Microsoft Office issues regarding the product key

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thejessjess

22 posts

Geek

Trusted

# 78848 9-Mar-2011 09:48

Hi everyone!

Here's my problem:

I'm borrowing my little brother's laptop, it runs with Vista, I am having to use Xcel at work, and every time I open the program it tell me to enter the product key.

The product key is on one of those delightful holographic stickers on the bottom of the laptop, I made the assumption that it would thus be all official and work, but no, it's apparently invalid.

As the laptop came with Microsoft Office preinstalled I really don't know why this is happening.

Is this a common issue with Vista + M.O?

Anyway of solving this?

Thanks for your help!

-Jessjess

jbard

1371 posts

Uber Geek

# 446871 9-Mar-2011 09:50

The product key on the bottom is for Vista not for Microsoft office - that key will be on the office disk or the packaging he got with the laptop.

thejessjess

22 posts

Geek

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# 446872 9-Mar-2011 09:52

Damn! I don't know if he's kept it and where that would be.

jbard

1371 posts

Uber Geek

# 446874 9-Mar-2011 09:53

Well in the mean time you can download and use open office to look at those excel files, you can get it here: www.openoffice.org.nz/

ajobbins

Awesome
4868 posts

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Subscriber

# 446875 9-Mar-2011 10:01

He might not have one for office. It often comes installed as a trial and you have to buy the licence.

Twitter: ajobbins

mxpress

370 posts

Ultimate Geek

# 446890 9-Mar-2011 10:54

thejessjess: Hi everyone!

Here's my problem:

I'm borrowing my little brother's laptop, it runs with Vista, I am having to use Xcel at work, and every time I open the program it tell me to enter the product key.

The product key is on one of those delightful holographic stickers on the bottom of the laptop, I made the assumption that it would thus be all official and work, but no, it's apparently invalid.

As the laptop came with Microsoft Office preinstalled I really don't know why this is happening.

Is this a common issue with Vista + M.O?

Anyway of solving this?

Thanks for your help!

-Jessjess

It will be a trial copy, which has expired. All new laptops come with this preinstalled. It is the first thing I remove from new laptops that I sell and replace it with a free one like open Office. I do the same with trial anti virus programs as well.

hellonearthisman

1819 posts

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# 446897 9-Mar-2011 11:33

If you have a Google account then http://docs.google.com might suit your needs, it has a very good spreadsheet and you don;t need to download or install anything new.

CYaBro

3211 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

# 446898 9-Mar-2011 11:46

Yup the laptop would have come with a 60-day trial which has probably expired so now it is asking for a product key.
If he did in fact purchase Office with the laptop then the key will be either on a credit card type card or he would have got an Office DVD case, with no disc, that will have the key on a sticker inside.