What I Got

Microsoft, it’s What I Got!

Computers and Information Processing

February, 23 2006

Currently there are many choices when trying to determine what office automation software to use. Fortunately, where I work has made that decision for me. The work in my office consists of general staffing and business related work. Because of this there is no need for any business specific software to support our mission. In addition, there is a large amount of computers in the building that all must have the same software. This software must also be compatible with the thousands of other computers worldwide. A software package that could meet these strict requirements was selected. We use Microsoft Office Professional at NORAD to fulfill our needs. There are many reasons that Microsoft office was selected and I am not sure of them all, but, I’m sure it has something to do with some of the following reasons.

There are a large number of terminals in NORAD. It would have been impossible to install and maintain different programs if there was no standardization. Also, the addition of different software packages in the command would also have made it harder to train new people in the different program functionalities. Because of user familiarity with this software any new user can ask anyone for guidance when using the software and find the help they need. Microsoft is also one of the most heavily used office automation programs in the world. It is used through out the Department of Defense and in civilian businesses in many different countries. This simplifies the commands ability to transfer files with just about any business or government agency.

The Microsoft Office suite has had many years of development and because of this the software’s functionality is very user friendly. There are multiple pathways for executing commands. Users can easily use their mouse to execute commands from the pull-down menu. Users can then execute the same commands from either...