Apple Working on iWeb Pro?

[MacRumors]

According to an unconfirmed report, Apple is working on a higher end web authoring application to complement iWeb, much like they've provided a range of software applications for other aspects of the iLife suite.

"iWeb Pro" is said to offer an easy to use web authoring interface for small to mid sized companies. While the current version of iWeb is more of a complementary tool to .Mac, "iWeb Pro" is said to be a complete stand alone product. That said, tight integration with Apples iLife suite remain an important feature, allowing easy publishing of multimedia content.

This is an otherwise unconfirmed rumor, but published for discussion/interest.

 

[arn]

real rumors have been a bit slow, this was an anonymous submission, otherwise unconfirmed. so I don't actually believe it to be true... but that's what page 2 is for.

arn

 

[mduser63]

It's certainly not wholly implausible. We already have:

Garageband <-> Logic (and Soundtrack too)
iMovie <-> FCP
iDVD <-> DVD Studio Pro
iPhoto <-> Aperture

iWeb is actually the only iLife component that doesn't have a "Pro" counterpart.

 

[corywoolf]

Sounds good to me, just hope they can make it much more customizable then the original iWeb. Oh and the code better be a lot cleaner, iWeb spits out a mess of code. Apple should release a Master Collection like Adobe did. Imagine: Final Cut Studio, Logic, Aperture, and iWeb Pro for $2499.99.

 

[Zwhaler]

This would make sense. Logic FCP and Aperture are basically iLife Pro, why not have an equivilant for iWork?

 

[simX]

iWeb is actually the only iLife component that doesn't have a "Pro" counterpart.

Not true. iTunes doesn't have a pro version for that guy that has 200,000 tracks in his music library and has to wait 3-4 minutes just for the info window to open.

 

[Mgkwho]

Ha, he was running Windows didn't you see!! It only took 30 seconds on his Mac. Not that that's fast...

Anyhoo I think it'd be nice but it would be so hard to compete with dreamweaver and all else that is out there!! What would make it so good and different?

-=|Mgkwho

 

[macklos]

Not true. iTunes doesn't have a pro version for that guy that has 200,000 tracks in his music library and has to wait 3-4 minutes just for the info window to open.

iTunes is not part of iLife. So True

If you're going to have 200,000 tracks in your music library you'll need that 3-4 minute wait to decide on what to listen to.

 

[simX]

iTunes is not part of iLife.

Also not true.

At Apple's iLife page, it clearly states (in a small footnote ) that "iLife also includes iTunes 6". Steve Jobs has also said this many times during his keynotes on iLife.

 

[Zweben]

Makes me think of Coda, but more WYSIWYG.

I hope it's true. Coda is great, but competition makes everything better.

 

[macboy62]

iTunes is not part of iLife. So True

If you're going to have 200,000 tracks in your music library you'll need that 3-4 minute wait to decide on what to listen to.

From the iLife '06 page on The Apple Store...

System Requirements

* Macintosh computer with a PowerPC G4, G5 or Intel Core Duo processor; 733MHZ or faster required for iDVD
* 256MB of RAM; 512MB recommended
* Mac OS X v10.3.9 or Mac OS X v10.4.3 or later; Mac OS X v10.4.4 recommended
* iTunes 6.0.2 and QuickTime 7.0.4 (included)
* DVD drive for installation
* 10GB of disk space to install iLife ’06 applications

I always thought I got iTunes with iLife '05 and '06

 

[EricNau]

Although I seriously doubt this rumor, "iWeb Pro" is exactly what I need.

iWeb works great with .Mac, but just isn't fit for anything beyond a basic user's homepage. This is even more true if iWeb is used without .Mac.

 

[ventro]

I hope this is more like an Apple version of Dreamweaver than iWeb. More live updating and an easy front-end to manipulate CSS and HTML files.

 

[Peace]

This actually sounds like what iWeb will be when iLife is intergrated in Leopard.

So not actually iWeb Pro but iWeb Leopard edition.

 

[brianbobcat]

Web Objects replacement?

If this is aimed at small to mid-sized businesses, it doesn't sound like a WebObjects replacement, and although I haven't used it, I bet it's starting to get long in the tooth with a bunch of old code thrown in with the various version of OS X. I do like the ease of iWeb, am experienced in FCP, and just started dabbling in Aperture, so I could probably easily figure out iWeb pro. It's also probably have a different name as all the other pro apps don't have Pro tagged on to the end, except for Soundtrack Pro, but remember that Soundtrack used to be the pro app before it was bundled with FCX. What about some thing simple like Website? It says what it is, a website maker, just like Soundtrack Pro says it makes soundtracks.

Hopefully this is true,
-Brian

 

[mduser63]

Not true. iTunes doesn't have a pro version for that guy that has 200,000 tracks in his music library and has to wait 3-4 minutes just for the info window to open.

I thought about mentioning iTunes. Of course, the big difference to me is that all the other apps in iLife make it easy to do things that some people do professionally. iTunes is just for organizing and buying music and movies, which (last I checked) people won't pay you for. It's hard to figure out what more a pro version of iTunes would do (I mean in terms of features, not better performance which is what you're talking about). Another way of looking at it is iTunes will work just as well for organizing a music professional's music as it will for organizing a regular consumer's music. iPhoto doesn't provide all the features that a pro photographer needs/wants, that's why there's Aperture. To me, iWeb is basically useless, but something along the lines of Coda, perhaps with a trademark Apple WYSIWYG editor might be really nice.

 

[Marble]

Even if this materializes, I doubt it will be called "iWeb Pro." The "i" moniker doesn't appear on any of their other professional products.

 

[iJawn108]

Web Pro LE

Only on Leopard.

But seriously I'd buy it, I suck at page building(never have looked at dreamweaver) and would buy something like this if it integrated into none .mac webspace properly and maybe had a built in ftp tool.

 

[GregA]

Anyhoo I think it'd be nice but it would be so hard to compete with dreamweaver and all else that is out there!! What would make it so good and different?

I haven't researched much, but it seems that as websites move beyond static pages, there's no 'simple' solution for creating and managing a site. Apple provides .Mac, so they could easily expand into dynamic websites with dynamic templates.

The simplest part of this would be guest books, discussion boards, polls, file sharing, secure access and member lists.

 

[Rojo]

This could be the first Apple Pro app I actually buy, if it happens...

I don't "get" Dreamweaver, but I can figure out Apple apps pretty easily -- even pro ones. And iWeb just isn't it cutting it for me. I haven't bothered building the websites I've wanted to do, mainly because of iWeb's many limitations.

Hopefully it's around the $300 range and not much higher...

 

[dashiel]

i wonder -- if this is true -- if this is less about a dreamweaver/coda competitor and more about a microsoft expression/adobe apollo competitor?

there was a job posting at apple a while back for someone to help develop a cross-platform, browser, plug-in for rich internet experiences.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

Despite the very dubious status of the rumor, it would be a terrific move on Apple's part, so long as iWeb Pro produced clean, logical mark-up. I can think of a couple of ways they could make it kick the butts of Dreamweaver and Microsoft's new app. Pretty much every business on the planet needs or wants a website, so it's a big market.

 

[rydewnd2]

From the iLife '06 page on The Apple Store...

System Requirements

* Macintosh computer with a PowerPC G4, G5 or Intel Core Duo processor; 733MHZ or faster required for iDVD
* 256MB of RAM; 512MB recommended
* Mac OS X v10.3.9 or Mac OS X v10.4.3 or later; Mac OS X v10.4.4 recommended
* iTunes 6.0.2 and QuickTime 7.0.4 (included)
* DVD drive for installation
* 10GB of disk space to install iLife ’06 applications

I always thought I got iTunes with iLife '05 and '06

I'm sorry my friend you are wrong on this point. iTunes was formerly bundled with ilife. But no longer. In fact the only way to aquire itunes now is bundled with a new mac or through download.

 

[bob_the_gorilla]

I'm sorry my friend you are wrong on this point. iTunes was formerly bundled with ilife. But no longer. In fact the only way to aquire itunes now is bundled with a new mac or through download.

I have a copy of iLife 06 right here. It has iTunes on it... Trust me, he's not wrong.

 

[davidjearly]

I'm sorry my friend you are wrong on this point. iTunes was formerly bundled with ilife. But no longer. In fact the only way to aquire itunes now is bundled with a new mac or through download.

Q. Could you be any more wrong?
A. No.