“Apple Inc.’s release of iWork ’08 this week is ’embarrassing,’ an analyst said today, not for its maker, but for rival Microsoft Corp.,” Gregg Keizer reports for Computerworld. “Tuesday, Apple rolled out a refreshed iWork that added a spreadsheet, dubbed Numbers, to the earlier mix of a word processor/page layout Pages and presentation maker Keynote. But it was iWork’s ability to handle the Open XML file format — the new native format for Microsoft’s own Office 2007 application suite — that Michael Gartenberg of JupiterResearch LLC talked about.”
“‘This was the ultimate insult to injury,’ Gartenberg said. ‘Not only has Microsoft not delivered the ability to read and write Open XML in its Mac Office, but at the end of the day, Apple was the one who delivered,'” Keizer reports.
“Gartenberg referred to Microsoft’s problems developing Office 2008 for Mac, which the company announced last week would be delayed until mid-January. Among the roadblocks, said Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit (MBU), is the shift to Open XML as Office 2008’s native file format… ‘This is embarrassing for MBU,’ Gartenberg said,”Keizer reports.
Keizer reports, “Ironically, one of those who praised iWork’s handling of the Microsoft file format was a program manager for Office 2007. “[iWork ’08] reads the Office Open XML files with very high fidelity,” said Brian Jones on his company blog… ‘What this really shows is Microsoft’s inability to ship software on time these days… It’s going to be hard for Microsoft to get those people who try and buy iWork back,’ Gartenberg said. ‘Microsoft’s let down its Mac customers.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple’s iWork ’08 should embarrass Microsoft for many more reasons beyond just being able to open up Open XML files, but we’re not so sure Microsoft is even capable of being embarrassed – just look the Zune or their flagship OS or their CEO; a huge embarrassment who, we pray, will continue to helm the ship all the way to the bottom.
Many Mac users — the majority, we believe — think they need Office, but really don’t. Give Apple’s free 30-day iWork ’08 trial a try and see for yourself.
re: I opened several of the Numbers templates and fiddled around with changing values in the cells. It took a huge amount of time to recalculate, every time. This is not good at all. Files are very slow to open too. 1.67 GHz G4 Powerbook.
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i Work 08 and iLife 08 are optimised for intel Macs – NOT ancient G4 powerbooks.
My advice to you is try it on any mac that is newer than a G4 and you will be amazed how fast it is.
Time to upgrade your hardware I think…
BTW – Dont even think of using Lepoard when it comes out on your G4 because it aint gonna work.
I rec’d my iWork yesterday and have spent a bit of time with it. I really do like it – so much so that I’d like to abandon MS Office. But my major problem is that I *need* EndNote and thus far, they are not willing to support Pages. That’s a real bummer, because iWork is so nice to work with.
i Work 08 and iLife 08 are optimised for intel Macs – NOT ancient G4 powerbooks.
Yeah, an iBook that is less than 2 years old that may be still under AppleCare is “ancient”. As the members here mentioned several times, Steve doesn’t want customers who can’t afford a new computer every year. If you can’t afford to spend $1100 on a new computer every year, go buy a “junky” Dell… Apple is not going to cater to working people raising a family. We don’t want “those kind” of people owning a Mac..
Woooo Hooo Steve!!!
Then don’t buy iWork 08 or iLife 08 if your hardware can’t handle it. If what you have works, keep using it.
These are not forced upgrades. We’re not dealing with MS here…
Then don’t buy iWork 08 or iLife 08 if your hardware can’t handle it. If what you have works, keep using it.
These are not forced upgrades. We’re not dealing with MS here…
Oh I agree Buddy. I think 10.5 needs to be Core 2 Duo Intel Only. Apple can’t keep supporting this old technology (some of it over a year old!!!!!!)….
As is always mentioned here at MDN, Apple doesn’t need people using their BMW’s who can’t afford to upgrade ever 9-12 months, (opps, that’s right, you really can’t “upgrade a Mac much), I mean replace their computer ever 9-12 months…
Gooooo Steve!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry. No built in equation editor. This is a big problem for me. I need that feature.
Just my $0.02
Oh I agree Buddy. I think 10.5 needs to be Core 2 Duo Intel Only. Apple can’t keep supporting this old technology (some of it over a year old!!!!!!)….
Whatever.
This same shit-fit has came up whenever Apple has done a legacy break. Be it from Apple II to 68k Mac, to PowerMac, to G3/G4/G5, to Intel.
Part of owning technology is knowing whatever you’ll buy will be out of the limelight within six months. Apple’s money is NOT made supporting multi-generation old hardware. The fact that new software even RUNS on it is remarkable, and tells me Apple isn’t all that bad.
You aren’t as left out in the cold as you think. Perhaps a “Vista Ready” PC would’ve been a better buy?
Part of owning technology is knowing whatever you’ll buy will be out of the limelight within six months. Apple’s money is NOT made supporting multi-generation old hardware. The fact that new software even RUNS on it is remarkable, and tells me Apple isn’t all that bad.
Couldn’t agree with ya more Buddy!!! The hell with those people who bought Powerbooks a year and a half ago. That’s “multi-generation old hardware”. And if they can’t afford a new laptop now, we really don’t want those kind of people owning Apple Computers anyway, do we????
Erica, you have a valid point. Why can’t Apple include a spell checker like they have in Mail and Safari in Pages? I can only think that they are too focussed on US parochial customers.
The funniest post on this thread is when a math geek presumes that everyone in the whole world uses a spreadsheet to do math geek things. *blinks* I know he’s a math geek and so thinking outside the box isn’t his forte`, but come on!
What’s the point when PP presentations created in Windoze are not even compatible with MS PowerPoint for Mac?!
MS = MoronS….
I like Entourage, too, as an email and PIM app. BUT – Everything – and I mean everything – is stored in a single database file. I had my DB file go corrupt a few years ago, and even tried Entourage’s built-in DB recovery as well as third party, and nothing would rescue it. Gone!
Now, I did back up – but it made me realize, being all in one database file – what if my backup was of a *corrupt* db to begin with? So then I had to keep saving full versions of the entourage DB frequently enough so that I knew I’d have at least one valid DB file to re-load if need be.
that’s why I use apple mail – there’s something to be said for being able to backup messags and mailboxes at a FILE level – every message is an individual file. Very easy to incrementally backup – as well as archive mail folders.
All Quicken and Entourage users please investigate Daylite and Billing from Marketcircle – http://www.marketcircle.com.
Get off of Office forever
Holy crap, people. If I had to endure a slap in the face for every time I read “iWorks” throughout these comments (and by Mac users?!), then I’d be faceless from all the slapping.
It’s iWork, people. iWorks just makes me think of the Dark Ages, when Microsoft Works was on my long-since-replaced-by-a-Mac Sony Vaio.
Anyway, iWork ’08 makes Microsoft Office unnecessary for MOST Mac users. Unfortunately, too few may ever decide to dump Office.
I think that Bill Gates needs to really look at retirement from Microsoft and put his money into Apple stock. All of the new gadgets and toys that apple presents to the younger generations is going to KILL Microsoft. Our younger generation is the foundation for the future. I do take donations for speaking the truth please contact me if you like my speach and want to donate lots of money. Its just business. Business makes the world go round.
I think that Bill Gates needs to really look at retirement from Microsoft and put his money into Apple stock. All of the new gadgets and toys that apple presents to the younger generations is going to KILL Microsoft. Our younger generation is the foundation for the future. I do take donations for speaking the truth please contact me if you like my speach and want to donate lots of money. Its just business. Business makes the world go round.
I think that Bill Gates needs to really look at retirement from Microsoft and put his money into Apple stock. All of the new gadgets and toys that apple presents to the younger generations is going to KILL Microsoft. Our younger generation is the foundation for the future. I do take donations for speaking the truth please contact me if you like my speach and want to donate lots of money. Its just business. Business makes the world go round.
I think that Bill Gates needs to really look at retirement from Microsoft and put his money into Apple stock. All of the new gadgets and toys that apple presents to the younger generations is going to KILL Microsoft. Our younger generation is the foundation for the future. I do take donations for speaking the truth please contact me if you like my speach and want to donate lots of money. Its just business. Business makes the world go round.
I would go entirely MAC but unless I am overlooking something, there is no database software like MS Access for the MAC that has inspired me to want to re-write all of the reports and data entry forms I have created over the past 10 years.
you would go all MAC? cool!
…what is a MAC? isn’t that a networking thing? a MAC Address?
> As it looks right now, there’s no way I would trade in Office for iWork. First main deal breaker is the missing dictionarie/-s. I write in 5 different languages and really like the way I can switch between dictionaries in Office. Secondly, iWork doesn’t have a thesaurus – go figure.
Erika, iWork doesn’t have a dictionary or thesaurus because one is included with Mac OS X. Why re-invent the wheel?
Select a word, and then press Control-Command-D to open up Dictionary. It will show you the definition, and you can click to view its thesaurus entry.
[Sorry. No built in equation editor. This is a big problem for me. I need that feature.]
Appleworks 6 has a stand-alone EE. Copy it into a folder — save to harddrive. Copy, paste stuff — as needed.