[MW Forums]

Even with the addition of a spreadsheet app to iWork, Microsoft Office will remain the suite of choice for users with heavy document-sharing needs. Nevertheless, the latest additions to iWork make Apple's suite an appealing choice to users who don't need all of Office's features. And it could be a preemptive move on Apple's part to lessen its dependence on Microsoft. more

[MacTel]

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For us, its about allowing people to deliver really great documents across platforms,

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That's it? That's not what Office 2007 is about. Office 2007 is about collaboration via various Windows server products. Heard of Sharepoint Server or Groove Server? How about Exchange?
If that's all they are going for then iWork '08 matches up pretty well with Office 2008. Apple just needs to work the server side with some collaborative offerings of their own. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[justme2]

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Last weeks addition of the spreadsheet application Numbers to iWork finally created a full-featured successor to the now officially-abandoned AppleWorks, which had gone untouched since 2004.

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Not quite -- some of us are still looking for a simple database program, sort of a Filemaker Lite perhaps, to replace the basic database that was included in AppleWorks.
I used it at one point to organize some of my favorite crochet patterns -- Microsoft Works, IIRC, has/had a basic database that my dad-in-law was looking at to catalog his album collection (to see which ones he'd be able to find in CD and which ones I might have to transfer to CD for him).
Once we get that, and can import data fields into either Pages and/or Numbers, we're still short a true replacement for Appleworks...

[shaneblyth]

well what about MacOfficePro !
It has just been released.. is on special at $47.95US
Is UB, is, Office 2007 format read and write compatible, VBA SUPPORT so you have macros! and has a database as well ! along with word processor, spreadsheet, graphics, presentations, equations.. just seems to be missing the Outlook bit but with Leopards mail improvments I think I will be happy with that
I just ordered mine www.macofficepro.com

[benzopf]

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If you look at Office, said Tim Bajarin, president of consulting firm Creative Strategies, its still pretty entrenched among business and education users.

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I was eating some late-night cereal, and reading the above resulted in an explosive (and messy) noser. I'd like to thank Mr. Bajarin because I haven't had a guffaw like that in awhile. He's got to be British to rattle off such world-class understatement. "Still pretty entrenched"?
Hahahahahahahahahhahahah!

Hmm, d'ya think? Pretty entrenched, sorta like sex is "pretty entrenched" when it comes to the survival of the species.
Give that man a cheroot.

[Ronald_Schoedel]

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well what about MacOfficePro !
It has just been released.. is on special at $47.95US
Is UB, is, Office 2007 format read and write compatible, VBA SUPPORT so you have macros! and has a database as well ! along with word processor, spreadsheet, graphics, presentations, equations.. just seems to be missing the Outlook bit but with Leopards mail improvments I think I will be happy with that
I just ordered mine

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AKA NeoOffice. Price to download, "on special" (forever): FREE. www.NeoOffice.org. This is the exact same software that some dude has decided to burn onto DVDs and throw into a case and sell for $48 as MacOffice Pro, except that NeoOffice is the original program, from two very hardworking developers, who offer it FREE of charge. Again, that's www.neooffice.org
Why pay someone else $48 for an otherwise free program? If you've got 48 bucks to blow, donate it to the NeoOffice team and help them improve their software even more.
Ronald Schoedel

[DonC]

In my dayly business I would love to use iWok as it offers a lot of improvements and ease of use. But I am the only Mac guy in our company. So everything I do in iWork can not be used by my coworkers....

[tomtom]

I am a little surprised that the scenario of Word for Windows running on a Virtual package was not explored more. Surely this is the way to go for those who need to totally fit in with a collaborating business team?

[Quoth_the_Raven]

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For us, its about allowing people to deliver really great documents across platforms, Lefebvre said. With Office 2004, its proven that it is an essential piece of software. We will deliver on that even more with [Office 2008].

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Hahahahaha. Opening up the MS Office file formats would also allow people to deliver "great" documents across platforms, only they wouldn't have to use Office to do it!
Honestly, as time passes, everything MS does is becoming less and less essential in my opinion.

[nelson92]

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Not quite -- some of us are still looking for a simple database program, sort of a Filemaker Lite perhaps, to replace the basic database that was included in AppleWorks.

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Agreed. I make extensive use of the Appleworks database for cataloguing my photographs and sound recordings. Until Apple add this facility to iWork I will not be moving away from Appleworks.

[dwielt]

What iWork 08 means for me is that I may not have to upgrade to Office 2008. As long as Pages can do a decent job opening .docx, then I will already have compatibility with the older formats via Office v.X. I don't think that iWork is an Office killer by any stretch, but it will likely impact the upgrade cycle for those who are not Office "power users."

[Lebensmude]

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In my dayly business I would love to use iWok as it offers a lot of improvements and ease of use.

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You work in a Chinese restaurant? /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[shoaf]

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There are segments of the market where Office is overkill, Creative Strategies Bajarin said.

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Is it just me, or does it seem like 95% of MS Office users fall into this category without realizing it?
I've had to have Office on my Mac for a while... mainly to open/read documents from co-workers and make an occasional edit... but since I downloaded the iWork demo, I've yet to run into an incompatible document. I know there's a lot of Excel (and Word) functionality that I'll probably never use... but then neither will most of my colleagues. Looks like Apple is seeing a niche that needs filling, and, as usual, they deliver a solution before the target market realizes it was needed.
Also, it seems to me that my PMG5 (1GB RAM) is running a bit less sluggishly with Numbers running compared to when I'd have Excel or NeoOffice open all day. Has anyone else noticed anything like this?

[MrMe]

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well what about MacOfficePro !
It has just been released.. is on special at $47.95US
...

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MacOffice Pro has been around for years. From the reviews I have read of it, $48 is not nearly enough for them to pay me to use it. ...
Oh, wait! You paid them? You didn't! You have my sympathy.