Microsoft Works Suite 2006 bundles an astonishing number of productivity tools for about what you would normally pay for a single program. Although it lacks the features of more advanced office suites, it's a good choice for home users who want a basic set of applications at a budget-friendly price.

The core of the suite is Microsoft Works 8, which includes a word processor, a spreadsheet program, a database program, a dictionary, a thesaurus, an address book, and a calendar program, as well as a collection of templates. The word processor has the usual basic features, including a spell checker and various formatting options, as well as support for tables, charts, footnotes and endnotes. The dictionary is integrated with the word processor, so if you're unsure about a word, you can select it and click the Dictionary Lookup icon. In addition to opening Word files, the word processor can also save files in Word format (.doc).

The spreadsheet program is compatible with Microsoft Excel, although it doesn't support macros. It can open and save single-sheet workbooks in Excel (.xls) format. The database program is a simple, flat file database program that creates two-dimensional files, similar to a spreadsheet (columns and rows). A backup and recovery feature automatically backs up your documents in progress every 10 minutes, which can save your bacon in the event of a system crash.

The programs are united by a Task Launcher, which provides central access to the various applications, as well as the built-in templates. Microsoft Works 8 also includes a PowerPoint slideshow viewer that allows you to view, but not create or edit, PowerPoint presentations.

The bundle also includes Microsoft Word 2002, an image editor (Digital Image Standard 2006), a personal finance program (Microsoft Money 2006 Standard), an encyclopedia (Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia Standard 2006), and a trip planning program (Microsoft Streets & Trips Essentials 2006).

Microsoft Works Suite 2006 is an easy-to-use, value-priced product that includes most of the office applications that many home users will ever need.


Pros: Great value, offers most of the office and productivity tools that many home users need
Cons: The way the Task Launcher organizes things isn't always intuitive, spreadsheet program only opens single-sheet workbooks, no support for macros, features of the individual programs are too lightweight for most business use