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Microsoft Launches Office 365 Subscriptions Alongside Office 2013, But Macs Still Stuck on Office 2011
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This is the problem with the thinking at Microsoft under Ballmer.
Microsoft is a software company. The iPad is a software platform that could be making them millions. iPad/iOS sales could easily surpass Mac sales for Microsoft.
They are keeping Office for tablets for their Surface RT (ARM) tablets.
Office for Surface RT doesn't have even Outlook or any other native email clients.
They keeping it for Surface Pro.
All of this is a big mistake, while an understandable try to leverage Office for selling Windows platform.
But that just makes Office obsolete day by day.
If Microsoft can make Windows RT (which comes with a bundled, so price included, version Office ) work they will make millions more.
Between the two it is a better bet. In the Apple App store it couldn't be "Office". They'd had to debundle the applications. That dilutes much of the leverage that Office (a bundled suite) has. The iOS App store is a "race to the bottom" application space. They could make some money there but it more likely would negatively impact Office pricing elsewhere also. That would be a net loss of millions.
I don't think this is terribly bad in theory. Things like the Skype minutes every month could make it appealing.
That said, the price is just too high. Regular home users don't need a new version of Office enough to pay $100 a year for it.
The biggest problem with Office has always been that it has too many features. The reason they did the whole ribbon redesign for 2007 was that 7/8 of the top 10 requested features were actually already in Office 2003 - people just didn't know how to get to it or use it!
While I liked the original ribbon design, lots of people didn't. They've since borked it out in to something worse, and at the same time gone back to that horrible fascination they have with Neptune-era "Activity Center" panels:
That said, the price is just too high. Regular home users don't need a new version of Office enough to pay $100 a year for it.
The biggest problem with Office has always been that it has too many features. The reason they did the whole ribbon redesign for 2007 was that 7/8 of the top 10 requested features were actually already in Office 2003 - people just didn't know how to get to it or use it!
While I liked the original ribbon design, lots of people didn't. They've since borked it out in to something worse, and at the same time gone back to that horrible fascination they have with Neptune-era "Activity Center" panels:
And this type of post brings me closer to understanding this MR is no longer a place for Apple enthusiasts, just a dumping ground for Apple haters to enjoy.
Office 2011 was an awesome update that made the Mac version of Office decent. I can live without 2013.
The boxes for Office 2011 for Mac say that you can get a free upgrade to the next version.
Therefore, the 2013 edition is coming soon.
Microsoft also sells boxes at Apple now that don't come with CDs.
Therefore, the 2013 edition is coming soon.
Microsoft also sells boxes at Apple now that don't come with CDs.
Pages
I can't complain about Microsoft Windows being a few years behind if Apple is still on Pages '09, Numbers '09, Keynote '09.
Are we really going to go five years without a real upgrade, Apple? Did you reassign all your OSX apps coders, or what?
I can't complain about Microsoft Windows being a few years behind if Apple is still on Pages '09, Numbers '09, Keynote '09.
Are we really going to go five years without a real upgrade, Apple? Did you reassign all your OSX apps coders, or what?
Using Excel as a database is so much easier than using Access as a database. But FileMaker is far easier to use than Excel.
Me-thinks
I wonder if the single payment option is transitory, until they get enough of a customer base, then ditch it?
I think Microsoft is way off pitch here?
I wonder if the single payment option is transitory, until they get enough of a customer base, then ditch it?
I think Microsoft is way off pitch here?
Microsoft would make far more money if customers started buying Surface instead of iPad. More income through hardware and more income through software. Microsoft would be making more than mere 'millions'.
Business customer is the more stable cash cow than consumers. Get them locked in to your own mobile hardware and software ( again ).
Probably, in the longer term. Subscription software is the future. People won't be buying software outright forever. Software will be seen as a [subscription] service - and subscriptions also reduces piracy - makes it more difficult to hack.
LibreOffice is a much much better solution than OpenOffice. LO Ver. 4.0 will be shipping in a few days and they made dramatic leaps ahead of OO.
No, '04 is just '03 but a little better and with more clipart.
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How is the Mac version of Excel worse? They're the same thing.
Also, Pages is better than Word, Keynote MUCH better than PP, and Numbers much worse than Excel. I just use iWork and Excel.
I would disagree with you since combining Numbers and LibreOffice I have been able to do everything that I have ever done with Microsoft and have saved money in the process.
And the question I have here is why is it necessary to purchase Office anymore when there are not only other alternatives, but also just signing up for a free outlook.com account gets you access to SkyDrive and the ability to create a spreadsheet, word document, powerpoint presentation, or use one note? Sure, they're web apps, but you can save them to the cloud or even download them to your computer and open them with other apps. I even create documents in LibreOffice and can upload those to SkyDrive and the formatting is not changed.