Original Installation

I will start with a brief description of my system.

I run a home office with several computers. The installation of Office 2007 will take place on one computer which is connected to a second computer by a standard 4-port router. Two networked computers, both running Windows XP (automatic updates).

The Big Beige Box is an older machine with Office 97 and Office 2002.

The Laptop in a newer machine with Office 97, Office 2000 and Office 2003. It is on this machine that I’ll install Office 2007 Beta.

The laptop has 2 GB RAM, 100GB hard drive, and hosts a 2GHz CPU

What do I have to lose?

At the worst I’ll be in for a complete re-install of Windows and three versions of Office, but with today’s hands-free installation from CD, it is not the time-consuming problem that it was a few years back when I had to shuffle twenty floppy diskettes.

And yes, what about Virtual Machines? A VM would help isolate harmful after-effects, but I am especially interested in how 2007 conflicts with my other versions. Trust me, if it goes berserk I’ll pull the plug, lick my wounds, and contemplate a new career in Kitchen Ecology.

Otherwise, I’ll plod along from one mistake to the next – and you will benefit from my experience.

I am a TrailBlazer!