If you don't mind me asking ... why?
There's nothing iCloud does that's special and a lot of things it doesn't do.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iWork for iCloud Updated With Interactive Charts, Improved Collaborative Capabilities
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If you don't mind me asking ... why?
There's nothing iCloud does that's special and a lot of things it doesn't do.
I use it to for photo stream and syncing/saving app data across my idevices. Just because you have no need for it, doesn't necessarily mean that it's useless.
If you're, I don't know, stuck on a Windows machine.
Or you don't want to pay (3*$20) + (3*$10)...
I will say, though: it's really a great service and I'm impressed by the sophistication of the apps. What worries me is that this seems like the kind of thing that few people use despite the fact that the people who do use it really like it, which could lead to its eventual retirement.
My high school's (and most schools') computers all run Windows, so it's nice when I can access my documents from my Mac or iOS device there without having to convert it to its Office equivalent. The collaboration is also great.
I can think of three reasons:
1) You're not on a Mac or iOS device
2) You are on someone else's Mac without iWork installed
3) Real-time collaboration
I would suspect that Apple will announce more details about iCloud a few weeks from now at the WWDC keynote.
Yes, millions use iCloud and thousands of apps provide it by default.
That's because iCloud isn't trying to be like them right now. iCloud has a few services under its banner (iCloud Data and Documents, iCloud email, etc).
For many people, iCloud provides a seamless experience for syncing their data between iOS and OS X apps. There is no account management, no signing in or anything like that needed like OneDrive or Dropbox on OS X/iOS.
In fact, OneDrive is much deeply integrated on Windows and Windows Phone, so it is a better service there but for OS X/iOS users, iCloud is a better fit.
I'd suspect Apple will expand the iCloud to include iDisk-ish type of sync in the future.
OS X isn't that big of a market, it's useful for sharing and working with folks on Windows, Android, and other platforms they may be on.
Not to mention, you might not always be on your Mac and/or IOS devices, it would be nice to grab it on the web site.
True, it may be better to use Google Docs or Microsoft Office Web. We'll just have to see where iCloud takes us in the next few years.
It's completely integrated with OS X and iOS. I open an app on my Mac, it detected the data from my iOS app without me having to do anything special like pointing it to a data file in a certain folder nor installing a third party service to manage the data.
I have no use for Dropbox but I do use a few apps like 1Password, I rather not install Dropbox/OneDrive just for those apps.
The "apps-are-document-containers" paradigm causing files to be hidden in iOS is the biggest mistake of Apple in recent years. And iCloud is the glue that links this failure to MacOSX.
As a result, its a confusing mess on both sides. As long as user files are not directly accessible like in Dropbox, iCloud will remain a weird cloud service that no-one fully understands. Let alone pay for it.
Still, the solution is simple: introduce a central Documents app on iOS that all apps can access (docs, music, video, ) with support for sharing, syncing, airdrop, No more iTunes file sharing crap, no more duplicate files in each app, no more hidden iCloud stuff.
As a result, its a confusing mess on both sides. As long as user files are not directly accessible like in Dropbox, iCloud will remain a weird cloud service that no-one fully understands. Let alone pay for it.
Still, the solution is simple: introduce a central Documents app on iOS that all apps can access (docs, music, video, ) with support for sharing, syncing, airdrop, No more iTunes file sharing crap, no more duplicate files in each app, no more hidden iCloud stuff.
iWork needs a bigger overhaul besides collaborative capabilities. Let's start with a revamp for iWork for OSx. Then we can also work on bringing idisk back. Also a online HUB to manage my iTunes match library..
Meanwhile Google Docs has full scripting which allows you to do... literally anything you may or may not even dream of.
Exactly! I'm actually afraid of iCloud. I have no idea what the hell it's doing, why, where my stuff is, is it on it's way, why is it not here, why is is there, etc... These are my files, and if I feel that I am not in control of them, then I will not trust the service. Dropbox is great, and the difference between Dropbox and iCloud is what makes iCloud suck balls.
I also hate the idea that apps contain documents, especially that they're now doing it in OS X too. I want to be able to browse my documents without any app, and then decide what app I want to open the document with once I've found the file. When I think of an essay, a photo, or a presentation, I think of the file and its contents, not the app used to open/create it. I have no idea which app to open to get to the file, and why should I care? All I care about is the file, and then give me a list of apps that will open it for me to choose from or just choose the default one. I think Apple really screwed up with this and I don't think anyone gets it. They're pushing this whole idea like Microsoft is pushing you to take a tour of Windows XP. No one wants it, please just leave us alone!
Exactly! I'm actually afraid of iCloud. I have no idea what the hell it's doing, why, where my stuff is, is it on it's way, why is it not here, why is is there, etc... These are my files, and if I feel that I am not in control of them, then I will not trust the service. Dropbox is great, and the difference between Dropbox and iCloud is what makes iCloud suck balls.
I also hate the idea that apps contain documents, especially that they're now doing it in OS X too. I want to be able to browse my documents without any app, and then decide what app I want to open the document with once I've found the file. When I think of an essay, a photo, or a presentation, I think of the file and its contents, not the app used to open/create it. I have no idea which app to open to get to the file, and why should I care? All I care about is the file, and then give me a list of apps that will open it for me to choose from or just choose the default one. I think Apple really screwed up with this and I don't think anyone gets it. They're pushing this whole idea like Microsoft is pushing you to take a tour of Windows XP. No one wants it, please just leave us alone!
Last edited:
It is a good solid workhorse of a cloud solution. I like its seamless integration with apps and I use it for:
- Pages / Numbers / Keynote
- Pixelmator
- Sketch
- Prizmo
- Transmit
- photo stream + shared photo streams (my parents are on iDevices as well)
- Reminders
- Notes
- bookmark sync (including with Firefox on Windows)
- 1Password
- Keychain
- iCloud Mail if Gmail is acting weird
I like how easy it is to back-up everything offline (just in case). And I never had any issues with it.
They only need to stack more features on top of what they already have so far. No need to rewrite.
I agree Apple should bring iDisk back though.
My needs are fairly basic, so this serves its purpose well. Nothing but Apple hardware in our house between phones and computers, so a service built around that makes sense for us.
We use Office 365 for work and it is fine, but kinda clunky. Using Google is just a non-starter for me.
I agree, I loved it until it became full with a few movies and photos. I "heart" my tiny, yet over 10 fold larger then iCloud synology drive for picking up the slack. I think it all comes down to what your goals are for storage. Once I came to the realization I wanted to archive all my photos, music, and movies, anything less then 2tb would be gobbled up. I agree the cloud is the ultimate off-site and secure storage. A natural disaster will whip out your local storage, so you still have to be cautious when making the decision, a risk I am willing to take for the time being until cloud storage becomes more affordable.
Use iWorks' AppleScript to access the same docs.
While I like the DropBox model, I also like iOS' tight control so there's no funny business going on between apps. Both sides don't offer a full solution for me yet.
I didn't say it was useless, I said it was inferior to the competition. It is.
So it's because you use a nonstandard format for your documents? Got it.
I doubt it.
Millions use it regularly?
So they're trying to be different by providing fewer features and less space than their competition? That takes some balls there.
Also, you do need to have an Apple account to use iCloud. :|
That makes sense.
Makes sense.
So it's really only useful if you're heavily invested in an environment that uses specific apps?
----------
Today is a good day for learning, it seems.
It is not inferior when you use the suite based on your needs. iWorks + iCloud apps work together for different situations.
They only need to bring iDisk back for me, and increase the storage.
I am actually surprised at the pace they update the iCloud apps. If they keep it up, they should be able to address most needs in their own ways.
They only need to bring iDisk back for me, and increase the storage.
I am actually surprised at the pace they update the iCloud apps. If they keep it up, they should be able to address most needs in their own ways.
I would only wish it actually DID this. Photos on my iphone rarely get stored seamlessly. Now on my Nexus, well, no need to worry. Fix it, Apple.
No.
I can use Google Drive or OneDrive and not be heavily invested in any ecosystem. I can open a.doc or .docx with a lot of different things, for example. Just about every excel clone opens up .xls and just about every PowerPoint clone can open .ppt as a format.
It's in your mind. You can export the docs to Excel or Word if you want. Plus I can use Keynote at the same time. I use Windows and Mac and iOS all the time.
I work on the same doc on iCloud or iWorks depending on what I have and where I am.
I don't limit myself to just iCloud or iWorks.
I work on the same doc on iCloud or iWorks depending on what I have and where I am.
I don't limit myself to just iCloud or iWorks.
Just as you can open Word/Excel/Powerpoint files in iWork. Have you ever even used the things you're criticizing?
You can import/export to/from iWork into just about any common format.
iWork is just as much of a solution as Googe Drive/Docs. That's for dang sure. For iOS users it's even better because we have a full blown locally installed suite not totally dependent on being online.