Poll: Apple recently trademarked the name 'iWrite' -- What do you want this to be?

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: Apple recently trademarked the name 'iWrite' -- What do you want this to be? (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=338)

[Sabenth]

all of them and then some extras we never thought of LOL

[Nermal]

I think it will be a consumer-level WP app, not professional, since iApps typically aren't professional. The iApps are all free, and a free Word-competitor would be great :)

Edit: Just noticed it's what you want it to be, not what you think it is. In that case, I voted for the wrong thing :(

[gerror]

I always wanted a apple pda, but now, with the smartphone and all, I want a Apple Phone/PDA.
However, I don't think I will get one...

[you]

i voted other. I think that it will be speech recognition "yOU talk iWrite" :D

[stefman]

It might not be good for the relationship with Microsoft, but I hope its the word processing component of an office suite!!

[simX]

I really hope it's a free word processor iApp, or even a commercial-but-cost-reasonable professional word processing program. Something like AppleWorks, but GOOD. However, charging $500 for it like Microsoft does is just ridiculous, and I hope Apple doesn't do that.

AppleWorks is in serious need of an update. I believe AppleWorks 6 first came out 3 years ago. Even though it's Mac OS X native, it really looks like a badly written Mac OS X application next to Office X.

[redAPPLE]

we already have a "consumer" word processor in textedit, right?

[iAlan]

I would like iWrite to be an affordable G5, as in can iWrite you a check for that bargain price!!

[pivo6]

I would like it to be the new Apple PDA, of course it won't be though. It will more likely be a free word processor.

[MongoTheGeek]

Originally posted by redAPPLE
we already have a "consumer" word processor in textedit, right?
True... It does everything that 95% of the people use WPs for right out of the box. If snapped to 8.5x11 and and took 15 seconds to load then people would believe it. It opens word docs.

About the only thing I am not sure how to do is a drop cap.

[MongoTheGeek]

The trademark was under hardware right? Sounds like a wacom tablet type of deal. A peri-feral... (you know a wild add-on)

[ChrisH3677]

true the iApps are normally free, but i hope it's the word processing component of a totally revamped Appleworks - maybe it will be free as a teaser to buy AW.

[fixyourthinking]

Originally posted by MongoTheGeek
True... It does everything that 95% of the people use WPs for right out of the box. If snapped to 8.5x11 and and took 15 seconds to load then people would believe it. It opens word docs.

About the only thing I am not sure how to do is a drop cap.

It does do what most everyone needs, isn't there a figure that 99% of all office users (Mac and PC) have never used more 95% of the features and 95% of all office users only use 10% of the features.

I think Textedit is actually pretty nice, I use it the most of any program other than Safari & iTunes. It's portable and readable by Macs and PCs even if the other party doesn't have a WP program. I mainly use them for creating template eBay auctions.

In OS9 I used SimpleText.

[Blaaze]

Originally posted by MongoTheGeek
It opens word docs.

wow, i had no idea it could do that :)

[longofest]

I think, since it is classified as both hardware AND software, that it is going to be a somewhat complete solution for writing documents. It might be a tablet-style device that interacts with the iWrite application and InkWell to make text and whatnot. Probably a consumer-level program, since it has the "i" in front of it.

[wordmunger]

How about a pro app suite that is free with professional models--powerbooks and G5s, but an extra-cost option for iBooks, iMacs, etc. This would also clear the way for moving iMacs and eMacs to G5s sooner, as it would be another way to differentiate between pro models and consumer models.

[macFanDave]

I'd like to see a low-cost word processor with an open plug-in architecture that can be set up to match Word.

The trick is to get the basic version very cheaply and you'd buy the tools you need. I don't need "drop cap", but I certainly need the Equation Editor. With Word, I am forced to pay for both and I get them, like it or not.

I'd hope the Apple WP would conform to Apple's own Human Interface Guidelines. (Apple is far from perfect when it comes to conforming to their own rules. Has anyone noticed that the Safari View menu lacks a "Customize Toolbar..." item and is mostly cluttered with toggles that should be in the Customize Toolbar panel?)

[iPC]

www.openoffice.org

[robMaurizi]

I screwed up and voted for what I think it would be, and that would be the consumer-grade word app... Even though OS X comes w/ TextEdit, that's the new version of SimpleText that moved entirely to RTF (ugh), so the iWord would be pretty cool....

But, for what I WANT it to be... that'd be the tablet/PDA.... and, going along w/ somebody else's comment.... since my phone is nearing the life-support stages, the uberApple phone would be the an awesome device..

dreaming of sugar plums and new apples

mmm.... apples..... aughghghghghghghgh

[Cochrane]

What I think it will be... nothing we will see within the next two years.

What I hope it to be (and voted for): An application that kills Word. I really like Word and it's nice, but hey I also liked Powerpoint until I had Keynote. Apple just does this better than Microsoft and I hope it will be the same with a word processor.

[robbieduncan]

Originally posted by macFanDave

I'd hope the Apple WP would conform to Apple's own Human Interface Guidelines. (Apple is far from perfect when it comes to conforming to their own rules. Has anyone noticed that the Safari View menu lacks a "Customize Toolbar..." item and is mostly cluttered with toggles that should be in the Customize Toolbar panel?)

This is because Safari is brushed metal. In 10.2 (not sure about 10.3) there was no brushed metal appearance in NSToolbar. This means that you need to either: a) write your own toolbar or b) have a really bad looking aqua toolbar in your brushed metal app. Apple chose a). They should have simply made Safari non-brushed metal.

[bobbyp80521]

I hope it is an addition to the ipod that allows you to enter in text on the go...



As for safari's view settings, 10.3 does allow for editing of the browser and is quite nice. I was pissed when they removed the home button from it, and now that I have it I usually forget to use it and go to the history menu. The options I use are: Home, Auto Fill Page, refresh and add to bookmarks

[Mr.Hey]

I would love for it to be a touch screen/stylus (mouse-pen) portable LCD tablet with Wi-Fi, for professionals Final Cut, Photoshop users; so that they (me) could work around the office and not be chained to the desk.

[Bunzi2k4]

Originally posted by you
i voted other. I think that it will be speech recognition "yOU talk iWrite" :D

that's a good idea... but whatever iwrite is, i'm sure it'll be good...

[iMeowbot]

Ha. Watch it be a Toast workalike as retribution for Napster 2.0 ;)

[macFanDave]

I'd *LIKE* it to be an ethical dilemma solver.

Oops, that would be iRight, maybe I'd better run to the trademark office with that one before Apple or Diebold Election Systems beats me to it.

[Brock]

Oh, I don't know... maybe something along the lines of Dramatica, or Final Draft? It would go along with all the other iApps, (iMovie, iDVD, iTunes)

[wdlove]

I would like to see a MS Office-range "Pro" Word Processing Application. I don't think that it could be free and still compete with "Office." The main obstacle would be compatability with "Office" and Windows.

[joelc]

I figure it will be a free word processor. That could be attractive to a lot of people. Windoze peecees don't come with Office -- it costs $500. If you didn't have to buy Word, a Mac would be way cheaper. In some cases, a Mac is cheaper for a comparable machine, but we all know that Apple is not going to sell a $500 iMac, so this could help it compete on price.

I hope it is not a full-fledged "pro" word processor. We don't need to piss of MS's MBU any more than we have. They already killed IE (no big loss), so pretty much all they have going on the Mac now is Office (they don't need VPC and WMP is free). People think they need Office. I bet no one would ever ever ever switch from PC to Mac if they weren't 100% sure they could use all their documents right away.

[Toe]

Originally posted by iPC
www.openoffice.org Additionally:

http://openosx.com/office/
http://www.thinkfree.com/
http://marinersoftware.com/siteproduct.php
http://www.besoftware.com/

All of these are viable alternatives to Microsoft Office, and all (except Ragtime) cost little to nothing.

[Wuddel]

Hum. Both Consumer and Pro Apps are not necessary.

Mellel for example is a really good consumer word processor. Word is unreplaceable and most "Office-Pros" will need a spreadsheet anyway, thus they will stick to MS.

Tablet-Mac would be better but would flop too.

[T-Rex]

Originally posted by joelc
[B
I hope it is not a full-fledged "pro" word processor. We don't need to piss of MS's MBU any more than we have. They already killed IE (no big loss), so pretty much all they have going on the Mac now is Office (they don't need VPC and WMP is free). People think they need Office. I bet no one would ever ever ever switch from PC to Mac if they weren't 100% sure they could use all their documents right away. [/B]

Joelc, I couldn't agree more!

On the same line i hope we never see a Paint Pro app (Photoshop killer).
For Apple to get any foothold in the corporate and maintain any precense in the educational markets, they need to have this cross-platform compatibility.
Call it monopoly... or Darwinism.

T.

[MongoTheGeek]

Originally posted by Blaaze
wow, i had no idea it could do that :)

Opening Word Docs was only introduced in Panther. There were a bunch of things added in Panther that do MS stuff. Exchange services etc. I think the Enterprise sales group really drove Panther's development. Not that I am complaining.

[T-Rex]

Originally posted by MongoTheGeek
Opening Word Docs was only introduced in Panther. There were a bunch of things added in Panther that do MS stuff. Exchange services etc. I think the Enterprise sales group really drove Panther's development. Not that I am complaining.
Nor am I.
But Panther is (hopefully) only the first small step toward Enterprise integration.
As with Exchange services, ActiveDirectory support and SMB browsing Word support in TextEdit is rudimentary.
But - I agree - a step in the right direction.

But I still say: Apple would harm themselves by pushing Microsofts MBU off the cliff.

T.

[ChrisH3677]

what are the existing iApps...

iTunes - Music storing and playing
iPhoto - Images cataloging and manipulation
iCal - Diary
iDVD - DVD authoring
iMovie - Video editing
iSurfer - i.e. Surferi, oops I mean Safari. Browsing the web :D
iChat - instant messaging
iSync - Information synchronization
iNkwell - Handwriting recognition and input :D

There's one consistency here... iApps are free and come with the OS.

Hardware...

iMac
iPod

So looking at what exists, it's likely to be only either of the first two MacRumors suggestions:

- Apple PDA/Tablet
- free consumer Word Processor

Maybe they'll soup up TextEdit and call it iWrite.

edit: PS I hope I'm wrong - I hope it's something new and amazing that just blows my mind

[Fahd]

Like microsoft onenotes or smallnotes or whatever for the itablet! :D - thats what i think it is.

I want it to be an itablet!

[rueyeet]

Originally posted by MongoTheGeek
Sounds like a wacom tablet type of deal. A peri-feral... (you know a wild add-on)

They say the beauty of a pun is in the Oy! of the beholder.

I did wonder if iWrite would be a handwriting recognition thing. They haven't done much with Inkwell except stick it in the OS to be played with later. And there's those strange rumors floating around of iMacs with detachable touchscreens. It would be a middle finger raised at those who say that Apple should have an answer to the Tablet PC (as if "not with a ten-foot pole" isn't a good enough answer). That's what I would want iWrite to be.

But going with the iApp naming convention, and the general wisdom that most people supposedly use their PCs for email, websurfing, and word processing, I would think that it's a free, consumer-level word processing iApp, maybe a replacement for TextEdit (which I think does just fine, but maybe they want to do the whole interface/ease of use revamp). That's what I think iWrite would be.

I actually wouldn't class Safari or Inkwell as iApps. Safari is free and comes with the OS, yes, but it is a serious, standalone, full-featured application, not a feature-trimmed freebie that gets most things done for most people but not the real stuff done for people who know what they're doing (which is my somewhat broad definition of an iApp). And Inkwell is Apple's handwriting recognition technology, left over from the Newton, which can be used in any application that accepts text, not a full application in its own right.

[tazo]

a [cheaper] competitor to the Microsoft Office Suite would be very cool. and something better than appleworks!!!

[iChan]

i just want an apple developed WP, witha great user interface. and legendary ease of use

[deejemon]

Originally posted by Nermal
The iApps are all free

iDVD? iChat AV?

[deejemon]

Originally posted by Toe
all (except Ragtime) cost little to nothing.

Ragtime Solo is free: http://www.ragtime-online.com/

[~Shard~]

I doubt it will be a pro-level word processing program - everything Apple releases beginning with "i" is a consumer level item, from the apps in iLife to the iMac. I suppose the iSight would be a bit of an excpetion, however you could argue that the iSight is marketed more towards the consumer level crowd anyway, who want to spend time chatting online with their family and friends.

[deejemon]

Originally posted by joelc
I figure it will be a free word processor. That could be attractive to a lot of people. Windoze peecees don't come with Office -- it costs $500. If you didn't have to buy Word, a Mac would be way cheaper. In some cases, a Mac is cheaper for a comparable machine, but we all know that Apple is not going to sell a $500 iMac, so this could help it compete on price.

Apple has been shipping TextEdit for "free" with every version of Mac OS X.

I don't want them to make a free word processor:

1. It costs them money to develop and doesn't do anything ground-breaking. iTunes, iPhoto and iDVD all broke new ground and PC apps have been struggling to catch up. A word processor is a word processor. It's not going to convince anyone to switch to a Mac, which is the whole purpose behind the iApps in the first place.

2. If they give it away for free, not only are they not going to make back the money they put into it, but they're going to cut into the developers of all those other non-Word apps that people have been mentioning. Would you buy RagTime, Mellel, Nisus or anything else if you could get iWrite for free?

Personally I hope it's some kind of hardware. If it's software, i hope it's Pro-level. Apple has been selling Keynote in a world where PowerPoint has the market covered (anyone remember Aldus/Adobe Persuasion (http://www.atpm.com/3.01/page10.shtml)?), so I don't see why they couldn't sell a word processor if they wanted to, if it is as differentiated as Keynote is to PowerPoint.

[Sheebahawk]

hope its a 49 doller featured easi to use alternative to MS word with grammer checking. and spell checking. I still use word 98 in classic for serious writing nothing quite beats right clicking a badly written sentence and getting a list of alternative structurings on the fly. I never really liked the layout of clarisworks, but with the new stylings of the panther GUI, I can really see apple making a fantastic version of last type of program that I really need. I dont' want to shell out 150 dollars just for a copy of MS word 2004, so at least I'll have options. I'll browse around after I install panther (waiting until xmas to install, don't want ay premature surpises) and then I'll try all the openoffice and other alternatives, but my bottom line is I really would love a featured word processing Iapp, even if I have to pay for it. :eek: I'd rather buy a great apple product than steal a mediocre MS one.

[~Shard~]

Originally posted by Nermal
The iApps are all free

Originally posted by deejemon
iDVD? iChat AV?

Free with Panther. ;)

[deejemon]

Originally posted by ~Shard~
Originally posted by Nermal
The iApps are all free

Free with Panther. ;)

And sold commercially to everyone else.

[~Shard~]

Originally posted by deejemon
And sold commercially to everyone else.

Fair enough!

[ChrisH3677]

Originally posted by ~Shard~
Originally posted by Nermal
The iApps are all free



Free with Panther. ;)

iDVD is free with OSX (was Jaguar and now Panther) if you buy a Mac with DVD player.

[SilvorX]

in my opinion, it probably will be some sort of word processor. AppleWorks hasn't seen any benefitial upgrades since 6.0 in 1999 and its already years and years behind M$ office, I usually only use textedit now days, but textedit is lacking many features that I'dd like to see in a word processor app, although its free.

[deejemon]

Originally posted by ChrisH3677
iDVD is free with OSX (was Jaguar and now Panther) if you buy a Mac with DVD player.

1. iDVD does not come on machines with "DVD players" (Apple only uses two types of optical drives now - all models are either Combo or SuperDrive). iDVD only ships with SuperDrive models.

2. iDVD has NEVER shipped with ANY version of Mac OS X. It's too big. Both Jaguar and Panther would have blown out by another two CDs at least. iDVD comes on the system restore disc for a new computer. However, my original point is that it's not free. It's built into the cost of the machine or you buy it as part of iLife. If it was free, it would be a whole lot easier to obtain.

[Macco]

Originally posted by macFanDave

The trick is to get the basic version very cheaply and you'd buy the tools you need. I don't need "drop cap", but I certainly need the Equation Editor. With Word, I am forced to pay for both and I get them, like it or not.

But then how would you feel if at work or at your friend's house, they didn't have the plugin that you need? This would make for a very inconsistent and frustrating user experience.

[Macco]

Originally posted by robMaurizi
Even though OS X comes w/ TextEdit, that's the new version of SimpleText that moved entirely to RTF (ugh), so the iWord would be pretty cool....


If you really want it to be in txt, just go to Preferences and select "Plain text" under "New Document Attributes." Or, if you just want one document to be in plain text, create a new document and go to Format > Make Plain Text.

[Toe]

How hard would it be to Aquify AbiWord (http://www.abisource.com/)?

It already runs on X11 (http://openosx.com/office/)

Apple surprised a lot of people by using khtml for Safari. Maybe they could do it again... It seems easier than reinventing the wheel....

http://openosx.com/images/abi_screen1.gif

[ChrisH3677]

Originally posted by deejemon
1. iDVD does not come on machines with "DVD players" (Apple only uses two types of optical drives now - all models are either Combo or SuperDrive). iDVD only ships with SuperDrive models.

2. iDVD has NEVER shipped with ANY version of Mac OS X. It's too big. Both Jaguar and Panther would have blown out by another two CDs at least. iDVD comes on the system restore disc for a new computer. However, my original point is that it's not free. It's built into the cost of the machine or you buy it as part of iLife. If it was free, it would be a whole lot easier to obtain.

1. Doh!! You're right - a slip of the keyboard by me. i knew what i meant just didn't type it!

2. ok...but how do you know they add it to the cost of the computer? But yes i agree, it's not "free" like other iApps if you don't buy a mac with a dvd writer. so i see your point. :D

[jefhatfield]

it could be a tablet type device like the pc world has

it could also be a form of handwriting recognition where handwritten input is automatically converted to an easy to read font in an application

[wdlove]

Originally posted by jefhatfield
it could be a tablet type device like the pc world has

it could also be a form of handwriting recognition where handwritten input is automatically converted to an easy to read font in an application

Would the new application NoteBook announced by Microsoft at MWSF also lend well to this new tablet device? My wife was very impressed, it would be great in class or a meeting for taking notes. Would have the ability to assist with not missing any information.

[CMYanko]

An XML based 'Word' killer.

[jefhatfield]

Originally posted by CMYanko
An XML based 'Word' killer.

he he...i wish ;)

microsoft word is too far ahead in the word processing market race just like windows is too far ahead in the operating system market...but that does not stop apple from constantly making better stuff for us five percent to enjoy:D

after using apple gear since the 70s, i have given up on having apple be the standard for the masses...we have the best programs and hardware, but the two steves who founded apple inc were not businessmen, or at least they were not as sneaky as uncle bill ;)

now that they have been soundly beaten by bill, i think today's wozniak and jobs are a much smarter and wiser pair of high tech entrepreneurs...but it is too little too late

the crazy thing of all this is that 3/4s of steve jobs' fortune of 1.5 billion+ (or more) came from pixar and not apple inc...steve should not have been fired from apple but maybe temporarily demoted...think how much stronger apple would have been if both steves stayed the course from the beginning of apple until now

while the later ceos of apple after steve was fired were not always in tune with high tech, i do believe if apple inc stayed as a two man operation and not incorporating would have made the company disappear into obscurity...steve w just wanted to make apple a hobby and give away his invention for the better of mankind

it would take a socialist uc berkeley and some linux dudes to achieve that end

[sethypoo]

Originally posted by iAlan
I would like iWrite to be an affordable G5, as in can iWrite you a check for that bargain price!!

[chuckles] That would be nifty. Even more nifty if it were a G5 PowerBook.

[themadchemist]

I would like iWrite to be short for "iWrite You a Check," as in, the program writes checks to the registered user from Bill Gates. I think that would be fun and productive. Edutainment even.

[jefhatfield]

Originally posted by sethypoo
[chuckles] That would be nifty. Even more nifty if it were a G5 PowerBook.

in motorola speed, i could not see a G5 tablet notebook computer

but in ibm terms, that could be our next apple powerbook with two revolutionary ideas on the mac platform

1) a 64 bit G5 powerbook to kick the athlon 64's butt
2) a tablet notebook to keep with the PC world

now that would be ideal and for now, since ibm, i have hoped for big things

that being said, a G4 powerbook is still more ideal that most amd 2800+ athlon notebooks or centrino notebooks for music, graphics, and general all around multimedia

[tjwett]

i really hope we see something happen with AppleWorks soon. i'm thinking we will see the word processor from AppleWorks turn into it's own app, a free, solid, easy to use wp for students and those who need a fast solution for creating decent documents. i honestly think that AppleWorks will be removed from the market. for one thing, they just about stripped it of all user-friendliness and functionality with version 6. plus now, all it's bases are getting covered, nicely. we have Keynote, so that awful Presentation thing can go. FileMaker is so huge, yet still easy to use, is anyone actually using AppleWorks for databases? that can go. we have Excel. again, is anyone seriously using AppleWorks for spreadsheets? Painting? Drawing? i didn't think so. AppleWorks has simply run it's course and it's functions are being replaced by much easier, faster, and nicer tools. PERHAPS Apple will release some sort of Pro office suite, one that will produce, open, export, safely across all platforms. They might be able to produce an affordable package that would include Keynote, Filemaker, a new word processor, maybe a beefed up Mail app, Project-compatible planning app, maybe even a conference version of iChat. not something to compete with MS Office, but something that can co-exist with it and exchange files reliably. that would be useful. after seeing that MWSF demo of Word i'm hoping i never have to use it again. they just keep stuffing it and stuffing it. i thought bloatware was out of style?

[Toe]

So where the heck is iWrite??

[~Shard~]

Originally posted by Toe
So where the heck is iWrite??

Wow, I didn't realize people still responded to polls even a month after they were posted! ;)

At any rate, there is no iWrite application, and I have no idea if there ever will be...

[King Cobra]

What do I want iWrite to be?

Well...if "iWrite" isn't 6 letters and 2 quotation marks, shoot me.

Actually, one thing that's becoming an increasing "scare" with Appleworks is the lack of Excel-like features. I can't select column B and column H in an AW spreadsheet without having columns C, D, E, F and G highlighted as well. When I reach much harder college labs, I need Excel-like features for spreadsheets. That's what I want most in iWrite.