All iPads iPadOs - Working on Office files directly from external thumbdrove

[taldo]

Hi all,

my dad wants to buy a macbook for his daily work.

i was wondering if an iPad was more suitable for him, especially now with the new external hard drive support and the more integrated mouse/trackpad support.

A deal breaker for him will be an ability to edit files (specifically excel & word) on the external hard drive itself.
Does office files require you to download the files locally or can it be done externally..?

also,
Does the mouse pointer behavior in excel is the same as the MacOs behavior in terms of capabilities and control of the spreadsheet..?

 

[Mobileadam]

Well the new integrated office app is meant to have some better integration with cloud storage although I use google and that wasn’t listed as a service but it did allow me to access word files through the files app and update them without having to download a local copy.

The only problem is that new app is only on iPhone at the moment

 

[taldo]

Well the new integrated office app is meant to have some better integration with cloud storage although I use google and that wasn’t listed as a service but it did allow me to access word files through the files app and update them without having to download a local copy.

The only problem is that new app is only on iPhone at the moment

actually i don’t need the cloud,
I have the office app on my iPhone and you can use the files app to access files (i guess That if i had an external hard drive connected then i would have been able to open a file saved on it..) -
The wuestion is - would i have been able to edit a file on the hard drive without moving it to my iPad first...

also, about the cursor, do you have thenew beta veraion installed? How does it work in Office..?

 

[Mobileadam]

I can try the external drive thing for you but no beta. I don’t think it will work though on current word, excel etc version as I expect it will make a local copy. New office integrated app I reckon it might. Will try later and let you know.

 

[AutomaticApple]

Does the mouse pointer behavior in excel is the same as the MacOs behavior in terms of capabilities and control of the spreadsheet..?

I wouldn't say so.

 

[taldo]

I wouldn't say so.

I’m asking because in Federighi demo he showed how the cursor is changing to enable column width tweaking and copy pasting a cell to others by draging the cell to the below cells (maybe it works now just in Numbers and that’s something Microsoft should update in their apps..?)

I guess third party app support is the most important thing in these cursor changes, if all the apps need to implement it it would take some time until the full power of this cursor would enable real productivity on iPads.

 

[rui no onna]

Just get him a MacBook if that's what he wants. Regardless of pointer behavior, Excel on iOS still isn't the same as desktop and your dad may not be willing to change his workflow to adapt.

Files app is also buggy. It's happened to me often enough that folders would show as empty until I restart the iPad.

 

[sparksd]

Just get him a MacBook if that's what he wants. Regardless of pointer behavior, Excel on iOS still isn't the same as desktop and your dad may not be willing to change his workflow to adapt.

Files app is also buggy. It's happened to me often enough that folders would show as empty until I restart the iPad.

Yes on that Files comment. I've had an issue several times where all Locations disappear from the side panel, fixable only by a full iPad restart. And if the OP's father is using macros in his spreadsheets then the iPad is not going to work.

 

[muzzy996]

Just get him a MacBook if that's what he wants. Regardless of pointer behavior, Excel on iOS still isn't the same as desktop and your dad may not be willing to change his workflow to adapt.

Files app is also buggy. It's happened to me often enough that folders would show as empty until I restart the iPad.

Wholeheartedly agree with this. Excel on iPad for serious spreadsheet work just cannot compete with desktop versions.

 

[Mobileadam]

So I’ve tested the external drive with the current word, excel apps and it does indeed save directly to an external hdd. You access files through the ‘files’ Option. Still I’m a big iPad user but wouldn’t imagine creating documents and I would suggest proper computer for Excel. I still can’t get the same app open with two windows side by side.

 

[richpjr]

Wholeheartedly agree with this. Excel on iPad for serious spreadsheet work just cannot compete with desktop versions.

There is a BIG difference in the capabilities between the desktop and mobile versions, so if he is a power user he'd probably be pretty frustrated.