Microsoft has released updates to the Mac versions of its popular suite of office apps, Microsoft Office 2004 and 2008 editions. Available as free downloads right here, on Softpedia, the updates deliver improvements to enhance the stability, compatibility, and performance of the software for the 2008 edition, and security fixes for the older MS Office for Mac.

The Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac 12.2.3 Update contains improvements to enhance stability, compatibility, and performance, a post over at Microsoft’s Mac section (Mactopia) reveals. “In addition, this update includes fixes for vulnerabilities that an attacker can use to overwrite the contents of your computer's memory with malicious code. For more information about this update, please visit the Microsoft Web site,” the Windows maker says.

The update applies to Office 2008, Office 2008 Home and Student Edition, Office 2008 Special Media Edition, Word 2008, Excel 2008, PowerPoint 2008, Entourage 2008, Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition. Released Tuesday, November 10, 2009, Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac 12.2.3 weighs in at 349mb and is available for free download using the link below.

Download Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Update (Free)

The Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.5.6 Update improves security, Microsoft says. “It includes fixes for vulnerabilities that an attacker can use to overwrite the contents of your computer's memory with malicious code. For more information about this update, please visit the Microsoft Web site,” a similar description goes.

The new release applies to Office 2004 Standard Edition, Office 2004 Student and Teacher Edition, Office 2004 Professional Edition, Word 2004, Excel 2004, PowerPoint 2004, Entourage 2004. Released on the same day as its 2008 counterpart, Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.5.6 comes in at a meagre 17mb. Use the link below to grab the new version.

Download Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac Update (Free)