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Microsoft Office for iPad Awaiting Completion of 'Touch First' Interface for Windows Version
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I'm not against Office coming to the iPad but I do think its lost some serious luster and probably won't have much attraction. Why do I say this? Because Microsoft will try to push it as a free download (Apple doesn't get a penny) but for full functionality, you must purchase an Office 365 subscription. I don't think too many folks will jump on that outside the enterprise market.
Microsoft lost it's identity and lacks vision. They could have cleaned up releasing this (without the subscription model) on iPad and Android years ago. I see this just like the launch of Office on the iPhone earlier this year, irrelevant.
Microsoft lost it's identity and lacks vision. They could have cleaned up releasing this (without the subscription model) on iPad and Android years ago. I see this just like the launch of Office on the iPhone earlier this year, irrelevant.
They didn't have a touch interface for Office years ago.
Office is a bit more complex than iWork.
Microsoft's chance to put/sell a boat load of money on iPhones, Androids selling mobil versions of Office left a LONG time ago! Now that the two main competitors have third party Microsoft compatible free suites now the Office money train has passed them by.
Apple is vertically integrated and their organizational structure is functional/matrixed. One guy for software, one for hardware, design, marketing, etc. They may report to the street by product line but none of the SVPs "own" a specific product.
Microsoft is attempting to be vertical (Surface, Windows Phone) and horizontal (Windows, Office, server, etc). Its very difficult to be both. Microsoft can change the org design to be more matrixed but unless they change the culture moving boxes around and updating titles doesn't much matter.
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How is excel or access relevant on a touchscreen tablet. I use excel every day. I can't imagine using it on an iPad.
You know this for certain? It sure seems like Microsoft wanted to keep Office a Surface exclusive to avoid losing sales of hardware to the iPad.
Yes. Little or no organizational conflict, and with one goal.
Office is Relevant today like Blackberry was relevant in 2006.
No guarantees that in 7 years that will still be the case. Now if they continue to sit on their ass and milk the customer base like BBRY did in 2006, then you put the franchise at risk.
Microsoft fatcats running the company need to wake up and make sure they do not paint themselves in a corner.
Apple is vertically integrated and their organizational structure is functional/matrixed. One guy for software, one for hardware, design, marketing, etc. They may report to the street by product line but none of the SVPs "own" a specific product.
Microsoft is attempting to be vertical (Surface, Windows Phone) and horizontal (Windows, Office, server, etc). Its very difficult to be both. Microsoft can change the org design to be more matrixed but unless they change the culture moving boxes around and updating titles doesn't much matter.
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How is excel or access relevant on a touchscreen tablet. I use excel every day. I can't imagine using it on an iPad.
Why not? If there's a touch interface, then it just becomes a truly mobile Office. I know a lot of people want to just use their iPads as "fun time", but this is something that would help people be able to use their tablets to do some of the work they might otherwise need to pull out a laptop or go to their desktop to do.
Microsoft you f'd up
Seriously they should have just gone all out and made a version for windows 7/8, forget about RT it's never going to catch on under a windows moniker, an ipad version, a iphone version, mac osx and a android version with also a cloud like operation for all where you can also access online like google drive or icloud does.
This would have been my number one objective to keep the stranglehold on the productivity market as MS! I mean come on why did they wait. I already use open office on PC and google docs if i'm not at my computer and icloud if i'm only with my ipad. They all play nice. MS should have set the standard so high but instead they just failed to launch at all. Politics I suppose.
Seriously they should have just gone all out and made a version for windows 7/8, forget about RT it's never going to catch on under a windows moniker, an ipad version, a iphone version, mac osx and a android version with also a cloud like operation for all where you can also access online like google drive or icloud does.
This would have been my number one objective to keep the stranglehold on the productivity market as MS! I mean come on why did they wait. I already use open office on PC and google docs if i'm not at my computer and icloud if i'm only with my ipad. They all play nice. MS should have set the standard so high but instead they just failed to launch at all. Politics I suppose.
There was a time people thought the same of Apple, remember the good old 90's? I'm sure no one from Software wanted anything to do with the PowerPC mess.
Again, I am a huge Apple fan, but I am not going to sit here and say everything Microsoft did is crap. I laugh about their failures (Zune, Ken, Surface, Windows Mango, Windows Vista, etc...) but I am not going to deny their legacy and their influence.
I have faith that they will get a new CEO who will turn it all around
They can't just snap their fingers and make a good touch interface. Apple did it by dumbing down iWork. I doubt Microsoft really needs to follow the idea of "touch office suite interface must be dumbed down".
I cannot imagine working with a complex Excel sheet on a tablet, but maybe their touch interface will make it a good enough experience. Not holding my breath though.
Really? What is this big thing that is putting the franchise at risk? Where is the thing that is replacing them? And please, have some credibility and don't say Google Docs or iWork.
What is the point?
What is the point in waiting for a release of Office apps for the iPad when Microsoft has proven year after year to not fully support Apple in any of its products. The "latest" release for the Mac is Office 2011 which "resembles" the true Office that Windows receives but falls short. Does anyone believe for a second that Microsoft will release the same functioning Office App that will be released for their hardware? If you simply look at the Apple App Store you can find apps that work the way they are supposed to for the iPad such as Pages, Numbers and Keynote.
What is the point in waiting for a release of Office apps for the iPad when Microsoft has proven year after year to not fully support Apple in any of its products. The "latest" release for the Mac is Office 2011 which "resembles" the true Office that Windows receives but falls short. Does anyone believe for a second that Microsoft will release the same functioning Office App that will be released for their hardware? If you simply look at the Apple App Store you can find apps that work the way they are supposed to for the iPad such as Pages, Numbers and Keynote.
And yet Office on Mac still has more to offer than Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
Isn't that sad?
Yeah, this will be interesting to see. If MS looses the continued mythical appeal of Office, they have lost a ton going forward.
My first thought was "there's a reason Ballmer's ass was kicked to the curb."
My second thought was "who cares? Office dug its own grave."
My second thought was "who cares? Office dug its own grave."
I love responses like this.
Office is the most used office suite out there, but apparently it dug its own grave. You can't make this crap up.
There is not way I am letting Mocrosoft software creep on my iPad Sorry but they only price of software the was glitchy and clunky on my Mac was Microsoft Office!
Apples Pages, Keynote and Numbers are easily on par with this and are not free when bought with a new device.
And the chances are Mircosoft will charge 79.99 for this anyway.
Not. A. Chance.
Sorry but they only price of software the was glitchy and clunky on my Mac was Microsoft Office!Apples Pages, Keynote and Numbers are easily on par with this and are not free when bought with a new device.
And the chances are Mircosoft will charge 79.99 for this anyway.
Not. A. Chance.
There is not way I am letting Mocrosoft software creep on my iPad
Apples Pages, Keynote and Numbers are easily on par with this and are not free when bought with a new device.
And the chances are Mircosoft will charge 79.99 for this anyway.
Not. A. Chance.
It'll likely be a companion for Office 365, as it should be. No reason for Microsoft to give Apple a 30% cut of Office.
That is only because a large number of people think that is the only option. If you let people try out Open Office or Pages, Numbers and Keynote and the told them that they were all considerably cheaper thean MS Office; the majority would throw MS Office out the Window.
To put into perspective how stupid it was for Ballmer to be such an MS fanboi and spurn an iPad version of Office, imagine if Apple had been that dumb and never made a Windows version of iTunes.