Microsoft has announced that the Technical Preview Program for the software suite codenamed "Office 15" has started. This represents the first time that the company will start to receive customer feedback on the software from a select group of NDA-covered testers.
Redmond is describing Office 15 as the Office team's "most ambitious undertaking yet." In addition to the standard desktop software, Microsoft will be simultaneously updating server software, including SharePoint, Lync, and Exchange, the Office 365 cloud service, and mobile clients.
Office 15 is likely to be the first version of Office to ever ship with a touch-friendly user interface, and could well sport a Metro-style UI.
The Technical Preview is a private test; those keen to try out Microsoft's latest and greatest will have to wait for the public beta, due in summer.