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MathType and Office 2008

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macrumors 65816
Original poster
Nov 30, 2003
1,387
28
Rome
I was just about to order Office 2008 (in advance of getting a new MBP), when I stumbled upon this.

I can't believe it! MathType isn't compatible with Office 2008! (And it doesn't sound like the forthcoming MathType 6.0 for Mac will be able to restore all of the former functionality.)

Argh! I'd much rather be using LaTeX, but collaboration@work requires that I use Word...

Guess I'll be using Office v.X, um, ... forever? :mad:

Oh well, I'm still miles ahead of most of my coworkers in terms of updated software... :D
 
There is a certain amount of crap in Design Science's explanation. Word 2008 uses Equation Editor, a cut-down version of MathType. Equations created using EE in either Word 2004 or Word 2008 can be moved across versions without significant issue.

I assume that you have your reasons for paying the extra money to use EE's big brother. Until MathType 6.0 is released, you should be able to use EE in Word 2008 with minor inconvenience.
 
MisterMe said:
There is a certain amount of crap in Design Science's explanation. Word 2008 uses Equation Editor, a cut-down version of MathType. Equations created using EE in either Word 2004 or Word 2008 can be moved across versions without significant issue.

I assume that you have your reasons for paying the extra money to use EE's big brother. Until MathType 6.0 is released, you should be able to use EE in Word 2008 with minor inconvenience.
Click to expand...

I know someone who needs MathType and bought Office 2008. he is extremely unhappy with the current situation. Many of the Mathtype equations are even not recognized in the Equation Editor, but seen as pictures. M$ should restore VBA compatibility!
 
Also, didnt 2007 (PC Version) get a complete re-write of the built in equation editor? How come they show no love for the Mac version?

If they'd beefed up Office 08 as far as scientific writing goes, then I could've been convinced. All it would need would be a competent bibliography management thing and a more sensible equation editor that could render things in a half-decent manner.

But there you go, I'm sticking with LaTeX. Maybe MS will get it right next time.
 
irbdavid said:
If they'd beefed up Office 08 as far as scientific writing goes, then I could've been convinced. All it would need would be a competent bibliography management thing and a more sensible equation editor that could render things in a half-decent manner.

But there you go, I'm sticking with LaTeX. Maybe MS will get it right next time.
Click to expand...

Yeah, LaTeX and BibTeX (via TeXShop and BibDesk, in my case) is a great combination. Unfortunately, convincing the rest of the world to adopt these tools is a bit tricky, which is where collaboration typically requires an alternative.

MisterMe said:
There is a certain amount of crap in Design Science's explanation. Word 2008 uses Equation Editor, a cut-down version of MathType. Equations created using EE in either Word 2004 or Word 2008 can be moved across versions without significant issue.

I assume that you have your reasons for paying the extra money to use EE's big brother. Until MathType 6.0 is released, you should be able to use EE in Word 2008 with minor inconvenience.
Click to expand...

There are significant limitations to Equation Editor, most importantly, the inability to edit MathType equations! (Again, the difficulties of collaboration rear their ugly head. ;))

Other features certainly should have (but sadly haven't) found their way into Equation Editor by now; surely it doesn't require a lot of coding to change the font colour of a variable?!

MathType does have some really nice features though, especially the Mac version. Compare, for example, the image output you get when exporting as a .pict compared to exporting as a .gif (which is as good as it gets on the PC side). Ugh.
 
MathType and Office 2008

Since several people mentioned wanting to work with TeX or LaTeX, you might be interested to know that MathType 6.0 for Mac will allow you to enter TeX or LaTeX in the MathType window in any template slot. This will allow you to essentially define equations in Word or PowerPoint by typing TeX. This is a feature that can be seen in the Windows version which is already shipping.

I hope everyone complains to Microsoft over the lack of VBA support in Office 2008. It really prevents us from providing the same level of functionality as our Windows version. I suppose this was their intention all along -- to try to drive Mac users to Windows.

Paul Topping
Design Science, Inc.
Makers of MathType
 
PaulTopping said:
Since several people mentioned wanting to work with TeX or LaTeX, you might be interested to know that MathType 6.0 for Mac will allow you to enter TeX or LaTeX in the MathType window in any template slot. This will allow you to essentially define equations in Word or PowerPoint by typing TeX. This is a feature that can be seen in the Windows version which is already shipping.

I hope everyone complains to Microsoft over the lack of VBA support in Office 2008. It really prevents us from providing the same level of functionality as our Windows version. I suppose this was their intention all along -- to try to drive Mac users to Windows.

Paul Topping
Design Science, Inc.
Makers of MathType
Click to expand...

Paul,

I cannot even get MathType to recognize the equations from word 2008.
What am I doing wrong? Should I buy word 2007?

Help please?

Michael
 
thamby said:
Paul,

I cannot even get MathType to recognize the equations from word 2008.
What am I doing wrong? Should I buy word 2007?

Help please?

Michael
Click to expand...

Was it a docx file created on a PC? It's a known issue (I don't know whose fault this is) that equations created in docx on a PC can't be edited on a Mac.

Useful, huh? :rolleyes:
 
mathtype 6 on word 2008 on mac

I was having problems in the resolution of the fractions I introduced using equation editor on word 2008 on my mac. I downloaded the free 30 day version of mathtype 6 thinking that it will solve the graphic problem. But when I save the file, it still gives me a problem. Does anybody know how to resolve this?
 
Check if there is an update available to Word via Help > Check for Updates. I've seen similar behavior with the original release of Microsoft Word 2008, which is usually resolved by updating to the latest version. After you've updated Word, resave your document and check if the problem persists.

Jamie Gutierrez
Technical Support
Design Science, Inc.
Makers of MathType
 
Thank you

I tried what you suggested and it worked. The graphics don't lose their resolution. Thank you again.
 
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