Microsoft to Talk Office Plans Monday

In a message sent to members of the media, Microsoft said it has scheduled a press conference on Monday to discuss "new Microsoft Office system technologies designed to help information workers access and work with business information." Jeff Raikes, Microsoft Business Division president, may finally offer more details on Office 12.

Microsoft gave developers at PDC 2005 an initial peek at the new Office 12 user interface, which does away with the suite's standard toolbars and adds task-oriented "ribbons." But the company has thus far said little about new features or slated improvements, aside from changes in SharePoint. Office 12 Beta 1 is expected to ship next month.