Microsoft Office in Hindi now

Microsoft India has launched the Hindi version of its popular Office software which includes Microsoft Word, Excel, Frontpage, Powerpoint and Outlook among others.

Called 'Office Hindi', the product includes a Hindi language interface will allow users to create documents and communicate with others in Hindi and navigate easily using the menus and toolbars that will be in Hindi.

Microsoft has termed the release as "reiterating the commitment to taking IT to the grassroots."

"Office Hindi will bring about a productivity revolution among those untouched by the power of computing due to language barriers.  We expect this offering to be particularly popular with central and state government, public sector undertakings, the banking industry, educational institutes and the local developer community," says Rajiv Kaul, Managing Director, Microsoft India.

The two editions of the product, Office Hindi Professional and Office Hindi Standard, will be available through Microsoft's regular sales channels. Microsoft has also announced the availability of online resources, training material and partner support to ensure that customers can smoothly adopt and integrate the offering into their infrastructure.

"Our local language initiatives are aimed at helping Indian users realise the same benefits of IT as their peers the world over. Office Hindi combines a world class computing experience with the comfort and familiarity of the Hindi language - and we are confident of the value it will offer users in India" says Kaul.

Microsoft had first announced its intent to launch this offering in India, during its founder, Bill Gates' visit to India in 2002.

Since then a development team for the product comprising of over 400 professionals have been involved in various aspects including coding and testing. The product underwent a testing process of three years with customer audiences and their feedback incorporated at each stage.

The professional version offers a switchable interface, providing users with the flexibility of easily deploying the Hindi or an English interface as required.

The product also offer multiple keyboard options; transliteration, Inscript, Remington and Godrej, along with other variations.

Over 10 Microsoft partners including WebDuniya, Modular, Samtech, Vishwakanadda and Web Chutney are providing add-on applications or tools - including a Hindi text-to-speech converter, CBT (computer-based training) modules, additional fonts, special dictionaries, and special multilingual smart tags among others.

Microsoft has also announced the availability of 'Office Step by Step,' a book in Hindi; Office Online, an online resource center in Hindi and a local Clip-art library.

The Punjab National Bank and the Department of Income Tax are among the early adopters of the product.