Appleworks Update in April?

[MacRumors]

Spymac suggests (http://www.spymac.com/comments.php?id=327_0_5_0_C) that Appleworks will be upgraded in April:

Always a goal of AppleWorks, the new version is said to not only work well with Microsoft Office, but also with exporting web pages -- purportedly an area of high development.


No drastic updates are reported.

[mangoman]

...now I can sell my Office X CD's on eBay... finally...

[RandomDeadHead]

Office, what office? We don't need no stinking M$ office.:D

[NicoMan]

Originally posted by mangoman
...now I can sell my Office X CD's on eBay... finally...

Remember. It is still a RUMOUR. Coming from Spymac... Chill now.

NicoMan

[crush7]

well, here is one thing that is truly needed. Apple Works 6 has been around since, say, the french revolution. It needs work like a 75' Chevy.

Whats badly needed:

import of pictures into works does not work so well. Images always need rezising and the output quality is unacceptable.

Apple works should be able to work together with office like keynote does with Powerpoint.
And it should be considerably cheaper than office, just to drive the message home.

And finally: Writing and drawing are part of my life. But not (yet) of my iLife.

[Centris 650]

I'm expecting great things from Appleworks. It's a good program now as it is but still could be better. Personally I wish they would get rid of the paint, spreadsheet, database, presentation stuff in appleworks. It's a bother and takes up valueable hd space. (Especially the presentation tool. Now that Keynote is out who needs AW's weak presentation app?)

[lardlad]

There is no doubt somthing is coming in the way of an office app from Apple. I'd be very happy if it was as soon as April.

If Keynote is a sign of what we can expect from the next AppleWorks (do you think they might re-name it?) I definatly think you can sell your Office X on eBay. On the other hand if it is too good you may have a hard time selling it.:D

[macmanpro]

One thing I would like to see back in Apple Works is the fonts menu actually displaying fonts as the would appear! It was there back in Claris Works Office but has disappeared since and I for one really miss it!

[DakotaGuy]

Originally posted by Centris 650
Personally I wish they would get rid of the paint, spreadsheet, database, presentation stuff in appleworks. It's a bother and takes up valueable hd space.

That's why they call it Apple "Works" because it has all the different areas and they are well integrated. If you took away the database, spreadsheet, drawing, painting and presentation, then all you would have is a word processor. I have used the spreadsheet, database, drawing, painting, and word processing. I agree with Keynote the presentation tool can go, but I would hope they keep the form factor with the rest of the program. It is a versatile program.

Of course I will still say Excel rocks and MS Office v.X is a good program even though M$ made it. Even if there is a new Appleworks I won't be deleting Office off of my computer. It just works so nice and smooth with all the PC's at school.

[pyrotoaster]

I never liked Claris Works, and I find Apple Works 6 to be very upsetting.
I'd rather see Appple release a new app or apps (like "Document," described by Macwhispers (http://www.macwhispers.com)), but if Apple could really, really improve AW into a fully OS integrated cocoa app, I'd be happy (Neither AW 5 or 6 came close to this).

Until then, it's Thinkfree Office for me! ;)

[jaredbkt]

"One thing I would like to see back in Apple Works is the fonts menu actually displaying fonts as the would appear! It was there back in Claris Works Office but has disappeared since and I for one really miss it!"


You can do that very easily. In the preferences just tell AppleWorks to use the actual fonts in the font menu. It's been there since the first incarnation of version 6. In fact, I have it set like that right now. Perhaps you need to explore the application a little?

[X-Baz]

Originally posted by Centris 650
Personally I wish they would get rid of the paint, spreadsheet, database, presentation stuff in appleworks. It's a bother and takes up valueable hd space. (Especially the presentation tool. Now that Keynote is out who needs AW's weak presentation app?)
That's exactly why I use AppleWorks - as a word processor it's not brilliant - but the fact that I can easily include all the other stuff is very useful to me. However, I do agree that the presentation stuff is very weak in AW (and I've not seen KeyNote).

[Qball]

Originally posted by Abercrombieboy


Of course I will still say Excel rocks and MS Office v.X is a good program even though M$ made it. Even if there is a new Appleworks I won't be deleting Office off of my computer. It just works so nice and smooth with all the PC's at school.

Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

[NicoMan]

Originally posted by lardlad
There is no doubt somthing is coming in the way of an office app from Apple. I'd be very happy if it was as soon as April.

If Keynote is a sign of what we can expect from the next AppleWorks (do you think they might re-name it?) I definatly think you can sell your Office X on eBay. On the other hand if it is too good you may have a hard time selling it.:D

If it is anywhere like Keynote, it will be very buggy but will show a lot of potential for the proper final version (Keynote is NOT a final version, as it is, from what I understand...).

NicoMan

[jg3]

Originally posted by jaredbkt
In the preferences just tell AppleWorks to use the actual fonts in the font menu. It's been there since the first incarnation of version 6. In fact, I have it set like that right now. Perhaps you need to explore the application a little?

Wow, I can't believe it's been sitting there this whole time. On the downside, AW crashes whenever I set that preference, and it doesn't stick. :\

[azentropy]

AppleWorks IS in dire needs of an upgrade. However I think I'm looking more forward to the final release of openoffice.org for the Mac. That way I'll be able to use the same office program on my Macs, my XP system, and my Linux systems.

Now what I would really like to see is Claris HomePage reincarnated! It is the only Classic app that I have left on my Mac.

[Xerov]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

No. All M$ Office Apps Work Flawlessly between the Mac and PC.

[RBMaraman]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

I have. I have NEVER been able to open an Excel document created on a PC. Every time I click on the file, I get a message saying the document needs to be converted and then it fills the screen with a bunch of jibberish. And I'm using AppleWorks 6.2.4.

[Centris 650]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

I've transfered many a file between my mac and my wife's pc. We've never had a problem.

[howard]

i hope if they come out with it its great. I'll still be using office though, i love it, especially entourage. I just think its a great program.

[Rocketman]

Originally posted by Macrumors
Spymac suggests (http://www.spymac.com/comments.php?id=327_0_5_0_C) that Appleworks will be upgraded in April:



No drastic updates are reported.

Wouldn't it be cool if this program simply imported and manipulated good old MacPaint, MacDraw 1.9, MacDraw II, and MacDraw Pro files so people married to 0X0 systems could upgrade seamlessly to OSX?

I hear (first hand) many organizations have dedicated MacDraw workstations still since no equivelent simple program exists.

Apple, can you hear me? It's your darn file format and nobody else supports it. Save some of us from our desert island you stranded us on.

Rocketman

[ncbill]

I have the same problem with both Word and Excel files - I can't open them with AW 6, or save in AW6 in the any of the Word/Excel formats offered and get a file that is readable under Word/Excel on a PC.

I have the MacLinkPlus translators (which haven't been updated in forever either) and they don't do any better of a job translating.

DocDrop is the most useful to me right now (translates Word .doc files to RTF format)

icExcel and icWord are OK.

But we really need better translators - if Apple can do it for Powerpoint (in Keynote) surely they can do it in the next version of Appleworks!

Originally posted by RBMaraman


I have. I have NEVER been able to open an Excel document created on a PC. Every time I click on the file, I get a message saying the document needs to be converted and then it fills the screen with a bunch of jibberish. And I'm using AppleWorks 6.2.4.

[DakotaGuy]

Originally posted by RBMaraman


I have. I have NEVER been able to open an Excel document created on a PC. Every time I click on the file, I get a message saying the document needs to be converted and then it fills the screen with a bunch of jibberish. And I'm using AppleWorks 6.2.4.

With Office v.X it is flawless, with Appleworks it is hit and miss especially on Excel files.

[yzedf]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

YES.

macros

god forbid you have a word document that has a excel piece inserted in there that was created on a PC. if you change it on a Mac, and then read new file on PC, it will be all messed up.

works great for standard files without all the frippy un-necessary stuff. as it should.

[RBMaraman]

Originally posted by Abercrombieboy


With Office v.X it is flawless, with Appleworks it is hit and miss especially on Excel files.

I used to use AppleWorks all the time. But, my brother got a 17" iMac for Christmas along with Office v.X, so I finally took AppleWorks off my iBook and installed Office v.X. Once Apple gets the bugs worked out of AppleWorks, I'll give it another try. But, for now, Office v.X is just much better.

[rugby]

Did your brother install it on his iMac too? I don't know if I'd announce I was pirating software on a public forum. You might want to edit your post.

Originally posted by RBMaraman


I used to use AppleWorks all the time. But, my brother got a 17" iMac for Christmas along with Office v.X, so I finally took AppleWorks off my iBook and installed Office v.X. Once Apple gets the bugs worked out of AppleWorks, I'll give it another try. But, for now, Office v.X is just much better.

[rugby]

Are you one of those people who like to say things like "(Insert software here) is:

a) still beta
b) not finished
c) not ready for prime time

without actually knowing anything? Keynote has been released, it is a finish v1.0 product. As with most other 1.0 products it has bugs that need fixing. However, it IS A FINISHED PRODUCT. Learn to accept this. ;)

Originally posted by NicoMan


If it is anywhere like Keynote, it will be very buggy but will show a lot of potential for the proper final version (Keynote is NOT a final version, as it is, from what I understand...).

NicoMan

[greenplasticcup]

indeed. Keynote is a fabulous program. I hear it has some bugs on one model of ibook though. I hardly think that's cause to say it's not a 1.0 program.

One time, my Finder crashed. Maybe it's not ready for primetime. :)

[ejb190]

Originally posted by Xerov


No. All M$ Office Apps Work Flawlessly between the Mac and PC.

The only problem I have had have been some font and formatting changes in Powerpoint (not to mention some transitions, which I expected). Word and Excel are great when changing platforms.

[CheekyGit]

Why use any new Apple Apps right away?

Since switching to the Mac for over a year now, all I've heard is how slow and buggy Apple applications are. I have had absolutely no problems with my applications (iMovie, iCal, Keynote, iTunes, iPhoto and Safari). Now I have a PowerBook G4 667Mhz and a Powerbook G3 500. Both have a gig on memory. Everything works on them. (Better than Dell and Gateway .. IMHO).

Everyone should just wait about 2 or 3 months ( or years ) after a new application comes out to see what the reviews say about the look, feel and especially performance. THEN decide if you want to buy it.

The more you complain, the more you are hurting Apple. If you find a better app that does the same job with better performance, then use it. Stop complaining about it and hope everything gets fixed by complaining. Better yet, install the Developmental tools and build them yourselves.

Grow up for heavens sake.

( And yes, there is major sarscasm in this post )

CheekyGit :D

[cubist]

Originally posted by ncbill
icExcel and icWord are OK.

I've had nothing but crashes and font problems trying to transfer spreadsheets between Excel and Appleworks. And they are simple spreadsheets, too! No macros - in fact, I don't think there are even any formulas!

I thought about icExcel but haven't run across anyone who actually used it. You have? WDYT?

[MOM]

I share Word documents with my PC friends all the time. The major problems we run into are fonts. I'll have a 2 page document filled to the last line that has to stay at 2 pages. Then it gets on a PC. Some document borders, same font, but its over 2 pages! Also, characters in symbol font always disappear between platforms. These are anoying problems, but I doubt they will ever go away completely. I imagine the same will be true of any Apple app that tries to open MS apps. It may work 99% of the time, but proofing and tweeking will always be needed.

I've used Appleworks from the MacDraw/MacWrite days. I don't use the word processor anymore because it doesn't link smoothly with Endnote. The draw program is still good for many simple graphics, but it was better when it could export EPSF and when the alignment tool was easier to use repeatedly.

I would love to have Appleworks evolve ala Keynote.

[animefan_1]

I personally don't think we will see only one package, but two. AppleWorks will stay in the same integrated package as it is now (with major impovements, of course). But I think that there will also be dramatically more powerful, more robust applications like Word and Excel. Those two and Keynote will be part of an Office-like suite, will cost less and be far better than MS Office. I'd like to think about $250 for the three applications together, $99 individually. Of course this is a bit of wishful thinking, but no one really expected Keynote, did they. I also don't think it will be released in April, unless there is a special press event. Most likely MWNY- big mac-loving crowd for Steve to show off the products, and rub it in MS's face!

[lmalave]

Originally posted by RBMaraman


I have. I have NEVER been able to open an Excel document created on a PC. Every time I click on the file, I get a message saying the document needs to be converted and then it fills the screen with a bunch of jibberish. And I'm using AppleWorks 6.2.4.

AppleWorks is not Excel. I think the question was wether anyone had problems between PC and Mac versions of Excel.

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

Importing a Word or Excel file from AppleWorks tends to be a little awkward. It seems to work best if I open up AW6, open up a document, tell it to look just for Word (or Excel) files, and then open it up. Otherwise, if I just click on the .doc or .xls file, it doesn't always translate, and then a bunch of garbage comes up on the screen.

However, I haven't seen any problems transferring Word files between Macs and PCs. I just transferred a few in the past day, had them modified, and sent back without any obvious problems.

AW6 doesn't do too bad of a translation, though, as long as the document isn't too complicated. If there is an image in the Word document, it won't translate (at least I've never had an image translate).

[Nermal]

Originally posted by rugby
Did your brother install it on his iMac too? I don't know if I'd announce I was pirating software on a public forum. You might want to edit your post.



Oh come on, don't be ridiculous. Nobody is going to care if you share your software around your family. Everyone does it, and I don't know a single person who buys more than one copy of a program because they've got two computers or whatever. Think of buying a toaster - all the people in the house use it. Someone from down the street taking it's a different issue of course, just like copying your CDs for friends.

Hopefully that all made sense! And don't flame me please :)

[Toe]

For those of you who hate MS Office... well, OK, for everyone then, here are some OS X alternatives to Office. You all know about Keynote. And of course, there's the apparent AppleWorks. But check these out too:

http://www.openoffice.org/

http://openosx.com/office/

http://www.thinkfree.com/

http://marinersoftware.com/siteproduct.php

http://www.besoftware.com/

The majority of these are in beta, so right now there are very few options. But in the near future, the options are seemingly boundless.

I'm guessing that this might pan out like the browser deal, where there are now like eight great browsers for the mac, but we can expect many to go away with the advent of Safari.

Rumors have circulated that Apple is working on a full Office competitor... not necessarily just AppleWorks. Check out the Jan 20 installment of http://www.macosxrumors.com/ for example. I don't know what to think. If Apple does do a full Office suite, then what will become of all those nice projects listed above?

[Toe]

Oh, and I forgot to mention... all of those Office alternatives are way cheaper than MS Office, if not free.

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by CheekyGit
Why use any new Apple Apps right away?

Everyone should just wait about 2 or 3 months ( or years ) after a new application comes out to see what the reviews say about the look, feel and especially performance. THEN decide if you want to buy it.



There is also the rule of thumb that when a new .0 product comes out, wait until at least the .1 release if you don't want to take the initial plunge. Also there is the rule to wait until the 3.0 release...but that's Microsoft we'd be talking about. Notice how they started the NT series at version 3 and not version 1. Also another note, Windows XP is just Windows NT kernel version 5.1, whereas W2k is 5.0. I thought that was kind of interesting...slap a new, Crayola-inspired interface and call it a new OS...oh, and charge the professional users $200 just to upgrade. Yes, Apple was trying to challenge M$ in the ridiculous upgrade prices, but still, XP Pro upgrade alone was $200. One could buy a 5 pack of OS 10.2 for that! And, hey, I got the 10.1 upgrade for free since I already had 10.0.

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by Nermal


Oh come on, don't be ridiculous. Nobody is going to care if you share your software around your family. Everyone does it, and I don't know a single person who buys more than one copy of a program because they've got two computers or whatever. Think of buying a toaster - all the people in the house use it. Someone from down the street taking it's a different issue of course, just like copying your CDs for friends.

Hopefully that all made sense! And don't flame me please :)

Oh, is that so? And just because 'everybody else' is using toilet paper (or Microsoft, whichever you find nastier), then I should use it, too?

Just kidding of course.

However, if you do look at what most license agreements state, you are allowed to install one copy of the program on one computer at a time. There are exceptions, but generally not within the highly commercialized world. Yes, plenty of 'sharing' goes around, especially since not everyone has a spare $200 or $500 or $600 laying around to buy the latest MS Office or Photoshop, or whatever. Some of those programs are just WAY over priced.

Now one can take a program like Mathematica, which is probably the leader in its field, but they also have a conscience to offer a very reasonable academic price. It normally costs $1888 for Windows or Macs (~$3000 for UNIX, however), yet the academic price is $139. How is that for a deal? Less than a tenth of the original price!

But software companies might start cracking down a lot more on people to force them to install the software on only one computer, a la the registration methods of Windows XP or Mathematica. But if that happens too much, my guess is that people will start moving in faster droves toward Linux and other free software.

And for a final note, I think Apple did the smart thing by allowing a Family Pack installation for OS 10.2. 5 licenses for $200. Hey, that's not too shabby of a deal, I suppose. :) And then you can get that warm glow, knowing that you legally own that software.

But if the FBI wanted to crack down on software piracy, they would probably just have to break into anyone's house who owned a computer. "So, sir, you are on day 671 of your evaluation...haven't paid for it yet, have you?!"

[edenwaith]

Finally, some news which might be indicating that AW7 (or whatever it might be called) might be arriving finally. I've been waiting for this for quite awhile. I think AW6 has stood completely unchanged (not even a .x.x release!) since Autumn 2001. That's quite a long time with no improvements.

But I've suspected that Apple has probably been doing something since I saw a while ago some job postings for people to work and test AW. Seems a little odd to have such postings yet see no work being done on AW.

Also, with the end of the Apple-M$ 5 year contract and the release of Keynote and Safari, it seems like Apple is ready to take the ball back into its own court and start showing Microsoft who the boss is in Mac-land.

I think the two major features I'd like to see is to be able to save spreadsheets in HTML format, and to be able to convert Excel and Word documents better. Also, get rid of Draw and Paint, and combine them into an über program. Now, it doesn't need to be as hi profile or complicated as Photoshop or Illustrator, but I would like something in between Paint's and Photoshop's capabilities.

macosxrumors has an interesting rumor that there might be a new office app release every 6 months, and then finally combined. Interesting idea, but Apple needs to be careful in not over pricing things. If they stay at the same pricing as AW6, and really beef up the program, then they will have better luck in blowing MS Office away, especially if they also make a PC version. It is kind of sad how there is a PC version of AW, yet I've never seen it pushed, advertised, or even used on a PC. If AW7 can become a hit, a PC version might be their ticket on converting a few people...maybe not entirely away from the PC, but if they can get a full Office suite for under $100, compared to the outrageous pricing for MS Office, then I think that might be attractive to a lot of people, and even more so if the translation is very good.

[rugby]

Yes, yes, I know I'm being ridiculous. Is this the part of my post where I get to ask you if everyone jumped off a bridge would you follow?

Listen up, everyone is NOT pirating software. It's part of my job at work to ensure we're compliant with our licenses. It's a hard job as people think since they have a cd they can install it wherever they want to. My neighboring school district was recently fined over $500,000 for license violations where somebody thought they could install Photoshop and FCP on an entire lab worth of computers.


If you think it's "ok", then give me your address and I'll call the bsa on you for a "strip search" of your computer. I'm sure you'll enjoy prison.


Originally posted by Nermal


Oh come on, don't be ridiculous. Nobody is going to care if you share your software around your family. Everyone does it, and I don't know a single person who buys more than one copy of a program because they've got two computers or whatever. Think of buying a toaster - all the people in the house use it. Someone from down the street taking it's a different issue of course, just like copying your CDs for friends.

Hopefully that all made sense! And don't flame me please :)

[greenplasticcup]

i pay for all the software I use, and I use more than one computer. My wife and i both own legal copies of jaguar. I'm not trying to be pious, but just if you want to obey the law you can, it's not hard. just save your bucks. :)

[MrMacMan]

All I need in appleworks is Office suppor (better compatibality) and grammar check...

For everything it is fine on. But I need grammar check and like everything has it, just not Appleworks.

[beatle888]

Originally posted by rugby
Yes, yes, I know I'm being ridiculous. Is this the part of my post where I get to ask you if everyone jumped off a bridge would you follow?

Listen up, everyone is NOT pirating software. It's part of my job at work to ensure we're compliant with our licenses. It's a hard job as people think since they have a cd they can install it wherever they want to. My neighboring school district was recently fined over $500,000 for license violations where somebody thought they could install Photoshop and FCP on an entire lab worth of computers.


If you think it's "ok", then give me your address and I'll call the bsa on you for a "strip search" of your computer. I'm sure you'll enjoy prison.




:rolleyes:

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by rugby

Listen up, everyone is NOT pirating software. It's part of my job at work to ensure we're compliant with our licenses. It's a hard job as people think since they have a cd they can install it wherever they want to. My neighboring school district was recently fined over $500,000 for license violations where somebody thought they could install Photoshop and FCP on an entire lab worth of computers.


Sounds like a fun job, but I guess someone has to do it so large companies decide "Hey, we don't have enough money...lets go bully around some little guys and get the rest of our money!"

Okay, installing one copy of PS on a bunch of computers isn't a good idea, but it seems like that some of those companies might make it a little easier to give large bulk discounts on licenses. What seems really ridiculous, though, is how some companies keep charging people a fee over and over again. What's up with that? Isn't paying for it once already enough? That's like an appliance store coming to my house and telling me I have to pay them again for it.

[Abstract]

Wow, you really butchered that one. :p

I think that if they're going to release an app package, they won't include Keynote on it unless you purchase some sort of Professional Edition or something, like with Office on PC. They may have a Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Paint/Graphics editor thats integrated well with all the apps in the bundle (and Keynote as well), but NOT Keynote.

I just have this gut feeling that Keynote won't be included. I think that Keynote and a more professional graphics editor (not as good as Photoshop as to not step on Adobe's toes :)), but better than the basic graphics editor that comes with the Word Processor application package.

[MacSlut]

Originally posted by Centris 650
I'm expecting great things from Appleworks. It's a good program now as it is but still could be better. Personally I wish they would get rid of the paint, spreadsheet, database, presentation stuff in appleworks. It's a bother and takes up valueable hd space. (Especially the presentation tool. Now that Keynote is out who needs AW's weak presentation app?)

You've got to be kidding me. Why don't they just get rid of the word processing component as well!

Personally, I like MS Office vX. There are some things missing that I wish it had, but there are also some cool things that it has that the Windows version doesn't.

On the other hand it is a professional suite and I'd very much like to see a new version of AppleWorks that captures the magic of ClarisWorks. Early versions of ClarisWorks had an advantage in that the potential for being more efficient than Word/Excel/Office at the time was astronomical, and the development team at Claris did a phenominal job...remember when ClarisWorks could run off a single floppy? I was refurbishing old Mac SE computers for college students to use instead of buying new Macs and Word/Excel/Office.

Now the potential for efficient use of the computer is not as valuable. My B&W G3 runs Office vX at more than acceptable speeds.

On the other hand being an efficient application from the user's perspective is where a new AppleWorks could kick booty. Price is of course a huge factor. Enabling the user is another, and ease of use combined with power is always a difficult mix that Apple has a history of pulling off spectacularly.

I'm sure the new version will look much, much better.

There are also areas for new functionality that could be really strong selling points. HTML capabilities could make this a strong competitor in the low-end GUI HTML editor category...pretty much anyone not doing Websites full-time professionally, or those of us who live in the world of BBEdit.

Also, I'd imagine greater integration with relevant iApps and .Mac.

All said, it's not hard to take a look at AppleWorks and see what needs to be done to make it a winner again.

[BobVB]

Originally posted by rugby
If you think it's "ok", then give me your address and I'll call the bsa on you for a "strip search" of your computer. I'm sure you'll enjoy prison.

Saying you'll call a jackboot organization like the BSA says a lot. They sent me a note a couple days ago saying they would give 'my' company an 'amnesty' audit. But if I don't by Februrary I can expect no mercy.

I knew they were a con when they tried to infer that a companies' licensing agreement determined what your copyright usage rights were. Con-artists and criminals in their own right, that they are.

Of course, the software they are interested in isn't owned by any company - I just always fill in my company on any software I get. The software is registered to me. Heck, the company they are referring to is a family business trust company - the only software it owns or uses is MYOB AccountEdge.

If I hear back I plan on stringing them along as long as I can - every minute and dollar they waste with me is one they can't use to harrass someone else with less time and less perverse sense of humor ;)

[Nermal]

OK, I've managed to change the topic of this thread from AppleWorks to piracy. As it happens, yes I do have pirated software, but I've got lots of legal software too. I'm currently on a PC but I've bought an iBook and I'm just waiting for it to arrive. Changing platforms is going to give me a good opportunity to legalise everything. Having lots of useful apps bundled with the system is a good start.

Anyway, can we get back to the AppleWorks topic please?

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by MacSlut


I was refurbishing old Mac SE computers for college students to use instead of buying new Macs and Word/Excel/Office.



My first Mac, which I bought just a little bit before I bought an iMac, was a Mac SE, loaded with ClarisWorks 3. Works great, and the word processor is wonderful, too. If a person was an author, they could still do their job quite well with an older machine like that. Just connect it up to a spooler to send jobs to a laser printer, and you're set!

[rugby]

Originally posted by BobVB


Saying you'll call a jackboot organization like the BSA says a lot.

Damnit, I forgot my again. I was kidding in the post, I would never help an organization like the BSA get anybody. However, I do have a big problem with people pirating software. I work for a school district and we get letters ALL THE TIME for software audits from various companies, mainly MSFT.

It's a shame they're targeting schools, which have small budgets to buy software, and somebody can ruin it for everyone.

[Dazzler]

If you read my original post, I apologise for the tone.

The whole software piracy argument is a continually circular argument.

Either a company doesn't implement measures to stop it, or they do a Microsoft and go too far.

As a personal user on a tight budget, I can't afford 2 copies of, say, Jaguar - and I sure as heck can't afford 2 copies of Office for my iMac and iBook.

Whatever happened to the great idea of the WordPerferct user licence - you can load it on a home computer and a laptop, as long as you only use it on one at any time! Great idea, and would keep a lot of people happy.

Software is very expensive in Australia - I'd love to do the right thing, but until a second personal licence is say $10.00, I'll keep double loading.

And I'll sleep at night.

[beatle888]

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[AmigaMac]

Originally posted by Qball


Have you ever had a problem with compatibility between PC and Mac versions of Excel? Anyone?

YES... seamless compatibility is not exactly what I would say between Office for Mac and Office for Windows! I have issues with macros and VBscript and other various issues including graphics! For a Mac guy working around a PCcentric office (beyond our Sun workstations), overall I can't complain and I am able to workaround those problems I run into, so I'll get over it. One thing though, Entourage sucks and after a few months of use, I went back to Apple's own Mail application!!

[HoRNeT7]

Don't forget that the report says that there will be NO DRASTIC UPDATES.

Perhaps the rumor is false, or Apple is backing off due to Microsoft's take on Keynote.

Either way, if this rumor is true, this significantly decreases the liklihood that people would switch from Office to Appleworks, and that people would take AppleWorks seriously as a competitor to Office.

In my mind, Office blows away AppleWorks in almost every field except price, of course, and the disastisfaction about having to use a Micro$oft program.

[aafuss1]

I would to see Appleworks have a projects organiser (Microsoft'sb consumer works program has such a feature).

[edenwaith]

Originally posted by HoRNeT7

Perhaps the rumor is false, or Apple is backing off due to Microsoft's take on Keynote.


Well, what were you expecting? I don't think Microsoft ever jumped up and down in joy screaming like little school girls: "Ooooh, Apple is trying to compete with us and kick our butts around! How exciting!"

[maka]

About Appleworks:

I'd love to see a Cocoa application that would remind me in it's ease of use, simplicity and features to the old Claris Works... Not everybody needs Office... I just want a small fast application.

I want to feel the same enthusiasm working with it as when working on a simple Cocoa project in Project Builder. It's just easy, simple and powerful...

About Piracy

I also agree that some licenses are insane, but we can always use free software if we want, and every day there are more options. Maybe this will make companys change their attitudes.

They have to understand that people will buy something if it's really worth it. At least I will :) and crappy policys will lead a company to crappy sells (well... eventually...)

What I don't like is how you have to enter s/n for a program for each user on a machine... (or am I doing something wrong?...) If they expect me to buy licenses for each user on my mac they are gonna have to wait a looooooong time...

[pyrotoaster]

Originally posted by maka
I'd love to see a Cocoa application that would remind me in it's ease of use, simplicity and features to the old Claris Works...
The ease of use of Claris Works??
I couldn't stand Claris Works, it had quirk after quirk after quirk that just slowly taught me to hate using it.
Apple Works is a minor improvement, and I can tolerate it when I need to, but I want to see something new.
Even if Apple totally rewrites Apple Works from the ground up, the name will forever carry a stigma.

Edit: I just want to add that I'd take Apple Works on a Mac over any of the multitude of lousy word processors (Notepad, Wordpad, Microsoft Works) on a PC anyday.
Also, many PC people I know would never even think of considering Apple Works as a serious word processor. Just another reason for Apple to dump it in favor of a super-compatable M$ Word replacement (hopefully even a complete M$ Office replacement!).

[Compufix]

The one MAJOR thing, and a sticking point for our needs to switch to OSX full time is PALM SYNCING. Guess what....Entourage already has a palm sync conduit. This develpment addresses 2 of our major needs to switch over fully to OSX...naitive exchange client, and palm syncing to exchange on the Mac. We actually have users buying Windows machines just to support palm sync to our exchange server. All other network options just are too hookey and pricey for us. This, if it even JUST does the basic stuff, would be a major development....about friggin' time Microsoft. Congrats on taking 2 years to figure it out. But I am in a position that I HAVE to have this functionality....so guess I wait until the summer to reserve my opinion.

And we use Exchange with POP and IMAP on, as well as access to web based mail. Have had ZERO problems with this configuration. Also our voicemail system is integrated into Exchange so that I can have my phone read me mail, or get my voicemail from my email client. Microsoft has MANY problems as a company and as an entity in general...but there IS some neat stuff that can be done with integrated products in an enterprise arena...

[brian0526]

I just switched. In spite of the sales people in the Apple store trying to convince me I needed MS Office X, I stuck to my guns and decided to keep my new iMac Microsoft free. Now, I'm hoping I didn't make a mistake.

AppleWorks has not been nearly what I thought it would be. No ability to create multiple worksheets in a spreadsheet? No ability to manually parse data (that I've been able to find anyway). When I open a Word document I created with a simple image in it, Appleworks simply ignores the image. Learning to crop a picture in the Draw program was really wild (Shift Control 4 or something like that that I finally found with a Google search). And, trying to do a mail merge for e-mail labels. Wow!

I thought I could live without Office because I didn't consider myself to be a "power user" and didn't think I was using any "advanced" features. I'm trying to live with AppleWorks (and testing ThinkFree Office at the same time). I don't want to buy MS Office for three reasons- 1.) I don't want to give any more money to the Evil Empire. 2.) It's WAY overpriced and 3.) I'm tired of bloatware.

Hopefully, there will be a slimmed down, reasonably priced alternative available sometime. There has to be a market for it.

Other than finding a decent contact manager (that can print mailing labels) and a decent Office Suite, I'm very happy with my decision to switch. But, I'm still searching on those two fronts.

Peace,
Brian

[lardlad]

Originally posted by brian0526

AppleWorks has not been nearly what I thought it would be. No ability to create multiple worksheets in a spreadsheet? No ability to manually parse data (that I've been able to find anyway). When I open a Word document I created with a simple image in it, Appleworks simply ignores the image. Learning to crop a picture in the Draw program was really wild (Shift Control 4 or something like that that I finally found with a Google search). And, trying to do a mail merge for e-mail labels. Wow!
Peace,
Brian

Well you can get the text to wrap around the image. Make sure that when you place the image you use the black arrow. This will place the image in it's own floating box. The control click to bring up the contextual menu and you'll find Text Wrap. Also transparency is supported. Lets say you have an image in Photoshop >select all >copy> and go to AppleWorks choose the black arrow tool and >paste.

And you can use multiple worksheets within one spreadsheet. Just choose the spreadsheet tool and hold option while you click and drag. You'll get a mini spreadsheet in its own floating box. The same apples to text, option click and drag will create a floating text box. Place a text box in a spreadsheet and a spreadsheet floating box in a text document.

AppleWorks I think is more capable than most people realize because it isn't very intutitive. However not as powerful as Office I believe it should do what you need it to.

[Toe]

When I originally posted this, it immediately got burried in the off-topic piracy discussion, so here it is again, slimmed down.

If you can't stand MS Office and can't wait for Appleworks, there are numerous options that range from cheap to free:

http://openosx.com/office/

http://www.openoffice.org/

http://www.thinkfree.com/

http://marinersoftware.com/siteproduct.php

http://www.besoftware.com/


Also, in possible contradiction to the Appleworks rumor, check out the Jan 20 installment of http://www.macosxrumors.com/.

[brian0526]

Toe wrote: When I originally posted this, it immediately got burried in the off-topic piracy discussion, so here it is again, slimmed down.

If you can't stand MS Office and can't wait for Appleworks, there are numerous options that range from cheap to free:

http://openosx.com/office/

http://www.openoffice.org/

http://www.thinkfree.com/

http://marinersoftware.com/siteproduct.php

http://www.besoftware.com/

I checked the above sites.

OpenOSX looks promising. But, I did not see the ability to download the software and try it out. Major problem, unless I missed something.

OpenOffice.org looks not ready for prime time. From the description, it looks like early beta and not fully OS X compatible for simple people like me.

I've downloaded ThinkFree. Looks pretty good. It's VERY slow. But, better than Appleworks for compatibility.

MarinerSoftware looks pretty good for spreadsheet and Word Processing. Downloaded both and will check them out.

BeSoftware's website didn't do much for me in terms of explaining their offering.

Is OpenOSX available to be tried out?

Peace,
Brian

[Toe]

Is OpenOSX available to be tried out?

Their stuff is just bundled freeware/open-source. They take what is publicly available for free (but very challenging to install), bundle it together with clean, easy installers, and sell it for very cheap. A pretty good idea, in my mind.

For example, their word processor is AbiWord. You can get it for free here:
http://www.abisource.com/

All you have to do with these open-source softwares is download them, often compile them for your operating system, then figure out how to get them to launch. Then figure out how to use them. OpenOSX does all the unix-geek stuff for you and makes a Mac-like installer, bundled together with documentation. They also bundle together a number of applications and, I believe, get them to work with each other.

So I can understand why they don't have demos... their installer is the entire thing they are selling. And $40 for a full office suite ain't so bad.

[GeneR]

I'd very much like to see Appleworks kick some M$ butt. We've been chained too long to these monopolistic practices and we need an app that will move Apple to the forefront in terms of productivity suites. Let's hope for the best on this. I really want/need something better than Office X.

[brian0526]

Originally posted by GeneR
I'd very much like to see Appleworks kick some M$ butt. We've been chained too long to these monopolistic practices and we need an app that will move Apple to the forefront in terms of productivity suites. Let's hope for the best on this. I really want/need something better than Office X.

That's just the thing. If someone would come out with just a decent office suite for anything less than $400 bucks, people would jump all over it. I've got to believe there are a ton of people fed up with Microsoft's practices, bloated software, outrageous prices, etc. Just give me a decent alternative and I'm there.

ThinkFree Office is looking fairly good. It's slow (I guess it's written in Java). But, I think for $50, it's acceptable. I'm hoping Apple's not finished with Keynote and continues to pick off the Office Suite. I'd like to see a better word processor, spreadsheet and contact manager from Apple, too (are you listening, Apple?)

Peace,
Brian