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Microsoft Bashes Apple's iWork Software, New iPads

Ohh myyyy M$FT

The hardware on Surface is fine, it is content that M$FT is missing and right now Apple is the leader on content. Without content, your device is a brick that has colorful blocks. And I am not talking about Angry Birds; I am talking about those specific, unique apps that developers will make for YOUR device that makes people want to buy it.

There was a book published AGES ago about programming games and the first page is printed ( and printed alone ) ... Game Rule #1, always code for the largest install base regardless of the hardware.

M$FT scored in the late 80s and 90s with that, now with the iPod, turned to iPhone, turned to iPad ... iOS is now that install base.

M$FT should concentrate on making their OS more stable ( hence why i run windows on VMs on a mac ).

on a side note ... Windows 8 is actually not-that-bad ( if you get rid of metro - which i have managed to beat down about 98% removed ) ...
 
paul4339 said:
Very true, serious enterprises will stick with Office 2013. But Shaw is referring to Surface RT, which is not marketed to the enterprise.

Basically it sounds like he's saying Apple's iWork is good for home users that want to have fun and do light work, but Office 2013 is for no nonsense serious use - so we'll package with our home tablet anyway!

It feels like Apple has created a "work" product more suited towards it's intended audience in this case. It can still get the job done, but it's not overly burdensome that would scare away it's prime audience.
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I think the miscalculation that MS is making is that they think people love their products, when in fact their users are chomping at the bit for an alternative. I think we're seeing the slow steady decline of Windows already, and I think the fall of Office is going to be soon and decisive. Google Docs is starting to gain currency in the cloud and iWork is gaining penetration on mobile platforms-- I wonder if a native Windows version of iWork would help to accelerate the process.

I don't use Pages or Keynote because they're cheap, I use them because I'm *much* more productive with them in a business setting. Most of the company still uses Office because there aren't any real alternatives in Windows land, so I'll export to other formats when I need to share across platforms.

Last time I had to work within Office and deal with that freaking ribbon I was not pleasant to be around. There are some tweaks I'd like to see in Pages, sure, and Numbers was a mess (I hope it's faster now), but Office is a case study for why focus groups make lousy designers.
 
Semester said:
I got to say he's right on some remarks. Surface certainly is better for productivity. Apple definitely should address the more professional market with a tablet that kind of molds the iPad and macbook. Sort of like what Microsoft did.

The competition among tablets meant for consuming content is getting extremely rough with Google and Amazon bringing out tablets as loss-leaders. That's really hard to compete with in the long run. Sure, their products might not be on par with Apple's, but they certainly have the capital and business model to make them almost as good. But at a lower price.
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The PC industry would disagree with this. The same dynamic is true there yet Apple is the biggest PC seller and the most profitable PC seller.
 
phillipduran said:
iPad to Surface is not the correct items to compare.
The Macbook Air is the Surface competitor.

He should redo his powerpoint.
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Spot on! I don't understand why he nor the trolls on here get this?
IF the surface is such a great product, why aren't the windows lovers buying it?
 
Analog Kid said:
I think the miscalculation that MS is making is that they think people love their products, when in fact their users are chomping at the bit for an alternative. I think we're seeing the slow steady decline of Windows already, and I think the fall of Office is going to be soon and decisive. Google Docs is starting to gain currency in the cloud and iWork is gaining penetration on mobile platforms-- I wonder if a native Windows version of iWork would help to accelerate the process.

I don't use Pages or Keynote because they're cheap, I use them because I'm *much* more productive with them in a business setting. Most of the company still uses Office because there aren't any real alternatives in Windows land, so I'll export to other formats when I need to share across platforms.

Last time I had to work within Office and deal with that freaking ribbon I was not pleasant to be around. There are some tweaks I'd like to see in Pages, sure, and Numbers was a mess (I hope it's faster now), but Office is a case study for why focus groups make lousy designers.
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I agree. I'm an Office user... I use it because I must use it (it's the gold standard in business) but not because I like to use it.

.
 
Document creation is possible on both the iPhone and the iPad. I do a lot of writing on both. But neither Apple or Microsoft have created the proper tools for creative writing on these devices. So far UX Write and Quick Office have done the best job of creating these tools.
 
In situations like these... I prefer to let the facts do the talking. Let's review the following article together:

07-30-2013
MICROSOFT SURFACE SALES DISASTER
Microsoft spent more in a single year advertising the Windows 8 and Surface launches than it took in from Surface sales that same year.

And remember, none of this was even spread over an entire calendar year. Microsoft's fiscal 2013 ended on June 30. It launched Windows 8, Windows RT, and Surface RT on October 26, 2012. The Surface Pro launch came later, in February. But whichever way you slice it, Microsoft managed to mow through an $898m marketing budget in just eight calendar months – and consumers still didn't take the bait.

It's cruel to compare the struggling Surface to Apple's iPad line, but the numbers don't lie. Apple sold 57 million iPads in the same period, meaning it could have sold them for just $15 apiece and still matched Microsoft's tablet revenue figure.

It's enough to humble even the ordinarily bullish Steve Ballmer. At a recent "rally the troops" event at the Redmond campus, Ballmer reportedly confessed, "We built a few more devices than we could sell," and "We're not selling as many Windows devices as we want to."
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So why couldn't they name anything related to why the surface is better for productivity in the rant? Sorry, but slightly more cloud storage space or other minor specs do not increase productivity. I don't hear any ranting coming from Apple execs.
 
Arndroid said:
The PC industry would disagree with this. The same dynamic is true there yet Apple is the biggest PC seller and the most profitable PC seller.
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There is one key difference. In the PC industry no one is using their hardware as a loss-leader. Which is what Amazon and Google is doing in tablets which is why they can undercut Apple while still spending a lot of R&D on the products. They simply make their money elsewhere. Dell, HP, Sony and other PC makers still primarily make their money when someone buys their hardware.
 
Yes. That's true. In my Windows time, I did work a lot and I was productive. Unfortunately it was mostly about finding workarounds for problems with the OS and other Windows software.
 
Oh how the time has changed from 1999. Microsoft was a giant above the clouds while apple was circling the drain. They clawed their way up with innovation and staying way ahead of the game with itunes, ipods iphone then ipads. Electrigageting the world with new products into the future. What will it be next?
 
fourthtunz said:
Spot on! I don't understand why he nor the trolls on here get this?
IF the surface is such a great product, why aren't the windows lovers buying it?
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It is too expensive for typical non-enterprise Windows lovers. Most of them run ancient copies of Windows or the stripped down OEM version because they don't want to pay for updates.

Although honestly, who does productivity on a tablet? It is used in the enterprise as digital paper, not as traditional productivity apps other then very minor edits. Enterprise customers will by a Mac or PC for traditional productivity apps and an iPad for everything else. Apple has the right idea to keep these separate products and not try to create some sort of fusion between them. They may get some common features where it makes sense. Mac's may even run the iOS operating system one day. However unlike their confused competitors trying to make a hybrid product, Apple will probably always keep the primary functions of their two computer products separate.
 
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yellowtruck said:
Oh how the time has changed from 1999. Microsoft was a giant above the clouds while apple was circling the drain. They clawed their way up with innovation and staying way ahead of the game with itunes, ipods iphone then ipads. Electrigageting the world with new products into the future. What will it be next?
Click to expand...

I don't know, but I think there's a really good chance it's not an Apple product.
 
The problem with Microsoft Surface is that it is very expensive for the version which runs the FULL version of Windows 8. My father wanted to buy one because he wanted a tablet that could run Windows but when we went to the store we found out that the Microsoft Surface version that actually runs Windows 8 (NOT RT) is $899. He decided that is way too much and now he is considering a Macbook Air.
 
I hate microsoft office. Since ever. When I was on PC. When i switched to Mac.

Everybody bitches about it anyway. It's not fast. It's bloated. The wretched ribbon made everything worse. **** key commands. **** menus. Lets make giant icons for idiots, despite the fact that 99% of the user base is old well-versed users.

So much about productivity and "knowing what users want".
 
Instead of delivering Office for iPad during the first 100 million units of iPads life, they allowed people to find alternatives making office irrelevant going forward

You get what you deserve MS

Go Zune !

:D
 
zedsdead said:
Not a fan of the surface at all, but many features of Pages was destroyed in this update. Not ready for professional use like it used to be (seems like the FCP X thing all over again).
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I switched from FCP7 to FCP X... granted I was never a pro user on FCP7. I cut together interviews. But FCP X is a hell lot more powerful once you get used to the simplified navigation. But once you've got it down FCP X is downright pleasant to work with.

My only problem with it is that all the great features/plug-ins need to be paid for.
 
Squilly said:
To be fair, I am having a hard time deciding between the Surface Pro 2 and iPad (disregarding price). One runs a full fledged OS while the other is meant to be a mobile operating system. I want the best of both worlds while still having the ability to game a little bit and get productive with my tablet. Getting to be an increasingly difficult decision for me as the best of both worlds isn't here yet. iPad is really tempting with T-Mobile's free 4G but semi-lacking OS while the Surface is really tempting because of it's full-fledged OS but awful battery life and bulkiness.
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Same decision dilemma for me...decided on a windows tablet. Btw, none of the windows devices have battery issues this time round.
 
mudman2 said:
Instead of delivering Office for iPad during the first 100 million units of iPads life, they allowed people to find alternatives making office irrelevant going forward

You get what you deserve MS

Go Zune !

:D
Click to expand...

Office will dominate for the foreseeable future with or without the iPad. Business is dominated by it.
 
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