iWork or Office

[Digital Skunk]

i agree with all you wrote. unfortunately most of us work in a buisiness that uses only one suite. to say iwork will work in this scenario is not true.

i use iwork at home and it is really nice dont get me wrong. however, it is only nice when i dont have to collaborate with others where these "others" use windows

as far as my analogy, gimp is not like neooffice. neooffice tries to capture every aspect of office. gimp does not try to be exactly like photoshop. however i do see what you are saying

Yeah, they use only one suite of Apps, for the most part, but that one suite is sometimes a rather obscure one. My paper may be switching from Harris to InDesign, which is sort of unheard of in the newspaper industry. The kings in that arena are CSS, Harris, and Quark. And recently, my department stopped using Word and opted for iWork. It wasn't a big surprise to me since they are short for cash when it comes to software but not hardware. We collaborate just fine.

I used GIMP almost 4 years ago and it was cute. I wouldn't have called it a replacement for anything then, now I am sure things have changed. I agree with you, just letting you know that the point I meant to stress was the guidance, which is what a lot of Open Source software lacks, and why I wouldn't use the GIMP --> PS CS3 comparison for the iWork --> Office one.

I would have used a Lightroom --> Aperture for that instead. To be honest I wouldn't tell anyone to not buy Office and get iWork. To each their own, and I have long since left my Fanboyisms in the past, with the guy that thought Apple hardware was the ****. I agree with the other side of the discussion, iWork lacks many features that Office has, but those features aren't important for a majority of users so iWork becomes an option to look at if you own a Mac.

That's really my main point.

 

[naftalim]

I decided on iWork more because I wanted to have as much pure Apple software on my Mac.

However, if you use your WPor other Office Software for more than just quick documents, be prepared for a learning curve, just for the way things are done differently.

I purchased an iWork 08 Apple Training Series book by Richard Harrington and RHED Pixel so that I can practice and learn with the exercises they have there.

If you don't spend time learning the basics, you will be frustrated, especially if you have been a long time MS Word user.

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Training-iWork-08/dp/0321501853

 

[dukebound85]

Really? What if you don't like the so-called "industry standard?" While you're at being fully standardized, why not use Windows too?

i do at work.....as well as solaris....

but you are missing my point completely. the industry has standards and to be successful you unfortunately need to use those standards.

at home i have a mac. to be able to have some compatibility is nice with work.
just like i have no problem using iwork at home i use a mac at home. hey if iwork as the indsutry standard i would be defending it. buuuut it isnt

i have to use windows at work for certain programs that are windows specific. namely ProEngineer and Solidworks, Fluent, Gambit, as well as good ol' office.

if you dont like the industry standard, be prepared to deal with failure on a more regular basis in obtaining clients and doing the actual work. some of us need macros in excel which iwork simply cant do and the reason why ill stay with the v.x version of office for mac

 

[IJ Reilly]

I won't try to convince anyone that iWork is better than Office hands down. It is better when it comes to graphics and compatibility with Mac OS X.

Neither will I, but in evaluating the two, I would advise people not to be so concerned about compatibility with Word. This often is a much smaller issue than they realize.

As far as winning Pages features are concerned, I think the way it handles templates and styles can't be beat.

 

[dukebound85]

Yeah, they use only one suite of Apps, for the most part, but that one suite is sometimes a rather obscure one. My paper may be switching from Harris to InDesign, which is sort of unheard of in the newspaper industry. The kings in that arena are CSS, Harris, and Quark. And recently, my department stopped using Word and opted for iWork. It wasn't a big surprise to me since they are short for cash when it comes to software but not hardware. We collaborate just fine.

I used GIMP almost 4 years ago and it was cute. I wouldn't have called it a replacement for anything then, now I am sure things have changed. I agree with you, just letting you know that the point I meant to stress was the guidance, which is what a lot of Open Source software lacks, and why I wouldn't use the GIMP --> PS CS3 comparison for the iWork --> Office one.

I would have used a Lightroom --> Aperture for that instead. To be honest I wouldn't tell anyone to not buy Office and get iWork. To each their own, and I have long since left my Fanboyisms in the past, with the guy that thought Apple hardware was the ****. I agree with the other side of the discussion, iWork lacks many features that Office has, but those features aren't important for a majority of users so iWork becomes an option to look at if you own a Mac.

That's really my main point.

i totally agree with you on that

I decided on iWork more because I wanted to have as much pure Apple software on my Mac.

to me that makes no sense just for the sake of having all apple software

Neither will I, but in evaluating the two, I would advise people not to be so concerned about compatibility with Word. This often is a much smaller issue than they realize.

As far as winning Pages features are concerned, I think the way it handles templates and styles can't be beat.

i will say iwork will get better as it matures. i just dont think its there yet. and yea, iwork has the best templates hands down

 

[IJ Reilly]

but you are missing my point completely. the industry has standards and to be successful you unfortunately need to use those standards.

Well I guess my business is a failure, I just didn't realize it until now. Thanks!

Incidentally, if you haven't been told that you're "non-standard" for using a Mac, then you haven't been using one for very long.

 

[naftalim]

I've been using MS Software for 27 years (ok there was a bit of Word Perfect for a while) Part of my decision to go with a Mac at home was to try something new. Its why I don't run Windows on my Mac and don't run MS software either, I don't want the hassle (and cost)

The Mac is my home computer, so I don't really do very complex "Office type" work on it, so iWork is better than what I need.

to me that makes no sense just for the sake of having all apple software[/QUOTE]

 

[IJ Reilly]

i will say iwork will get better as it matures. i just dont think its there yet. and yea, iwork has the best templates hands down

I've been using Pages since v 1.0. Yes, it's getting better, but it's been very useable since the start. I never use the included templates. When I refer to templates, I mean the ability to create custom templates. This is a monster feature with which Word can't begin to compete. If I had to give up this feature alone to go with the so-called "industry standard," I'd be one very unhappy camper. Fortunately, I don't have to.

 

[dukebound85]

Well I guess my business is a failure, I just didn't realize it until now. Thanks!

Incidentally, if you haven't been told that you're "non-standard" for using a Mac, then you haven't been using one for very long.

lol it depends on the buisness right? i cant use alternatives in mine and be successful atm. i dont have your luxury

ive been using a mac exclusively ever since i could use a computer. starting with an apple ll to an imac dv se to an emac to a mb for me personally. family has also had nothing but macs except for one company provided vaio laptop

guess i havent been using macs long at all my bad

 

[IJ Reilly]

lol it depends on the buisness right? i cant use alternatives in mine and be successful atm. i dont have your luxury

ive been using a mac exclusively ever since i could use a computer. starting with an apple ll to an imac dv se to an emac to a mb for me personally. family has also had nothing but macs except for one company provided vaio laptop

guess i havent been using macs long at all my bad

Of course it depends -- but it was you who were making the blanket statement about needing Office for business success, remember?

I honed in on "industry standard" because this is precisely the argument I have heard used against the Mac for 20+ years. I've always thought that calling a commercial product a "standard" was a specious if not a dangerous argument, not to mention, a boil on the backside of progress in general.

 

[dukebound85]

Of course it depends -- but it was you who were making the blanket statement about needing Office for business success, remember?

I honed in on "industry standard" because this is precisely the argument I have heard used against the Mac for 20+ years. I've always thought that calling a commercial product a "standard" was a specious if not a dangerous argument, not to mention, a boil on the backside of progress in general.

so forget office then. do you use any industry standards at all in your buisiness be it PS or Maya or Dreamweaver whatever?

if you didnt have some industry standard would it hurt your business?

now if you dont use any "industry standards" at all then i apologize and more power to you

 

[CmdrLaForge]

but you are missing my point completely. the industry has standards and to be successful you unfortunately need to use those standards.

Standards ? Hmmmm .... If I recall correctly Microsoft tried to get one of their formats approved by a standard body (ISO) but they didn't. As far as I know only OpenOffice has a standard format (called OpenDocument - ODF, ISO/IEC 26300, full name: OASIS Open Document Format for Office Applications).

Its a shame that Apple and Microsoft are not adopting that standard. It would be just great if an inter-exchangable standard would be available and shared by all "Word, Pages, whateverhaveyou, .... " apps.

And again to the original question - I think it is really not black and white and it depends a lot on specific and personal needs. The biggest advantage of iWork is the price.

 

[IJ Reilly]

so forget office then. do you use any industry standards at all in your buisiness be it PS or Maya or Dreamweaver whatever?

if you didnt have some industry standard would it hurt your business?

now if you dont use any "industry standards" at all then i apologize and more power to you

I'm not sure I understand the question. First off, I think it helps to not think of any commercial product as a "standard." They're products, which you either have a use for or you don't. The moment a commercial product becomes a standard (i.e., you must buy it, like it or not), then you might as well have the government regulate it like a public utility, because now you're really talking about a monopoly. I don't see how we can possibly expect any progress if this is the attitude.

 

[dpaanlka]

now if you dont use any "industry standards" at all then i apologize and more power to you

Why do you keep referring to Office as a standard? A large percentage of users doesn't make something a "standard" nor entirely immune to competition or alternative. A large percentage of users doesn't even make something a great product.

I don't recall Microsoft Office having any sort of IEEE approval.

 

[Jack Flash]

Why do you keep referring to Office as a standard? A large percentage of users doesn't make something a "standard" nor entirely immune to competition or alternative. A large percentage of users doesn't even make something a great product.

I don't recall Microsoft Office having any sort of IEEE approval.

Consider than there are vastly more right handed people on earth than left handed people. If you're going to buy a baseball glove and will have to share it, which odds would you favor?

If you're going to buy an office suite and will need to share your documents, what would you rather have?

 

[Eluzion]

I am considering getting a mac. What should I put on it? iWork or Office?

Which one do you guys prefer?

(I did a search, didn't find much)

I prefer iWork 08. I love Keynote for presentations. The pre-built templates are awesome and transition effects are always a nice eye opener. I'm always using Pages as well and love the simplicity of it. At first, I had a hard time using iWork due to being a MS Office user for my entire life so it's hard to break away from the MS way of doing things. I still have XP installed through Boot Camp and VMWare with MS Office 2007, but the only time I ever launch XP is when I'm bored to see if it still works...

 

[dpaanlka]

If you're going to buy an office suite and will need to share your documents, what would you rather have?

Wasn't the original post "which do you prefer" as in, taken individually, for an average user, which would I prefer... the $400 Microsoft Office suite or the $79 iWork suite. Which do I think would be best suited for the OP? I assume he falls into the category of average user since he is asking the question in the first place.

I have yet to run into a single sharing problem using iWork exclusively for over a year, in a University setting where I have to turn in lots of papers and make lots of presentations. I'm confident the average-Joe user would appreciate iWork's ease of use and outstanding graphics abilities and take the minor portability snafus that never occur (but might!) in strike.

Portability is not a reason to sacrifice your creativity and your wallets to Microsoft Office.

 

[Jack Flash]

Wasn't the original post "which do you prefer" as in, taken individually, for an average user, which would I prefer... the $400 Microsoft Office suite or the $79 iWork suite. Which do I think would be best suited for the OP? I assume he falls into the category of average user since he is asking the question in the first place.

I have yet to run into a single sharing problem using iWork exclusively for over a year, in a University setting where I have to turn in lots of papers and make lots of presentations. I'm confident the average-Joe user would appreciate iWork's ease of use and outstanding graphics abilities and take the minor portability snafus that never occur (but might!) in strike.

Portability is not a reason to sacrifice your creativity and your wallets to Microsoft Office.

Ok, Steve Jobs Jr. I honestly don't think iWork is easier to use than Office, but who am I kidding? I got Office 2004 for $20 through my summer job's Microsoft at Home program and iWork '08 for $40 at my bookstore.

I use Word, Excel, and Keynote.

You are lying to yourself if you consider Numbers an adequate spreadsheet program. Anyone in an engineering curriculum should understand that.

 

[dukebound85]

Wasn't the original post "which do you prefer" as in, taken individually, for an average user, which would I prefer... the $400 Microsoft Office suite or the $79 iWork suite. Which do I think would be best suited for the OP? I assume he falls into the category of average user since he is asking the question in the first place.

I have yet to run into a single sharing problem using iWork exclusively for over a year, in a University setting where I have to turn in lots of papers and make lots of presentations. I'm confident the average-Joe user would appreciate iWork's ease of use and outstanding graphics abilities and take the minor portability snafus that never occur (but might!) in strike.

Portability is not a reason to sacrifice your creativity and your wallets to Microsoft Office.

last i checked. for like 150 you get office 2004 AND office 2008 media edition.

im suprised you have not ran into a single exporting problem. happens to me when i try it pretty much to the point i dont trust it. then again i do pretty detailed reports so the formating gets messed up when i have tried to export a few times. since then i will stick with what works and works very well

 

[sublicon]

Pot, meet kettle.

Arsenal is garbage.

You also might want to check your own work before you accuse others of "putting words into your mouth."

Hey, I thought I'd join the party.

 

[gauchogolfer]

Arsenal is garbage.

Thank you for your insightful post. Please continue to enrich my MR browsing experience.

Ok, Steve Jobs Jr. I honestly don't think iWork is easier to use than Office, but who am I kidding? I got Office 2004 for $20 through my summer job's Microsoft at Home program and iWork '08 for $40 at my bookstore.

I use Word, Excel, and Keynote.

You are lying to yourself if you consider Numbers an adequate spreadsheet program. Anyone in an engineering curriculum should understand that.

I'm an engineer who is required to use Excel at work, but I find Numbers to be perfectly adequate for my home needs. I'd say that you are lying to yourself if you think that the average user is in an engineering environment.

 

[dpaanlka]

Ok, Steve Jobs Jr. I honestly don't think iWork is easier to use than Office, but who am I kidding?

Yourself. Styles in iWork alone are like way ahead of MS Office in terms of ease and flexibility. I'll let you look into what styles are.

I got Office 2004 for $20 through my summer job's Microsoft at Home program and iWork '08 for $40 at my bookstore.

Lucky you.

You are lying to yourself if you consider Numbers an adequate spreadsheet program. Anyone in an engineering curriculum should understand that.

Numbers is very adequate for me. I am not in an engineering curriculum.

last i checked. for like 150 you get office 2004 AND office 2008 media edition.

I'm looking at Apple's web site and it says $399 for Office 2004. I just went by that.

Speaking of Office 2008... my that is a curious user interface they've got there.

im suprised you have not ran into a single exporting problem. happens to me when i try it pretty much to the point i dont trust it. then again i do pretty detailed reports so the formating gets messed up when i have tried to export a few times. since then i will stick with what works and works very well

As discussed earlier the solution is to not try and export stuff to other formats. Work on everything in native iWork format, then save as PDF if necessary. I have yet to actually need to export something to some other format. The four or five times I needed to do presentations in front of audiences in the past year or so, the computers I was presenting on had Keynote installed.

You're all recommending Microsoft Office on the basis that everybody is running giant multi-million dollar operations and need to send extremely complex Excel and Word documents to hundreds of people every day and all of them must be able to edit the documents. Sure... I guess in that situation Office is the better choice.

 

[Eluzion]

What a pissing match.

For anyone that is actually debating between Office and iWork, here:

http://www.apple.com/iwork/trial/

30-day trial of iWork 08. Give it a shot and see if it suits your needs. If not, continue using Office. No harm done. But I suggest having an open mind when using iWork if you've been a long term Office user. Don't expect everything to be "like Office". It took me forever to get over not having the little decrease and increase indent button like in MS Word. ;P Once you get the hang of it though, I think you'll find iWork a pleasing experience to use. I won't lie, I've had a few formatting errors when opening heavily altered/customized documents from Word but I hardly deal with those so it's not really an issue for me. Also, I've had a few formatting issues with Powerpoint presentations in Keynote. However, when I give presentations I usually just use my Macbook Pro and run it straight from there.

I hope Apple comes out with some sort of iPhone VGA adapter so we can run Keynote presentations off it. How cool would that be.

 

[IJ Reilly]

Yourself. Styles in iWork alone are like way ahead of MS Office in terms of ease and flexibility. I'll let you look into what styles are.

You've probably heard my rant on this topic before, but I think at most 2% of Word users have even the first clue about styles, probably because this feature is so poorly implemented in Word. I don't know how any word processor could be called the writer's choice by anyone when this basic functionality is effectively missing. Ever since the demise of the late, great WriteNow I've been waiting for a word processor that does styles well. The implementation of styles in Pages isn't quite as good as WriteNow, but it's the best around, and far better than Word. Of course, if you started with the assumption that Word was the absolute gold standard, then you'd never know.

 

[dpaanlka]

Of course, if you started with the assumption that Word was the absolute gold standard, then you'd never know.

Which I think is probably the biggest obstacle for Pages or any other alternative to overcome - consumer perception that Word is somehow a "standard" as we've seen in this very thread.

People may toy around with iWork in the Apple store, or the demos installed on their computer, but without actually giving it a worthy chance, you simply can't appreciate all the great things Pages does so much better than Word. I mean I've used Microsoft Office since version 4... I'm no Word dummy. A plethora of features I'll never use always loses to a refined set of very impressive features I use all the time.

I cry inside when I see Word users manually changing specific style attributes over and over again.