Latest Word: I had a hard time adjusting to the new Ribbon interface in Word. I got Word 2007 and then uninstalled it because it was not a good product. Word 2010 was better and I've gotten used to the new interface. I think for most purposes, 2010 is the best version of Word. I am currently using 365 which keeps changing. (Yes, to me that is annoying.) For me, Content Controls are the strongest feature of the Ribbon version.

Word 2003 is a perfectly good program. The binary file format is a bit more prone to trouble than the ribbon version .dotx files. If Word 2003 is doing what you want, stick with it.

USB DVD Drive: Yes. Get one. Even if not for this. Lots of stuff on DVDs and I borrow movies from the public library sometimes. These drives are not expensive, especially when compared to a DVD/Blueray player.