Analysis: iWork and Office for Mac

[bwana]

David Weiss is an employee at Microsoft's MacBU, and while he has makes it clear that he doesn't speak for Microsoft or the MacBU, his [URL="http://davidweiss.blogspot.com/2007/08/numbers.html"]recent post

about iWork '08 is interesting from a couple of directions. He starts with a little self-congratulatory back-patting for Microsoft's embracing an "open" XML file format and talks a little bit about the challenges involved with "starting from scratch" in writing an office application. Most telling, however, is his conclusion. He writes that the "core value of Office on the Mac" is simple: compatibility. What's interesting about this is about what he doesn't say. He doesn't say that the "core value" of Office is getting your work done efficiently, or producing nice documents, spreadsheets or presentations. Basically what we need the MacBU for is to keep us compatible with Windows. And as I've started to play with iWork '08 I think he's more or less correct. Office for Mac is just about compatibility with Windows, not about giving Mac users the best user experience in document creation. And with Office for Mac dropping support for Windows-compatible macros, it increasingly looks like the MacBU isn't even doing that particularly well.

[/URL]As seen on digg.com

Since Apple included a spreadsheet in their latest iWorks suite I'm not particularly interested in the next Mac Office version (only) due out next year.

 

[koffiejunkie]

Why are they dropping Windows compatible macros? (not that I've ever used macros at all, but still) Try to force us to run Windows on our Macs?

I'm quite happy to avoid jobs that involve collaboration on any sort of documents, thank you.

 

[gunslinger]

I just dropped the Office suite and going to get into the new Iwork 08. I had a look at it and its great.

 

[LandyMan]

Since Apple included a spreadsheet in their latest iWorks suite I'm not particularly interested in the next Mac Office version (only) due out next year.

I am sorry, but MS is a bunch of morons ... how long have they been working on Office 2007 and the new open XML format? Office for Mac should have been released (at most) 2 months after Office 2007. I am sitting with Office for Mac, but had to open all my new docs via Parallels and Office 2007, until iWork '08 that is.

Can Apple's Mail App connect to Exchange servers? If it can, screw MS's Office for Mac ...

 

[bwana]

I am sorry, but MS is a bunch of morons ... how long have they been working on Office 2007 and the new open XML format? Office for Mac should have been released (at most) 2 months after Office 2007. I am sitting with Office for Mac, but had to open all my new docs via Parallels and Office 2007, until iWork '08 that is.

Can Apple's Mail App connect to Exchange servers? If it can, screw MS's Office for Mac ...

Seems like it - http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20031106120118213

 

[gunslinger]

Well this looks nice... I might give it a try when I am at the office with my Mac