Although Microsoft had one of the largest spaces at BETT, the leading educational technology show in the U.K., there was a strong case made for open source software. Becta, an advice organisation supported by government, published a report that advised against any sudden move to upgrade Windows pending more evaluation promised for next year. Discussion on "personalized learning" followed another report that recognized some limitations in a tightly controlled system of tests.

The Interim Report on Microsoft Vista and Office 2007 concludes that there are no "must have" features in the product that would justify early deployment in schools. While Office 2007 has new features, many are for business and offer no obvious educational value. Concern was expressed about the current lack of support for Microsoft's new file formats in competitor products.

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