schools where children are taught to press buttons in a particular text editor, to make presentations in a package from Microsoft. From the example above, this is just the choice of a single hammer, without which children will be lost in the adult world. And the usual problem of many parents is dad, I urgently need to set up an office, I can’t do my homework! The presence of alternative applications on the computer, the ability to install them in a matter of minutes, is not taken into account, people simply do not know that such an alternative exists.
That is, schools teach children how to use one application package instead of explaining that the problem can be solved in different ways. And this approach can be called purely mechanistic, and if you look at the teaching methods in some schools, then the hair starts to move everywhere. Children are taught to literally press buttons, as if children have become 70 years old and cannot master the computer, understand what is what in it. Of course, you need to learn how the menu logic works, what can be done, but spend dozens of lessons on this? Seriously?
Microsoft Vice President Brad Smith recently stated, «Depriving these institutions (schools and hospitals) of software updates and services could endanger the health and safety of innocent civilians, including children and the elderly.» That is, the company intends to plant programs from Microsoft in schools at any cost, since this is the key to their future success, consumers need to be accustomed to their products.
Against this background, I am at a loss, software is de facto banned for most residents of the country, Microsoft does not accept payments for it, but schools continue to promote the interests of the American corporation as if nothing had happened.
They don’t care what happens in Russia and in the world, they have a learning process. Bad, spoiled initially, but the process. And they don’t want to change anything, it’s more convenient for them.
In an ideal world, schools would teach children how to solve problems with different tools, how to get out of a situation. And the same MS Office should become a significant part of such training, but not be the only one and no alternative. Why can’t you show children the same Libre Office or My Office, other applications? Don’t they put letters into words? Or do we only need those who know how to prepare layout in text editors from Microsoft? You need to learn how to choose tools for a specific task and not be afraid to use different applications, this is something that, unfortunately, the modern school (and even institutes) in Russia do not teach. If you want to get blinkered children at the end who don’t know how and are afraid to take a step to the side, then this approach is good.
But if you need those who will think, then you definitely need to refuse it, this approach simply does not work.
Many of us believe that everything should happen by itself, but this does not happen in life. As parents, you can and should ask questions of teachers at the school why they chose this curriculum. The answer that it is provided for in the curriculum is not accepted, plans are written by people, and all the same, you need to find out why they did it this way and not otherwise. Teachers who are not indifferent to the fate of children can sound the alarm and raise this issue in the education system. We need to change this approach, this is a small thing, but it is necessary for children to be better adapted to life than they are now. To impose programs of only one company in the education system is idiocy. More precisely, the education of future buyers of this software. And here the question arises, for whom do these teachers work, for Microsoft or for their own country.
While it turns out that to a greater extent on Microsoft.
Time to move on from Microsoft Word. The text editor can only annoy | Executioner
Let him die already.
Generational change in software is a common thing. Let’s take instant messengers. Skype at one time naturally killed ICQ, and now it looks like a dumb hello from the past against the background of Discord. But sometimes the junk just refuses to die, like the terrible and monstrously inconvenient Microsoft Word.
It is cumbersome and stupid, but for some reason Microsoft is in no hurry to create a normal text editor, and users forget to look for adequate analogues. Isn’t it time to admit that Word is the most terrible and outdated piece of software that is used only by inertia. It’s time to end it! And that’s why.
Word does not know how to work with images
Well, that is, it does not know how at all. We’re not asking for Photoshop-level functionality — just the ability to move an image without experiencing pain in all parts of the body.
As if this is not rocket surgery, but a basic function of any self-respecting editor.
And if you managed to saturate the file with pictures, everything will look invariably ugly. After all, no one needs Word to pick up the image and fit it to the width, as editors do on any lousy site. Or that the image at least does not try to escape to another page.
How Microsoft’s text freak manages to perform such maneuvers and remain the world standard is a mystery that would drive any Jacque Fresco crazy. And no, no one wants the text to suddenly break and wrap around the picture after a careless attempt to move something.
Interface and functionality shamelessly overloaded
It feels like Hideo Kojima worked on Microsoft Word. If you want to do a simple action (for example, change one quote to another) — delve into the menus or google the solution. 99% of the things I need are always at hand, and the rest just gets in the way.
Yes, you can decorate fonts with kerning, there is a separate functionality for mathematical equations, you can open Word Art, convert tables to graphics and much more.
But most of these things are simply not needed by the average user and an eyesore. And sometimes it produces errors and friezes. In a text editor, damn it.
If all those menus annoy you, focus mode can save the day. But why not make Word an advanced thing for specialists and give Notepad its tools for simple work with text. It would be possible to put fonts, headings and text formatting there. But no, instead we are forced to choose between .txt, where nothing is allowed, and .doc, where a lot is possible, but in an extremely inconvenient format.
Word is dumb, Google Docs is smart
Poor, poor Microsoft Word. He’s just an innocent village idiot. Complicated sentences confuse him, so that the poor fellow cannot find a solution, gets lost and asks: «Uh, is this exactly agreed?» Yes, buddy, don’t worry, I checked everything for you.
What happens to vocabulary and context? Here’s a good example for you. Once I wrote about Blizzard and accidentally made a mistake — I called the vice president of the company Mark Ybarra, although he is Mike.
What does smart Google Docs do? Emphasizes the word «Mark», suggesting that it be changed to «Mike». Because the phrase is more stable, and the word Blizzard was previously used. Without the keyword, Marc Ybarra would have been completely fine with Google Docs. Here’s what the context looks like.
The old Word is lost when he sees unfamiliar terms in front of him, although they have long become a familiar element of human communication. “Fail”, “freak”, “meme”, “startup”, “hater”, “creep” — Google Docs has no problem with the fact that the user uses such words. And Word goes crazy and starts to sound the alarm: “What did you just write?” Damn, grandfather, take your pills already.
Word complicates the simplest procedures
We pray for everyone who has had to draw up a list of references or a document with complex headings in Microsoft Word. If something goes wrong, you will have to sit over elementary things for a long time. You don’t have to look far for examples.
When you select a bunch of text to translate it into a different font, you succeed, but the italic settings fly off. Why?
Or, say, work with tables. You try to select a part, but Word allows you to capture either all at once, or a separate column. Not to mention, formatting, wrapping, and stretching tables contain the full range of problems inherent in image editing.
Would you like to add page numbers? Nothing complicated, but you need to go through another storm of menus. And if you want certain pages to not have a column figure, as students sometimes require, real problems begin. It’s easier to score and make titles as separate documents.
Have you ever seen how much it costs?
Let’s imagine for a second that you are honest people who buy software for money. The Microsoft Office Home and Student package will cost just $150 for those who want to type, and it includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Microsoft Teams. The Home and Business package contains all the same plus Microsoft Outlook — and it’s $250 a barrel.
Do you know how much Google Docs costs? He’s not worth anything. Only the money that you pay for the Internet. But there are a lot of free analogues with the same functionality, but with fewer problems — for example, LibreOffice. There is also a stripped-down cloud version of Microsoft Office Online, but it requires a Microsoft account. Oh, and yes — without a subscription you will only get 5 gigabytes. But there is no need to be afraid that the light will turn off and you will lose the typed text.
But as soon as you switch to another text editor and become a happy person, there will definitely come a moment when someone sends you a .docx file. It can be opened with something else, but excesses are possible. So why haven’t we ended the tyranny of the Word yet?
Microsoft’s text editor was once the only normal option, but those days are long gone. Today, Word is a vestige and an atavism that can only cause irritation. Especially if you’ve already tried something else.