Just bought first mac air .... should i have gotten the pro?

[nursingsteph]

I just purchased my first macbook air 13 inch one of the newer versions im told. I haven never really used mac.. just one i got used from a friend and that was a 13 inch mac pro. hoping i made right decision... i do online schooling mainly and torn if i should purchase ms office or use pages.

 

[GoCubsGo]

I used MS office through college. It was just easier for me.
Your MB Air is a great machine. Don't regret it.

 

[ZBoater]

The MacBook Air is a very capable computer, so unless you have a very specific need that requires the extra capability of the pro, you should be fine. Whether you buy Pages of MS Office depends on your environment. For me, I exchange documents with other co-workers, so using MS Office is a lot more convenient. For a number of reasons I need to run Windows, so I run Windows in a virtual machine with MS Office to take care of the work stuff.

 

[maflynn]

Use office all the way. You're handing in documents that may not export exactly as you had them laid out in pages. I'd go with Word and you don't have to worry about compatibility or loss of formatting.

 

[GGJstudios]

I prefer MS Office for Mac, for maximum compatibility with Windows users. If you don't want MS Office for some reason, there are many alternatives, such as:iWork, NeoOffice, LibreOffice, OpenOffice, Google Docs, etc. Searching the forum will reveal dozens of threads discussing these various alternatives and the pros and cons of each.

 

[ok.Eric]

I think the main benefit of the Pro at this point (since the Air is so powerful now) is that it has a super drive, so if you have a need for DVDs or CDs and burning them, it's a great benefit. But if not, it's almost easier to just go with the Air for the light weightness of it.

Also, if you wanted Retina display, only the Pro has that, so you'd have to go Pro for that.

As far as Pages vs Word (Office), I'd say go with MS Office since that's what 99% of your professors are going to be using and any odd formatting might make them mad. Your school probably even offers Office for free to you.