Microsoft Office for Mac 2008.  Verdict?  It's exceptional
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Microsoft did something right with its new Office for Mac 2008 suite.
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Macs are now stable, Intel-based workhorses that run Windows apps and make end users happy. Is that enough for entry to the enterprise?
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Updated Office suite is scheduled to debut early next year at Macworld Expo.
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iWork â08 provides âa solid deal for anyone needing an affordable office suite for the Mac,â according to Elsa Wenzel . She praises the new writing and layout tools in Pages â08, including the contextual Format Bar, Change Tracking, automatic list formatting, and the abundance of page templates. Wenzel points out that âKeynote â08 adds some smart features that PowerPoint lacks. Itâs also a breeze to figure out from the get-go.â And she notes that âNumbers reveals ease-of-use novelties that competitive tools donât provide,â concluding that âthe majority of users who rely upon spreadsheets as one-size-fits-all tools for household and light office work should be pleased to have a new option for Macs.â
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Over its first six months, the latest Windows version can't hold a candle to XP. But: Office 2007 sales rock.
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âGiven the impressive value of Time Machine and improvements to existing programs such as iCal, iChat, Mail, and the Finder, most active Mac users will find more than enough reasons to consider [the] upgrade cost money well spent,â reports Jason Snell . Leopard delivers, Snell declares, âa major alteration to the Mac interface, a sweeping update to numerous included productivity programs, a serious attempt to improve Mac OS security, and a vast collection of tweaks and fixes scattered throughout every nook and cranny of the operating system.â
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InfoWorld - Attendees at the Microsoft 2008 Office System Developer Conference this week are leveraging development capabilities in Office System, but cite issues such as getting used to the new ribbon-based Fluent UI in the 2007 Office release.
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Mac and Windows machines can coexist nicely -- when it comes to systems management tasks, anyway. Ryan Faas gives his take each tool's strengths and weaknesses.
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Adobe Systems Monday released Acrobat 8, a new version of its popular document authoring and reading software that will run natively on Intel-based Macs, and integrated it with its upgraded Creative Suite 2.3 Premium (which remains PowerPC-native, at least for now).
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Take a look at how the new Office versions for Mac and Windows are rolling out, feature by feature.
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Microsoft is considering giving away its basic Microsoft Works word processing and spreadsheet software, aimed at preventing a possible challenge in the space from Google. But can it do so without hurting sales of Microsoft Office?
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InfoWorld - Apple's desktop Macs are incomparably well suited for the full range of uses from general productivity to technical and creative design, with the entire user skill and requirements spectrum covered by a rich, engaging, intuitive platform.
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For one, âMac hardware is beautifully designed,â explains Ed Baig (USA Today). And âthe underlying software is polished, robust and secure.â For example, new Macs âcome with iLife â08, a slick multimedia software suite for handling pictures (iPhoto), video editing (iMovie), making music (GarageBand) and websites (iWeb).â And Mac OS X Leopard  âhas standout features of its own, including Time Machine (dirt-simple backup) and iChat (way cool video chat).â Whatâs more, Macs âhave been immune from the scourge of viruses and malware that have long plagued Windows.â  Mac customers âheap lavish praise on Macs for good reason,â Baig concludes.
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The newest version of Microsoft Office arrives this week, complete with a tricked-out user interface intended to impress the Windows-weary. By Scott Gilbertson. Plus: Gallery: Office 2007.
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First a little background. I stopped using a Mac in 1997, as Apple was transitioning to the new operating system. I started using the Mac again as my primary OS in late 2005, a little more than two years ago. This is the first new version of the OS to come out since I switched back. Based on a tour of the new features, pretty late at the end of a long week, it's safe to say an OS is still just an OS, the purpose of the OS is to stay out of your way until you need it. Leopard may be prettier than the last version, I'm not sure it is or isn't. Not sure I'll use many of the new features. For people who hadn't used VNC before, "screen sharing" would certainly be a big new feature if they're working in a networked enviroment. And maybe the new backup code will fit into my routine. I have some ideas about that. (Maybe I'll just have one computer on my LAN that is backed up and copy things there if I want them backed up.) File sharing is more convenient in Leopard, the shared computers are listed in every Finder window, and this is good. FInding the disks that are available on each of these computers is one step easier too.  The Preferences applicaiton appears largely unchanged, except the Networking section where a lot of functionality seems to be missing. I have to look at this more closely. The Download stack is lost on me since I don't use Safari or Apple's mail app. I would find it useful if Firefox had a similar feature (but they kind of do, I can direct all downloads to a specific folder). All in all, changes to an OS aren't that important. The action is in the apps, and for me, just a couple of primary ones, the web browser and my integrated writing and programming environment. It's been quite a while since there have been meaningful improvements to either, and those improvements would end up meaning a lot more to me than improvements to the OS. There isn't much you can do, after the Mac has been around for 23 years, that hasn't already been done.  Net-net, my first impression of Leopard is that it isn't a big deal one way or the other.  PS: I wonder if the next version of the OS will be called Leonard, to honor Leonard Rosenthal, a famous Mac developer in the 80s and 90s.
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âItâs an improvement on an already stellar computer,â says Katherine Boehret (The Wall Street Journal), referring to the new iMac. âThe keyboard is radical-looking. Itâs much flatter and sleeker than typical desktop PC keyboards. I found it easier to type with.â Boehret goes on to explore iLife â08, âI quickly picked up on how to use the new features in iPhoto and iMovie, thanks to unintimidating, self-explanatory icons.â She continues, âMy video camera was instantly recognized when I plugged it into the iMacâ and âin just about 15 minutes, I created a short movie.â Boehret concludes, âThe new programs in iLife â08 are a pleasure to use, and the new iMac is a great way to experience them.â
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Microsoft will offer a full day of training on its new Office 2008 productivity software package during Macworld Expo.