Last Chance Alert: Microsoft Office 2021 Is Just $40 as 1-Time Purchase for Limited Time

Today’s the last day to take advantage of this discount. Don’t miss out.

Microsoft

Microsoft Office Professional 2021 lifetime license: $40

This wildly popular offer for a Microsoft Office lifetime license is live once again for just $40. It’s available for both Mac and Windows, so be sure to grab the right one for the computer that you use regularly.

$40 at StackSocial (Windows)

$40 at StackSocial (Mac)

Microsoft’s Office suite of productivity apps is widely used by schools and offices. It’s the default a lot of times, and can make these popular apps feel so ubiquitous, it can be easy to take the apps for granted. Microsoft Word, for instance, is the industry standard when it comes to word processing. And for spreadsheets, Microsoft Excel offers a higher level of functionality than you’ll generally find in Google Sheets. There’s also Microsoft PowerPoint for creating presentations, Microsoft Outlook for email and scheduling and Microsoft Access for database management (though that last one is only available on the Windows edition). These apps have been the standard for home office productivity for a long time, but if you’re buying them on your own dime, the cost can be pretty expensive.

Assuming the barebones online freebie version of Office won’t work for you (see below), your options essentially boil down to paying a rolling monthly or yearly fee for a Microsoft 365 subscription or punting for a one-time Office license, which typically costs as much as $430 with the full panoply of apps. But right now, StackSocial is offering a chance to grab a perpetual Microsoft Office 2021 license for just $40, which is good for around 90% off the usual price. (The deal continues for several more days at $50, but Monday is the last day of the extra 20% savings.) Better yet, this license, which is available for either Windows or Mac, is a one-time purchase — no recurring charges.

StackSocial’s deal is a great bargain when compared to the online Microsoft 365 subscription suite that starts at $7 a month or $70 a year for individuals. There is a free online version of Microsoft Office that you can use as well, but it isn’t nearly as feature complete. (Separately — and notably — Apple users should note that Outlook is now a free app for the Mac.)

Now, a deal this good comes with some caveats. First, this key is only good for a single computer, so you won’t be able to install it on various machines in your home, and if your current computer happens to die, you could run into a snag when trying to transfer it. Likewise, you’re passing up on other benefits you’d get as a 365 subscriber. You won’t get any OneDrive Cloud Storage, nor will you get the fancy new cloud-based AI features like Microsoft Copilot. And while the apps should continue to work as long as your computer does, Microsoft’s support for this version of Office ends on Oct. 13, 2026.

To that last point: While listed as a «lifetime license» — that is, the lifetime of the computer you installed it on — it’s worth noting there’s always a risk that Microsoft could terminate the license. But versions of Stack’s deal have been running for more than a year — the one we bought in early 2022, for instance, still works fine. At this cost, it takes a little over six months for you to get a full return on the investment compared to buying the subscription, so the risk factor isn’t super high here.

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Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Aug. 14, #795

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle No. 795 for Thursday, Aug. 14.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle has some fun categories. Been to any weddings this summer? If so, you might ace the blue group. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Rear end.

Green group hint: Give it a whack.

Blue group hint: Here comes the bride.

Purple group hint: Doubled up words.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Derriere.

Green group: Used to hit a ball in sports.

Blue group: Component’s of a bride’s ensemble.

Purple group: Rhyming compound words.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is derriere. The four answers are backside, caboose, seat and tail.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is used to hit a ball in sports. The four answers are bat, mallet, racket and stick.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is component’s of a bride’s ensemble. The four answers are bouquet, bustle, train and veil.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is rhyming compound words. The four answers are backpack, cookbook, hubbub and nitwit.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Aug. 14 #529

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 529 for Thursday, Aug. 14.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle might be a stumper. Some of the answers are quite long and tough to unscramble, though all of them match the theme very well. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Honest-to-goodness.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Not fake or phony.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

TONE, GONE, BONE, LONE, LOAM, HALO, HALOS, THAN, RITE, TIRE, DIRE, DIRT, TREE, MATT, CALF

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers: