Staff and faculty can save some money on personal computer costs thanks to a new licence for Office 365 negotiated by Queen’s Information Technology Services (ITS).

University employees are now licensed to install Office 365 ProPlus for free on up to five personal computers, plus additional installs on mobile devices.

“We recognize that many staff and faculty, through their work at Queen’s, become familiar with Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook and they would like to use those applications at home,” says Bo Wandschneider, Associate Vice-Principal (ITS) and Chief Information Officer. “We are pleased to work with Microsoft and reduce the financial hurdle often associated with installing this software on personal devices.”

The Office 365 ProPlus suite for Windows, Mac and mobile devices includes familiar applications such as Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook. The availability of specific applications will vary based on the device and operating system.

“We recognize that many staff and faculty, through their work at Queen’s, become familiar with Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook and they would like to use those applications at home."
Bo Wandschneider, Associate Vice-Principal (ITS) and Chief Information Officer. 

Office 365 ProPlus also offers benefits for staff and faculty who prefer Mac computers for personal use. They can now download and install Outlook 2015 for Mac.

ITS has posted a service page as well as detailed tutorials for downloading Office 365 ProPlus. Queen’s-owned computers and devices should continue to use the software available through MyQueensU portal.

Skype for Business replaces Lync

ITS has also started rolling out Skype for Business to replace Microsoft Lync, an instant messaging and collaboration platform. This change will automatically occur through regular Microsoft updates. (Users must accept the update for the change to occur).  

Staff and faculty will not lose any features or functionality they were accustomed to following the transition to Skype for Business.

“The update to Skype for Business incorporates the strengths of both programs,” Mr. Wandschneider says. “Skype for Business offers instant messaging, audio and video calling, as well as easy sharing and collaboration tools.”

ITS has created a Skype for Business service page that includes more information and tutorials about the platform.

If you have questions about Office 365 ProPlus or Skype for Business, please contact the IT Support Centre at 613-533-6666 during regular business hours or fill out an online help form.