Microsoft has announced the addition of “Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition” and whittled their offerings down to two choices:
1) Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition
2) Office 2008 for Mac Home & Student
The new Office 2008 for Mac Business Edition is a suite that has all the familiar Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Entourage, all updated with Service Pack 2) while including new tools for the enterprise:
• Entourage 2008 Web Services Edition – Provides faster data synchronization so Entourage users on Exchange 2007 will experience improved email and calendaring support. Additionally, Microsoft has added the ability to sync Tasks, Notes and Categories.
• Document Connection for Mac – Improves access and browsing to documents on SharePoint Products and Technologies and Microsoft Office Live Workspace for streamlined collaboration
• Extras – More than 200 business-related templates and clip art, along with lynda.com training
The Office Business Edition has an estimated retail price of US$399.95; $239.95 for the upgrade.
Office 2008 for Mac Home and Student Edition excludes Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services support, Microsoft Exchange Server support, Entourage 2008, Web Services Edition (Sync tasks, notes, and categories), Remote Desktop for Mac 2, training by lynda.com, and the 200+ business-related templates and professional clip art. It has a suggested retail price of $149.95.
MacDailyNews Take: These are the people who want you to pay them way too much for their bloated products:
• Not everyone wants a machine that’s been washed with unicorn tears. – David Webster, Microsoft’s general manager for brand marketing, commenting on Mac users, April 4, 2009.
• Paying an extra $500 for a computer… $500 more to get a logo on it? – Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO, insinuating that the only difference between a Mac and a Windows PC is the Apple logo – March 20, 2009
While the “You’re a Fscking Idiot, Now Buy My Software” is an interesting sales tactic, its efficacy may be suspect.