“Microsoft is reportedly preparing to ship a new version of its Office for Mac productivity suite later this year in what would be the first major update to the software in nearly four years,” Shane Cole reports for AppleInsider.
“Thorsten Hübschen, the Microsoft executive who oversees Office in Germany, revealed the software giant’s plans at this week’s CeBIT computer industry show in Hanover,” Cole reports. “German trade publication Computerwoche was first with the news.”
“Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft disbanded its Mac business unit soon after the most recent version of the suite, Office:Mac 2011, hit shelves in 2010,” Cole reports. “There was no word from Hübschen on Microsoft’s plans for a version of Office tailored for Apple’s iOS, where it remains conspicuously absent.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: What is this ancient crap about which Shane writes?
Oh, that mess. Well, if you’re still shackled to Microsoft’s bloated morass of overpriced overkill, our condolences.
As for Office for iOS:
The more people who learn the fact that they do not need Office and the quicker they learn it, the better. For all we care (being 100% Microsoft free for as long as we can remember) wait until you’re dead, Microsoft. The world would be a better place without you and your ilk. – MacDailyNews, March 1, 2013
The longer Microsoft dithers, the more people wake up to the fact that Office is not necessary. iPad is taking the enterprise by storm. No Microsoft Office needed. Take your time, dummies. – MacDailyNews, April 10, 2013
Microsoft had a chance to preserve one of their cash cows by making Office for iOS and Android. That window of opportunity is closing, if it hasn’t already. The world has or soon will realize that, no, actually you do not need Microsoft Office to word process or create spreadsheets and presentations. The failure to create Office for iOS and Android in a misguided push to sell tablets and phones running Microsoft OSes will be looked at as one of, if not the, biggest mistake Microsoft made during their ill-fated attempt to recover after being repeatedly, unmercifully steamrolled by Apple’s Steve Jobs with the iPhone, iPad, iCloud, App Store and the rest of the formidable iOS ecosystem. – MacDailyNews, July 12, 2013
iPad and iPhone are already firmly ensconced into the Fortune 500 and SMB without Microsoft’s bloated morass of insecure spaghetti-code. The world is rapidly learning that it can live without Office and, by failing to pollute iOS devices with their crapware, Microsoft is spreading the news better than anyone. – MacDailyNews, January 30, 2013
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Hey Microsoft, where’s the next version of Office for Mac? – February 21, 2014
Beleaguered Microsoft must bring Office to iPad – February 14, 2014
Office?
Orifice?
Yes, I’ll take two please. I’m the biggest orifice in the channel, now twice as douchey.
So, to late a dollar short.
What’s a Microsoft?
An awesome irony would be if Microsoft fails due to not making Office for Mac or iOS. In many ways, looking at history, you can see Microsoft getting its starts/big breaks when it first created software for Apple. BASIC, Word (MS Write) specifically.
They have been successful when providing the software that Apple users have wanted or needed. I would love it if they prove unsuccessful by ignoring Apple and Apple users.
The Dell gang had to eat their words. I would like to see all the MS fanboys eat their words.
Wow, I think I’ll pee myself w/ anticipation.
iWork is all most anyone one needs Microsoft. Faster, functional and free. I know more people now that use iWork than Office on their Macs.
You can’t get away with using that stripped down iWork rubbish unless you work for a non-profit, in which case the line for the homeless shelter is right this way.
Guess your name says it all!
Until the next release and you find that apple has removed some feature you depend on.
Only if you never figure out that Apple left the previous major version as-is on your system so you have that to fall back on if the new version doesn’t yet have all the features you think you still need.
I have gone cold turkey and not used Office on my Macs since last year. For most word processing, the new Pages works fine. For reports I use the old Pages ’09. Keynote has always been better than PowerPoint, so that is a non-issue.
The only reason I had to use MS Office was for serious spreadsheet work. But now I found NeoOffice which may not be quite as pretty as Excel, but it works better and is just as powerful.
Adios Microsoft, I no longer need what you have to offer.
Will it be one of those “365” versions where you have to pay an annual fee that results in an insane lifetime cost? That’s BS.
The 365 thing gives you online access/storage along with some other features, but it gives you whatever the latest version is of Office. So, if you pay for a year now, you get Office 2011 and if they come out with the new version in a month, you can download that and update it. It’s billed as a method to maintain the latest version.
As a school/business Office for the Mac is important! I am glad to finally see it updated!
Yea there are open source stuff out there, but not the same. More compatibility issues and other nonsense with support problems, etc.
And News Corp Australia is about to ditch MS for Google.
No one hates MS Office more than I but all I have to say is Excel…
I’ve tried to quit but if you work in business and use any macros or automatic spreadsheets you can’t break free. BELIEVE me I’ve tried. Excel is the Albatross that holds me to MS Office and, even more sadly, it sucks so bad for the Mac that I can’t help but be excited that is may suck a small amount less with a new version 🙁
Office is still a thing? Who knew.
Not reported anywhere else: “This forthcoming version of Office for the Mac is all about the true Mac experience in our suite of office essentials. We are pioneering a new way of being in tune with our users. Gone is the innovative but maligned ‘Clippy’ — we are excited to see how users take to the new virtual assistant that mirrors its suggestions and responses to the mood of the user. The development name for this new technology has been ‘Yawn’ but the marketing guys will spruce that up by shipment time.”
Maybe that’s what Balmer is doing now, he’s the new Clippy.
[chuckle]
Texmaker / texstudio is the way to go.
Um… what?
*crickets*
Wait a minute! Office on a device that doesn’t appeal to business users, because it doesn’t have a keyboard, which makes it not a very good email machine?!
Oops. For Mac. Read and comprehend first, then comment. D’oh!!
> Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft disbanded its Mac business unit
I completely missed that! Would seem M$ no longer supports Office on the Mac then? Weird business strategy……
I am Apples biggest fanboy and use Numbers whenever possible. Having said that, Excel is far more flexible and powerful that the latest version of Numbers. I have written many Macros that simply cannot be replaced in Numbers at this time. Maybe one day. I can definitely use Keynote in place of PowerPoint and Pages in place of Word.