SAN ANTONIO— July 1, 2008 — Today at the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), Microsoft Corp. showcased innovations, such as Microsoft Live@edu, that continue to help K–12 schools and universities meet their technology demands in an increasingly Web-connected world. More than 500 K–12 schools around the world have signed up for Microsoft Live@edu, a suite of no-cost, innovative online communication tools. Since the launch of Live@edu in March 2005, thousands of universities, colleges and K–12 schools in 86 countries have enrolled in the program, and momentum continues to grow as educational institutions discover the numerous benefits of deploying Live@edu.
“As K–12 districts seek to reconcile their vision of providing effective and sophisticated communications for their education communities with the reality of increased storage and mail service costs, they find compelling collaboration solutions with Live@edu,” said Anthony Salcito, general manager of Microsoft Education. “Microsoft’s holistic approach to education allows us to work with district customers to select the right tools and solutions. Live@edu helps them meet their individual collaboration and communication goals, whether they wish to simplify e-mail or build richer work-space and online learning and sharing options.”
“In Polk County, Fla., our goal is to enhance communication among the school system, parents and community to increase student achievement,” said Abdu Taguri, chief information officer of Polk County Schools, Florida. “That’s why our work with Live@edu will help us to eventually roll out e-mail accounts to every student and parent.”
Microsoft believes that high-quality education should be able to reach every student, no matter where they are. Through technology, Microsoft can help extend the reach of teachers, tools and content in an affordable and scalable way to help make education available to everyone, whenever and wherever they want to learn. Live@edu allows teachers and students to access documents from almost any computer with an Internet connection, collaborate with others on documents and projects in a password-protected work space, store large numbers of documents, photos and multimedia materials, and connect to Microsoft Office applications via the Web — activities that will benefit entire school communities, extending the reach of high-quality education to all. Live@edu also provides institutions with these communication tools in a managed environment, helping to maintain the security and privacy of student data.
Live@edu offers the following benefits to schools and students:
-
A school-branded Microsoft Exchange Labs inbox. Microsoft Exchange Server is a leading server for e-mail, calendaring and unified messaging, in use at 80 percent of all Fortune 100 companies. Live@edu offers universities an Exchange Labs inbox with a familiar navigation interface, including folders and a preview pane, so minimal training is required to acclimate students to the e-mail system.
-
Microsoft Office Live Workspace. This new Web-based complement to Microsoft Office is among the first entries in the new wave of innovative online services from Microsoft. Available at no charge, Office Live Workspace lets students create a browser-based document called a “Note”; store more than 1,000 documents in popular formats including Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF; and collaborate on Office documents with others, even when they don’t have Microsoft Office installed on their computer.
-
Windows Live SkyDrive. This password-protected online storage drive lets students share documents, photos and other materials with others in their contact list.
-
Windows Live Messenger. Windows Live Messenger, the world’s most popular instant-messaging (IM) application, provides students using Live@edu with another communication tool that many are already accustomed to using. This feature allows for text, audio and video conversations with friends, family and colleagues*; it also allows multiuser IM for study groups. This application also allows students to make affordable domestic and international calls.
-
Windows Live Spaces. Students can use Windows Live Spaces to create e-profiles for prospective employers. Students, alumni, faculty, clubs and departments can also use Windows Live Spaces to share information, photos, blogs and more.
More information about Microsoft Live@edu can be found at http://get.liveatedu.com.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
* To place a PC to PC call, both users must have Messenger installed, a compatible microphone and speakers or a headset, and Internet access (webcam and broadband required for video).
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.
