I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are from
users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have been in
the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to turn so
please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute here and
also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant building
Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite "tools of
the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000? Also,
are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if I am
going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription worth
it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me sort
out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

William

You are set to go with what you have. I believe XL2000 would have been a
better purchase than XL97 (2000 *is* 97 without some of the bugs)

You have no need for Visual Studio Tools, etc As you grow with VBA you may
wish to push the boundaries with VSTO etc, but you will have a lot of scope
using the tools you have and VBA

In my opinion

--
HTH
Nick Hodge
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Southampton, England
HIS


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

The only versions of Office that you should need are the versions used by
your "customer".
This might also apply to your version of Windows. There are some issues
with forward and backward combatibility...

The important thing is your ability to build applications that will work,
and work well. They should be error free, user friendly, and require little
knowledge on the part of the user. And they must meet or exceed the
expectations of the customer.

Best of Luck...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

As with any business, do not spend money until the expense will create a
return. If all your customers have 2003, then you will not need another
version. If you can accomplish the jobs without purchasing the developer kit
or using the MSDN subscription, then do not spend the money.

Start with the tools you have. If you get a job that requires additional
tools, purchase them.

--
Damon Longworth

Don't miss out on the 2005 Excel User Conference
Sept 16th and 17th
Stockyards Hotel - Ft. Worth, Texas
www.ExcelUserConference.com


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

I am with Nick on this one... I don't see a great need for 97. If anyone is
running anything less than 2000 recomend that they upgrade before you start.
97 can be a pain and the object model is a little thin. 2000 is worth while
as lot of people are still using it. 2002/2003 is a must have as the object
model changed again in 2002, but you may as well get 2003 at this point.
There are a few changes in 2003 from 2002 but nothing to write home about.
--
HTH...

Jim Thomlinson


"Nick Hodge" wrote:

William

You are set to go with what you have. I believe XL2000 would have been a
better purchase than XL97 (2000 *is* 97 without some of the bugs)

You have no need for Visual Studio Tools, etc As you grow with VBA you may
wish to push the boundaries with VSTO etc, but you will have a lot of scope
using the tools you have and VBA

In my opinion

--
HTH
Nick Hodge
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Southampton, England
HIS


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

Steve -- love the reference to 'Combatability' ... how fitting a variation
that is! I am trying to be as versatile as possible without over-spending.
When I bought 2003 I thought I could always save down, but then a thread
started by Ken Loomis (see below) and never resolved made me aware that
creating files in Excel 2003 and saving down still resulted in alerts to the
user about the file's originally being created in a later version -- how
annoying THAT must be! I would expect a lot of potential customers would be
using 2000 still. So I am trying not to be penny wise and pound foolish.
"Ken Loomis" wrote in message
...
When I save a workbook, I often get the dialog box warning me that the
file was created with a later version of Excel.

As for being a good developer so that I meet or exceed client needs ... we
all try our best, and tomorrow's best should always be better than today's.
Thanks!!

"STEVE BELL" wrote in message
news:TKize.11103$kh3.3819@trnddc03...
The only versions of Office that you should need are the versions used by
your "customer".
This might also apply to your version of Windows. There are some issues
with forward and backward combatibility...

The important thing is your ability to build applications that will work,
and work well. They should be error free, user friendly, and require
little knowledge on the part of the user. And they must meet or exceed
the expectations of the customer.

Best of Luck...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the
requisite "tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses
which help me sort out my options and neither over-spend not
under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

Disagree with Nick and Jim on this. 97 is still the most common Office
version in use AFAIK. Also, it is different enough from them to make it
useful (no Split, Instr, Replace etc.)

I think 97 is a good choice. But 200 would be good as well. No need for
2002 if you have 2003 IMO.

--

HTH

RP
(remove nothere from the email address if mailing direct)


"Jim Thomlinson" wrote in message
...
I am with Nick on this one... I don't see a great need for 97. If anyone
is
running anything less than 2000 recomend that they upgrade before you
start.
97 can be a pain and the object model is a little thin. 2000 is worth
while
as lot of people are still using it. 2002/2003 is a must have as the
object
model changed again in 2002, but you may as well get 2003 at this point.
There are a few changes in 2003 from 2002 but nothing to write home about.
--
HTH...

Jim Thomlinson


"Nick Hodge" wrote:

William

You are set to go with what you have. I believe XL2000 would have been
a
better purchase than XL97 (2000 *is* 97 without some of the bugs)

You have no need for Visual Studio Tools, etc As you grow with VBA you
may
wish to push the boundaries with VSTO etc, but you will have a lot of
scope
using the tools you have and VBA

In my opinion

--
HTH
Nick Hodge
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Southampton, England
HIS


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if
people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I
have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where
to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to
contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance
consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the
requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am
missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential
if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which
help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

William,

The best adage is, develop on the lowest version to deploy in.

--

HTH

RP
(remove nothere from the email address if mailing direct)


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
Steve -- love the reference to 'Combatability' ... how fitting a variation
that is! I am trying to be as versatile as possible without over-spending.
When I bought 2003 I thought I could always save down, but then a thread
started by Ken Loomis (see below) and never resolved made me aware that
creating files in Excel 2003 and saving down still resulted in alerts to
the
user about the file's originally being created in a later version -- how
annoying THAT must be! I would expect a lot of potential customers would
be
using 2000 still. So I am trying not to be penny wise and pound foolish.
"Ken Loomis" wrote in message
...
When I save a workbook, I often get the dialog box warning me that
the
file was created with a later version of Excel.

As for being a good developer so that I meet or exceed client needs ... we
all try our best, and tomorrow's best should always be better than
today's.
Thanks!!

"STEVE BELL" wrote in message
news:TKize.11103$kh3.3819@trnddc03...
The only versions of Office that you should need are the versions used
by
your "customer".
This might also apply to your version of Windows. There are some issues
with forward and backward combatibility...

The important thing is your ability to build applications that will
work,
and work well. They should be error free, user friendly, and require
little knowledge on the part of the user. And they must meet or exceed
the expectations of the customer.

Best of Luck...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if
people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I
have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance
consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the
requisite "tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential
if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any
responses
which help me sort out my options and neither over-spend not
under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

Yes but most of his customers are not his customers yet (if you get my
drift). He needs to rope them in, so he has to be able to demonstrate he is
cognisant of their market position. This might mean pitching at a market
niche (e.g. Net, or XP up), or at all versions. That is a business decision
that William has to make when he has studied his market.

--

HTH

RP
(remove nothere from the email address if mailing direct)


"STEVE BELL" wrote in message
news:TKize.11103$kh3.3819@trnddc03...
The only versions of Office that you should need are the versions used by
your "customer".
This might also apply to your version of Windows. There are some issues
with forward and backward combatibility...

The important thing is your ability to build applications that will work,
and work well. They should be error free, user friendly, and require
little
knowledge on the part of the user. And they must meet or exceed the
expectations of the customer.

Best of Luck...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I
have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance
consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the
requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential
if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help
me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

William,

Well said!!! (and you are Welcome!)

For me it has always been "staying down to the level of my customers".
Once had to stick with 97 when 2000 was so much better.

Keep on Exceling...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
Steve -- love the reference to 'Combatability' ... how fitting a variation
that is! I am trying to be as versatile as possible without over-spending.
When I bought 2003 I thought I could always save down, but then a thread
started by Ken Loomis (see below) and never resolved made me aware that
creating files in Excel 2003 and saving down still resulted in alerts to
the user about the file's originally being created in a later version --
how annoying THAT must be! I would expect a lot of potential customers
would be using 2000 still. So I am trying not to be penny wise and pound
foolish.
"Ken Loomis" wrote in message
...
When I save a workbook, I often get the dialog box warning me that
the
file was created with a later version of Excel.

As for being a good developer so that I meet or exceed client needs ... we
all try our best, and tomorrow's best should always be better than
today's. Thanks!!

"STEVE BELL" wrote in message
news:TKize.11103$kh3.3819@trnddc03...
The only versions of Office that you should need are the versions used by
your "customer".
This might also apply to your version of Windows. There are some issues
with forward and backward combatibility...

The important thing is your ability to build applications that will work,
and work well. They should be error free, user friendly, and require
little knowledge on the part of the user. And they must meet or exceed
the expectations of the customer.

Best of Luck...
--
steveB

Remove "AYN" from email to respond
"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I
have been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know
where to turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to
contribute here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a
freelance consultant building Excel and Access applications, so I am
asking about the requisite "tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential
if I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any
responses which help me sort out my options and neither over-spend not
under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

True but in any consulting that I have done the bill that I handed out at the
end not inconsequential. 2K has some definite advantages over 97 (in terms of
memory and functionality) that allow me to produce better solutions cheaper
and faster. Sometimes it is cheaper to buy a new car than it is to fix up the
old one. This of course does not apply to addins or anything else for mass
distribution on may platforms where I agree the lowest common denominator has
to rule. Just my two cents...

--
HTH...

Jim Thomlinson


"Bob Phillips" wrote:

Disagree with Nick and Jim on this. 97 is still the most common Office
version in use AFAIK. Also, it is different enough from them to make it
useful (no Split, Instr, Replace etc.)

I think 97 is a good choice. But 200 would be good as well. No need for
2002 if you have 2003 IMO.

--

HTH

RP
(remove nothere from the email address if mailing direct)


"Jim Thomlinson" wrote in message
...
I am with Nick on this one... I don't see a great need for 97. If anyone
is
running anything less than 2000 recomend that they upgrade before you
start.
97 can be a pain and the object model is a little thin. 2000 is worth
while
as lot of people are still using it. 2002/2003 is a must have as the
object
model changed again in 2002, but you may as well get 2003 at this point.
There are a few changes in 2003 from 2002 but nothing to write home about.
--
HTH...

Jim Thomlinson


"Nick Hodge" wrote:

William

You are set to go with what you have. I believe XL2000 would have been
a
better purchase than XL97 (2000 *is* 97 without some of the bugs)

You have no need for Visual Studio Tools, etc As you grow with VBA you
may
wish to push the boundaries with VSTO etc, but you will have a lot of
scope
using the tools you have and VBA

In my opinion

--
HTH
Nick Hodge
Microsoft MVP - Excel
Southampton, England
HIS


"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if
people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I
have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where
to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to
contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance
consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the
requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am
missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential
if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN
subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which
help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

IMHO, an .exe is always going to convey a more professional feel than an
xls/xla that throws up warnings saying your code looks like a virus.

An installation program will always seem more professional than a set of
instructions on how to install an addin.

Throw in fistfulls of extra controls to spice up your interface, and the
ability to truly protect your code assets, you've got more than enough
reasons to use a language like VB6 or VB.NET to control your Excel apps.


Regards,
Vic Eldridge


"William Benson" wrote:

I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are from
users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have been in
the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to turn so
please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute here and
also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant building
Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite "tools of
the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000? Also,
are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if I am
going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription worth
it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me sort
out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

Vic, thanks -- can't you get all that from Developer Toolkit ... or do you
have to go full bore VB?

"Vic Eldridge" wrote in message
...
IMHO, an .exe is always going to convey a more professional feel than an
xls/xla that throws up warnings saying your code looks like a virus.

An installation program will always seem more professional than a set of
instructions on how to install an addin.

Throw in fistfulls of extra controls to spice up your interface, and the
ability to truly protect your code assets, you've got more than enough
reasons to use a language like VB6 or VB.NET to control your Excel apps.


Regards,
Vic Eldridge


"William Benson" wrote:

I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from
users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have been
in
the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to turn so
please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute here and
also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant building
Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite "tools
of
the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also,
are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if I am
going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth
it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me sort
out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill

Bill -

... So far I have purchased Office 97 ... <

Be sure to get the updates for Office 97 SR-2.

- Mike
www.mikemiddleton.com

I definitely would buy a copy of VB6 if only because you can make ActiveX
dll's to have your code protected.
There are other benefits (use VB6 forms, speed, useful for making an add-in
installer), but this is the main one.
At about £250 you can get it from eBay.

RBS

"William Benson" wrote in message
...
I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have
been in the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to
turn so please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute
here and also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant
building Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite
"tools of the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also, are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if
I am going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me
sort out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are
appreciated.

Bill

can't you get all that from Developer Toolkit

I'm not sure what the Developer Toolkit is. Never heard of it.
If you mean the Developer Edition of MS Office, then I believe the answer is
no. Although I haven't looked into it for a few years - why would I ? I'm
using VB6 and those things aren't an issue any more. See what I mean ?


Regards,
Vic Eldridge




"William Benson" wrote:

Vic, thanks -- can't you get all that from Developer Toolkit ... or do you
have to go full bore VB?

"Vic Eldridge" wrote in message
...
IMHO, an .exe is always going to convey a more professional feel than an
xls/xla that throws up warnings saying your code looks like a virus.

An installation program will always seem more professional than a set of
instructions on how to install an addin.

Throw in fistfulls of extra controls to spice up your interface, and the
ability to truly protect your code assets, you've got more than enough
reasons to use a language like VB6 or VB.NET to control your Excel apps.


Regards,
Vic Eldridge


"William Benson" wrote:

I'm interested in advice without starting a debtate online, so if people
want to just e-mail me answers that's great too. I know most posts are
from
users seeking advice and usually that is the case with me but I have been
in
the software market on a limited budget and don't know where to turn so
please bear with me. I want to be better equipped to contribute here and
also be adequately equipped to operate as a freelance consultant building
Excel and Access applications, so I am asking about the requisite "tools
of
the trade"...

So far I have purchased Office 97 and 2003 Professional, but am missing
2000. Does every self respecting advisor/trainer/developer need 2000?
Also,
are the developer toolkits and the Visual Tools (2003) essential if I am
going to build applications for other people? Is an MSDN subscription
worth
it if all I plan are the aforementioned? Any responses which help me sort
out my options and neither over-spend not under-prepare are appreciated.

Bill