Microsoft Office Home & Student Product Key Help. ?

First, the product key on the bottom of the laptops is for the operating system only, not MS Office.

It sounds like you have either a trial version that was good for 25 uses or 60 days or a full version for which the product key was never entered (which acts like a trial version). At the end of that time it stops letting you edit your files or create new ones. You have to purchase Microsoft Office 2007, or at least Word 2007, to do that.

Like being hooked like a fish, isn't it?

But to start using the trial version, click the Continue button on the registration screen with nothing in the product key boxes.

If you later have files that are locked up in the new Word 2007 file format (.docx), here’s a possibility for salvaging them. Microsoft offers a free Compatibility pack that allows earlier versions of Word to read Word 2007 files. If you have access to an earlier version, this can at least give you back your documents. Some new features of Word 2007 will be lost or converted to straight text in the conversion to the earlier version.

On the other hand, if you’re interested in buying Word, check out this URL, especially the second group of listings.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/products/FX10175...

Note that the higher of the two prices quoted is for a full version of that program and the lower, for upgrades from existing software. Read the list of upgrade-qualifying software carefully: MS Works is often one, and may have come on your machine.

Further, if you're a student, you may qualify for the Student/Teacher edition of Office:

http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theulti...

Good luck.