Apr 8, 2008 7:38 AM
Macworld article: iWork vs Office
Received my May copy of Macworld last night and immediately thumbed to the main article comparing iWork vs Office. I was quickly disappointed. The single item I wanted to read about was not covered: compatibility. I don't work in isolation and I don't know droves of other Mac users, so a dedicated switch to iWork without some sharing of output is not realistic. At some point I will have to share documents with someone (friends, family, other) and 99.9% of them use some version of Office. The "From the Editor's Desk" introduction even states, "Practically everyone uses them" (speaking of Windows and Office). The article did a reasonable job of covering some of the features in a side by side comparison, but not everyone uses those chosen features. So, why not cover the activity that most people will likely use at some point...sharing a document, spreadsheet or presentation with a work colleague, family member, potential interviewer or other person who uses Office? Along with the occasional sharing with family and friends, I've just returned to college for post-graduate studies and the college requires submissions in Word/Excel/PowerPoint format. I put off the decision to read your analysis, but can't wait any longer. I was looking for a reason to buy iWork but was disappointed that you didn't go there. I am going to Office for this version. I'll check back again in a few years.