does apple have a program similar to microsoft word

Apple Pages is the closest thing they have to MS Word, which is a component of iWork. It's not as "feature packed" as Word, but for most things it gets the job done. I've also found it much better for laying things out than Word.

NeoOffice is almost identical to Word and is free. It is not made by Apple, it is the OpenOffice version for Macs.

There is .... Microsoft Word!

There is an Office:Mac made by Microsoft for macs.


But I use NeoOffice myself coz it's free.

I have both Microsoft Office and Pages on my computer and I have never used Microsoft Office except for Excel. The Inspector IMHO is a much easier way to alter your document. Although it may not be as full of features it has all you need. Hope this helps

If your looking for word processing apps i will highly recommend I Works

I use NeoOffice myself. Fantastic and free !

max_altitude said:

Apple Pages is the closest thing they have to MS Word, which is a component of iWork. It's not as "feature packed" as Word, but for most things it gets the job done. I've also found it much better for laying things out than Word.

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Id take issue with that statement. It has lots of features that Word doesn't, because Pages is a Page-Layout app, whereas Word is just a very beefy word processor. They aren't really direct competitors.

Yankee doodle1 said:

just wondering if anyone can advise is apple has a program similar to microsoft word thanks for the reply

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yeah, Apple has a product called "iWork", costs $79.00, which includes two components, keynotes is like office powerpoint, and pages is like word.
depends how you need to use them, if you don't worry about standard compatibility, then pages should be able to meet your need, but if your need to build document that is requirement to meet M$ office standard, then guess u will have to use M$ Office, they do have a mac version.
BTW, Openoffice/NeoOffice support OSX too, they are free.

Yankee doodle1 said:

just wondering if anyone can advise is apple has a program similar to microsoft word thanks for the reply

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Define your terms.

TextEdit reads and writes Word .doc and .rtf files. It is bundled with every Mac and with every copy of MacOS X including yours.
Pages reads and writes Word .doc files. Certain embedded graphic elements may require tweaking. Pages is a paid application.
AbiWord reads and writes documents created using Word and [/b]WordPerfect[/b]. It is free.
NeoOffice is the Aqua-based version of OpenOffice.
Microsoft Word 2004 comes from the Redmond Monopoly. It reads and writes virtually every Word file ever created.

If you just need a wordprocessor but don't need Word-compatibility, there are numerous other options including Mariner Write, Mellel, NisusWriter Express, Papyrus, and Stone Create. You might even consider teTeX-based LyX, which can also open Word files.

Yankee doodle1 said:

all i need it for was just basic letter writing nothing special, but once again thanks to all

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If that's all you need I would opt for neo office since it is the free version and works quite effectively.

writely is an awesome program. as long as you have internet you can access documents from anywhere and collaborate files with anyone that has a gmail account. its an awesome word processor by google.

Aniej said:

If that's all you need I would opt for neo office since it is the free version and works quite effectively.

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If that's all he needs, TextEdit would be just fine. Why download the whole huge Neo Office suite then put up with the crappy UI and crazy slowness.

i have microsoft office on my mac, its awsome it gives me every program i would ever need on a pc .

unfortunately Office 2004 is not available in Universal binary as of yet, so it will have to run through Rosetta...hence the performance may not be as good...but its only a word processor.

I have Office:Mac 04.

For the love of Pete, do NOT get iWork if you're looking for a word processor. Despite what the Apple salespeople may tell you, Pages is NOT a word processor, it's a page layout program. Yes you can do word processing in it, but I wouldn't recommend it. If you just need basic word processing, text edit does a decent job. If you need fancier functions and most importantly Word compatibility, then just get Office. If you're not in a rush, wait for the next version if you have an intel Mac.

Bitgod said:

For the love of Pete, do NOT get iWork if you're looking for a word processor. Despite what the Apple salespeople may tell you, Pages is NOT a word processor, it's a page layout program. Yes you can do word processing in it, but I wouldn't recommend it. If you just need basic word processing, text edit does a decent job. If you need fancier functions and most importantly Word compatibility, then just get Office. If you're not in a rush, wait for the next version if you have an intel Mac.

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I do all my word processing in Pages. Haven't touched Microsoft Word in a year. What does Pages not do in terms of basic word processing?

I wonder why people don't want to use MS Word. Office is one of the few apps I like from MS. Good to know some people find Pages is function for them as a word processor. In my case, the program is too slow for typing fast (Pages cannot keep up with my typing). It's a decent layout program for a quick and easy document creation.
If you can afford it, I would recommend sticking with MS office 2004. The seamless compatibility with Windows' Office files is a big plus for my usage. When I write reports, I intend them to be read without having issues with mismatched formatting between Mac and Windows.

YS2003 said:

(Pages cannot keep up with my typing)

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What are you on a G3?

YS2003 said:

I wonder why people don't want to use MS Word. Office is one of the few apps I like from MS. Good to know some people find Pages is function for them as a word processor. In my case, the program is too slow for typing fast (Pages cannot keep up with my typing). It's a decent layout program for a quick and easy document creation.
If you can afford it, I would recommend sticking with MS office 2004. The seamless compatibility with Windows' Office files is a big plus for my usage. When I write reports, I intend them to be read without having issues with mismatched formatting between Mac and Windows.

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the introduce of office for mac 98 several years ago did save apple's butt, lol

but back to topic, if OP only need those function as he described,
Abiword is more than good enough. Its more powerful than textedit or sticky note, but much smaller than office/pages.

clevin said:

the introduce of office for mac several years ago did save apple's butt, lol

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Yes... the introduction of Microsoft Office for Mac in 1989 (Word standalone in 1984) really saved Apple's butt.

http://www.abisource.com/
here is abiword

Was the huge screenshot really necessary? Could you explain your statement about the Introduction of Office for Mac saving Apple's butt? I'm just curious to see why you think that...