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Microsoft Reportedly Considering iPad Version of Office

Microsoft is foremost a software company, so they will do anything to increase marketshare for them; Apple foremost is a hardware company, just one who also makes the software for their hardware as well. It's win-win for both companies.
 
protip: Bill Gates is not the CEO of MS and hasn't been for a very long time now. BG has nothing with MS releasing Office for the iPad.
 
HERE is a campus-wide purchase for our University. PowerPoint on iPad is a must for presentations. Yes, the MacBook Air is too heavy and too large.
 
printing architecture?

Will Apple ever develop a (bluetooth) printing architecture for the iPhone/iPad? If they do, they're well on their way to replacing the PC/Mac for most casual users. Imagine using an iPhone with a (wireless) keyboard and large external monitor. That, or some other small device, is in our future...

Edited to ask if anyone knows how many years the mobile processors are behind their desktop cousins? I remember a chart showing that the "average" PC has always been about 20 years behind the fastest super computer on the market. I'd guess about 5-7 years.
 
Won't help sales of iPad IMO. The iPad is a media consumption device, not a productivity device.
 
This would be good, but without a stylus/handwriting recognition you couldn't do real work. Virtual keyboards are OK for light stuff but would be torture for a long document. I would also not be able to switch back and forth between my open document and an electronic dictionary, as I do all the time, since there's no multitasking. So I guess Office would not be the killer app to get me to buy an iPad.

Also, can you imagine how long it would take to download Office from iTunes? Man, that would suck. Doable, but super sucky.
 
Remember what happened last time Microsoft made productivity software for Apple's brand new computer / UI (the Macintosh)?
I believe they rolled their own new UI to compete (Windows).

What do you suppose they are really up to in the wake of all their past failures with tablet OS's?
 
LagunaSol said:
Pages is probably a more complete program than Word for 90% of users' needs.

I rarely find myself missing the bajillion-and-one features of Word when I'm using Pages.
Click to expand...

+1

word and excel are a jumbled mess - most users just want to write letters or tot up columns of figures.

That's not to say iwork won't do the complex stuff - but it keeps the pro tools out of the way in a drawer - and doesn't leave then all over the workbench confusing the issue.
 
Glenny2lappies said:
Excellent. It will be great to see some competition for Apple -- and will be good for Microsoft to get exposure on the Next Big Thing.

I'm convinced that the iPad represents the future. I can't wait to get hold of mine to use on the daily train commute. Just the ticket for reading, lightweight writing, listening, browsing and emailing.
Click to expand...

I fail to see how this is considered competition. If Office helps more people buy the iPad then it's a win for Apple. iWork won't be threatened at all. I'll bet MS Office for the iPad won't be as good as iWork and most likely it will be more expensive. Either way, Apple wins.
 
Marx55 said:
PowerPoint on iPad is a must for presentations.
Click to expand...

Tried Keynote? it opens and saves ppt files, but make presentations that are good enough for even the most discerning customers...

Macbook%20Ballmer%20GI.jpg
 
Slight irony here. One of things I plan to do with my iPad (when I get it) is review documents when travelling. I was concerned that I wouldnt be able to open .docx and .xlsx on the iPad.

Thankfully that concern is now addressed. I had also been considering upgrading to Office 2008 for the same reason and now see that I can use iWork to open my work files (PCs in the office, Macs at home) so by announcing that MS will release Office for iPad I actually wont have to buy other MS products as I am now more informed than I was...

And talking about misinformation - could all the MS haters stop talking about the paperclip it is about as relevant as complaining that DOS is only in B+W - move on people...
 
Marx55 said:
HERE is a campus-wide purchase for our University. PowerPoint on iPad is a must for presentations. Yes, the MacBook Air is too heavy and too large.
Click to expand...

Is that really going to look good, hooked up to your projectors? An iPod can't even do SVGA, 800x600, which is the lowest resolution for a projector, so I doubt an iPad will. It uses a standard iPod connector, after all. Of course, Apple could have made it a real computer with ports instead of an oversized iPod Touch, but noooooo....
 
MacTheSpoon said:
Is that really going to look good, hooked up to your projectors? An iPod can't even do SVGA, 800x600, which is the lowest resolution for a projector, so I doubt an iPad will. It uses a standard iPod connector, after all. Of course, Apple could have made it a real computer with ports instead of an oversized iPod Touch, but noooooo....
Click to expand...
Is it the connector or the iPod that limits the resolution? Given that the iPad has a native 1024X768 I would have thought it could output that.
 
MacTheSpoon said:
Is that really going to look good, hooked up to your projectors? An iPod can't even do SVGA, 800x600, which is the lowest resolution for a projector, so I doubt an iPad will. It uses a standard iPod connector, after all. Of course, Apple could have made it a real computer with ports instead of an oversized iPod Touch, but noooooo....
Click to expand...
Here let me answer that for you since you seem incapable of googling it yourself.
http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/
TV and video

  • Support for 1024 by 768 pixels with Dock Connector to VGA Adapter; 576p and 480p with Apple Component AV Cable; 576i and 480i with Apple Composite AV Cable
Click to expand...
:rolleyes:
 
VenusianSky said:
Complicated for whom?

"...the relationship between the Mac development team at Microsoft and Apple is a great relationship. It’s one of our best developer relationships."
- Steve Jobs, D5 Conference 2007
Click to expand...

Uh huh...OTOH, wasn't there something about a lawsuit, Apple v. Microsoft...? In the 90's. "Look and feel"...ring any bells?

From the other side, Bill Gates has been fairly moderate, but Steve Ballmer has been less temperate in expressing his opinion of Apple....

Steve Ballmer said:
"My children - in many dimensions they're as poorly behaved as many other children, but at least on this dimension I've got my kids brainwashed: You don't use Google, and you don't use an iPod."

"We've had DRM in Windows for years. The most common format of music on an iPod is "stolen"."

"There's no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. No chance."
Click to expand...

Perhaps you haven't been following Microsoft over the years, Steve Balmer in particular. Like I said...complicated.
 
Marx55 said:
HERE is a campus-wide purchase for our University. PowerPoint on iPad is a must for presentations. Yes, the MacBook Air is too heavy and too large.
Click to expand...

And Keynote isn't suitable for your presentations...why exactly?

aristotle said:
Here let me answer that for you since you seem incapable of googling it yourself.
http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/
Click to expand...

Pwned. :D

MacAgnostic said:
Remember what happened last time Microsoft made productivity software for Apple's brand new computer / UI (the Macintosh)?
I believe they rolled their own new UI to compete (Windows).
Click to expand...

I wonder if Microsoft will ask to "borrow" some iPads for awhile so they can "work on some iPad Office software" because "they really want to support Apple's innovative new platform."

You know, just like they did with the original Mac.
 
rolphi said:
I think this is just another distinct example of the vast failure of imagination of tech-minded people, whom I would have expected more from.

No business besides health care? Really? You can't think of ANY business applications?

The number of active U.S. corporations is nearing 5 million, and they account for over $17 trillion in annual revenue. You're sure none of those 5 million in the U.S. alone can think of a use for this?

In 2008, there were 29.6 million businesses in the U.S., according to Office of Advocacy estimates, with approximately 600,000 new ones opening up each year. You are saying that none of these will find a use for the iPad?

And that's just in the U.S. Sheesh.
Click to expand...

And I laugh at your naivety.

People like you are the ones who predicted flying cars in 2000, you probably thought the Segway would also replace all pedestrians as well, e.g. This isn't the industrial revolution or invention of the wheel here. Times have changed and reality is far different from concept. People like you say "oh this will change the world" but then reality sets in. Who's going to cover training employees with the iPad? IT costs? Security? Insurance? Everybody already knows how to use a laptop and the iPad is hardly the device to make everybody drop and run to replace the laptop.
 
ericinboston said:
What business is going buy an iPad?! The iPad is clearly advertised and aimed at games, videos, ebooks, and web surfing. Sure, there will likely be some "productivity" apps available for it but no business is going to give out iPads to its employees for work use.
Click to expand...

That may be true (at least for the foreseeable future), however I can think of many ways to incorporate the iPad into my work. Just today I had to do an asset inventory at a school, and I thought how nice it would be to be able to carry around the iPad while entering the data. Instead of having to lug around a laptop and holding it in one hand while I try and type with the other, standing in all sorts of contorted poses. Not to mention the 2.5 hour battery.

I think iWork is going to be great - but it sucks having to import and export word files. Being able to work directly in office without worrying about compatibility issues.
 
stridemat said:
Good point how can Microsoft compete with the $10 price tag? ($30 total for all three)
Click to expand...

Easy. All they have to do is promise full doc/docx/xls compatibility, including preserving anything that isn't supported on the iPad and keep support for annotations and other important enterprise features. iWork is nowhere near 100% compatible with office documents, and not powerful enough (other than keynote) for many applications.
 
Journojulz said:
Tried Keynote? it opens and saves ppt files, but make presentations that are good enough for even the most discerning customers...

Macbook%20Ballmer%20GI.jpg
Click to expand...
That may be, but I know lots of people who use ppt, and have absolutely no interest in learning a new program. Some have iPhones, etc. A couple of them, when I asked what they thought about the iPad, and (without my prompting) said: No, I use Powerpoint. That's the first thing that popped into their head when you mentioned the iPad. So my gut feeling is that Powerpoint, more than any of their other Office products, would be a huge seller. Even if it's expensive, but depending on how slick it is to use.

Still, I'm shocked at this. I would be even more shocked if MS really does have Office for iPad. But I guess it depends on how many iPads they sell.
 
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