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http://www.macnn.com/articles/05/01/18/closer.look.at.iwork.debut/

iWork biggest Apple announcement from MWSF?

updated 07:25 am EST, Tue January 18, 2005

Closer look at iWork debut

Apple's new iWork suite may be its from last week's Macworld Expo, according to The Washington Times. "The biggest news from Apple Computer last week might not be the $99 IPod Shuffle or the $499 Mac Mini. The big news might well be a $79 software package that received somewhat less attention: IWork combines Apple's already-sound Keynote presentation software (now called Keynote 2) with a new word processor/document publisher called Pages. Oh, and did I mention the $79 retail price tag for both, 20 percent less than Keynote alone originally cost two years ago?" While the application may not represent a credible threat to Microsoft's Office suite for the Mac, the article notes that iWork may be "good enough" to put some pressure on Microsoft among the extremely budget-conscious.

by MacNN Staff

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Detrius
Professional Poster

Joined: Apr 2001

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01/18, 07:40am | report spam | close Reply |
Of Course

I know I'm going to buy a copy... that and two iPod Shuffles as the budget will eventually permit.

Thain Esh Kelch
Mac Enthusiast

Joined: May 2001

0

01/18, 07:55am | report spam | close Reply |
No....

Pages aint that special. It doesnt have many features, and Word is running around it. When we get a spreadsheet, and Pages reach v3.0, then maybe.

At this point, definately mac mini!

Mibrilane
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Joined: Jan 2005

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01/18, 08:41am | report spam | close Reply |
well, for the home market

Pages is indeed a good thing - it does most word processing that a home user would want (or need) to do and doesn't cost $400. This package is not really a Microsoft Office replacement for business use, but a "low end" word processor with solid iLife integration and then Keynote. $79 is cheap for either app - so it is a good buy even if you don't want (or need) the other app in the package.

Guntis
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Joined: Sep 2004

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01/18, 08:43am | report spam | close Reply |
Keynote is really good!

Keynote 1.0 was good, but was lacking several features which PowerPoint had. Now Kynote 2 has almost all of them, plus so many other features PowerPoint can just dream about! I have ordered iWork and after 3 weeks I'll get it. Happy me!

tdellos
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Joined: Sep 2003

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01/18, 08:46am | report spam | close Reply |
Publisher

I dunno, but it seems to me like Pages fills in a lot of holes in Word that are filled in by Publisher in Office for Windows. I know a lot of people who love Office for Mac but still use a Windows machine or Virtual PC to run Publisher.

I think that Pages will let people do nice business/small organization oriented documents (like newsletters, flyers, etc.) that look great, and are easy to update. If it does these tasks well, Pages will make Publisher unnecessary.

Chris Hutcheson
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Joined: Oct 2000

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01/18, 09:10am | report spam | close Reply |
Keynote

I've been using Keynote since it came out - when I don't have to use Powerpoint - and like it a lot. Simple to build presentations, and they look good. Main area that needs to improve for me would be the ability to create templates - it's a lot easier to do this in Powerpoint.

MacBubba
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Joined: Feb 2000

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01/18, 09:22am | report spam | close Reply |
Spreadsheet?

I would have to agree with the comments on the lack of a spreadsheet application. iWork needs one to be a true productivity suite and it needs to be able to import and export to Excel.

mh0ffmann
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Joined: Dec 2001

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01/18, 09:52am | report spam | close Reply |
Right on...

iWork hits the proverbial sweet spot. Even for HEAVY Office users such as myself, working in a Windows-centric environment, I find myself using Keynote 1.1 more and more, and will undoubtedly move to 2.0 as soon as I get my hands on iWork. Maybe Pages will make me move away from Word as well.

As for Excel, it's unbeatable. I don't want or need an Apple spreadsheet. So long as I can cut and paste info from Excel into/out of iWork, I've got all I need.

automorrow
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Joined: Oct 2000

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01/18, 10:02am | report spam | close Reply |
iFile ...

..to solve the lack of a spreadsheet in iWork , why dont the add a Filemaker "Lite" to the package .. which seems to be a natural

PubGuy
Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: Aug 2002

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01/18, 10:11am | report spam | close Reply |
iWork NOT DONE YET...

Please Note: Steve Jobs said "...Apple is BUILDING a replacement for AppleWorks..." Building means that they are not done. They now have a presenation componet and a word processing/layout component. Speadsheet is rumored to be on the way. As been said before, this is not meant to go head-to-head with Office, it's meant as a quality replacement for AppleWorks when all the components are complete. If it doesn't contain the power features you expect or need that Office has, then I guess you'll have to use Office, OpenOffice or whatever. But, iWork is basically an 80% solution ... satisfying 80% of the user's.

Personally, I will end up using both products. For heavier work that I need to be totally cross-platform compatible, I'll use Office. Howver, for the majority of the stuff I need to do day-to-day, I'll use iWork. I'm sure as time goes by I'll use Office less and less. YMMV.

Roehlstation
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Joined: Aug 2001

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01/18, 10:24am | report spam | close Reply |
KEYNOTE ROCKS

Our company has been using Keynote for client interviews now for the last couple months and our presentations blow the competition out of the water. Now with Keynote 2 we'll be even better.

JeffHarris
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Joined: Oct 1999

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01/18, 10:33am | report spam | close Reply |
No Spreadsheet, No iWork

Without a spreadsheet iWork dont work for me.

I actually like AppleWorks. Coupled with MacLinkPlus I don't need Office, but use it when I MUST. The ability to create a mini-spreadsheet anywhere in AppleWorks is invaluable. I don't want or need Excel and i'd wager that the majority of spreadsheet users don't either.

endian
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Joined: Oct 2000

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01/18, 10:43am | report spam | close Reply |
"IWork", "ILife", etc

"IWork", "ILife", "ITunes", "IMovie"...

Must've used Word to write the article.

chas_m
Moderator

Joined: Aug 2001

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01/18, 12:13pm | report spam | close Reply |
Hit the Nail ...

When Pages was demo'd, a lot of people said they thought Adobe would be hurt by it (it might cut into sales of InDesign). No, the people who will be hurt by Pages is Microsoft (if it's anyone), and even then it doesn't hurt MS much at all -- they don't make Publisher for the Mac (thank heavens!!!).

Pages addresses a very specific need -- people who need more than what Appleworks' word processor/page layout abilities can offer them, easier, but far short of InDesign/Quark (and many hundreds of dollars less).

Up till now, people have been attempting to do things like newsletters, tri-fold brochures and other such "small run" publications in Word -- usually it's a complete nightmare, either because Word just isn't a good layout program or because the "designer" completely lacks imagination, taste or style.

Pages solves both problems, which no other product was really addressing. As for the other half of iWork (Keynote), again I don't think that's going to hurt MS much either, since they don't sell PowerPoint separately (their stupidity IMHO). People who need Office will buy it or both it AND iWork (at least for now), and people who don't need Office but would like to do slideshows will buy iWork.

Genius.

testudo
Forum Regular

Joined: Aug 2001

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01/18, 12:23pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: Right on

As for Excel, it's unbeatable. I don't want or need an Apple spreadsheet. So long as I can cut and paste info from Excel into/out of iWork, I've got all I need.

Well, why even bothering with iWork. If you still need Excel, you're going to have to get office, and thus you already have Word and Powerpoint. Seems silly to say "Hey, I can use this more than Office!" like its an office replacement, only to say you still need Excel.

testudo
Forum Regular

Joined: Aug 2001

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01/18, 12:31pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: iWork NOT DONE

Please Note: Steve Jobs said "...Apple is BUILDING a replacement for AppleWorks..." Building means that they are not done.

Oh man how I hate people claiming this. "Building" doesn't mean squat. Its not like they've even announced a spreadsheet component, so to say "Hey, iWork will be great when its completed" is like saying "Hey, Longhorn will be great when its completed, and they fix all the security holes, and block the spyware and viruses!".

And don't to sell me iWorks now as a replacement, when its not done (unless, Apple, you PROMISE me, in writing, with threat of monetary damages if you renege) that I'll get the rest of the missing software you're supposedly building in a FREE upgrade.

The problem with Apple is (a) you never know how long it will take them to get anything done - h***, its taken like 4 years to get any kind of update to Appleworks), and, more importantly (b) you never know how long the software will keep their interest.

Apple has a huge history of starting projects and then letting them languish. Sherlock 2, for example, is just sitting there. Where's it going? No one knows. h***, you don't even know if there's still going to be a sherlock in Tiger (and I don't want to hear how Dashboard is Sherlock 3, because I don't want 50 widgets floating around so I can do the things sherlock does). Appleworks is another great example. They buy it up, release a decent version 5, then wait several years, come out with a bonehead version 6 (no real substantive changes, mostly dumbing down the toolbars and s******* up the interface) then nothing since then. They start up speech recognition, then let it languish. h***, even Keynote. They released it, then nothing for a LONG time. No word about a possible update. Nothing. I always hesitate buying Apple software because you just don't know whether they're going to decide to keep supporting it or not.

awcopus
Mac Elite

Joined: Nov 2001

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01/18, 12:38pm | report spam | close Reply |
Keynote is worth $79

Pages is a sweet addition, and I'll probably use it instead of MS's bloatware wp, but Keynote is the prize here. I made a presentation with it last year that was, well, pivotal to my business success, and Keynote was critical to that venture. No worries about Apple not supporting the software that JOBS (and every other bigwig at Apple) uses for presentations.

awcopus
Mac Elite

Joined: Nov 2001

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01/18, 12:44pm | report spam | close Reply |
I wonder sometimes...

... about people who clamor for updates to word processor and spreadsheet applications. I'd bet that the vast majority of people would still be getting along perfectly fine with the initial version of Office for X. Hey, hold on, I'm one of those people!

Seriously, what capabilities are people longing for in AppleWorks that weren't there to begin with? What has been holding you back that a new wp would make possible? Of course there are little tweeks here and there that are nice (especially for workgroups tracking changes, for example), but for the most part, the wp application has pretty much stayed the same since MacWrite: Pick a font, start typing, spell check, and output.

jgrubic
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jun 2000

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01/18, 12:53pm | report spam | close Reply |
Hmmm...

I can see Pages as targeting the void left by PageMaker (especially in education).

But without a spreadsheet, I don't see what this package called "iWork" is all about.

I wish they would just come out with a substantially revised AppleWorks 7.

mbryda
Senior User

Joined: Mar 2002

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01/18, 01:03pm | report spam | close Reply |
Don't wander 2 far...

Maybe it's because Apple knows when products are duds.

Sherlock - Cool for all of 2 minutes. I think I've used it once in the past year. I'd imagine most feel the same. Just too easy to pop into Safari and Google it.

Appleworks - It was great in the day - the Apple 2 day. I used it, maybe 2x since I got my Mac. When I had my HD replaced, I didn't even bother reinstalling. It was just poor compared to Office.

Keynote - Don't use it, but you could say the same thing about Office. The latest version of Office was 2k3. It is now 2k5 with no real changes in sight.

Guess I'm one of those that doesn't get a stiffy from an office suite upgrade. Like someone else said - you fire up the app, enter the data and it spits it out. Excel can make some pretty graphs and Word can barely pass as a page layout app.

I saw nothing compelling on Office 2k4 other than Enterouge's preview so I passed. Maybe I'll buy 2k5 or 2k6 so MS doesn't abandon it.

But, they do sell Word, Powerpoint, and Excel separately - check www.microsoft.com/mac

iWork looks OK, but it's not complelling. Maybe I'll play with it next time I'm at the Apple store - Pages looks like what I'm looking for - basic page layout app.

hayesk
Professional Poster

Joined: Sep 1999

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01/18, 01:50pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: I wonder....

I can think of a few things, but Word doesn't do them very well either. Numbering, Indexes, Cross References, Style sheet enforcement, and scripting support, database linking, all in an XML format that is human readable (and thus, programmable)

booga
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Joined: Jan 2005

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01/18, 01:59pm | report spam | close Reply |
hWork

What I see Pages as is something for your kids to write their report in, or write that family or church newsletter or whatnot. If you're in charge of a documentation department, you're probably not going to switch to Pages. (In fact, you're probably in the process of following Adobe Frame to Windows or Solaris.)

As for Keynote, it's great for all ages. :)

(And Watson/Sherlock was the best way I knew of to check movie listings. Now that Apple killed Watson then abandoned Sherlock, there's not nearly as good a way to get that done on a Mac.)

d-film
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2002

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01/18, 04:38pm | report spam | close Reply |
Web Page layout!

One thing that everyone seems to miss is that Pages can also output the page layout as HTML. This will be great for people who don't need complex sites and who want an inexpensive way to create web pages that match their printed materials.

I found this while playing with it at MWSF and even the Apple guy at the booth was surprised to see it.

mjtomlin
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Joined: Oct 1999

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01/18, 05:13pm | report spam | close Reply |
Can't wait

I for one can't wait for Pages. I've been waiting a long time to get an inexpensive PageMaker replacement. Been using the drawing module of Appleworks for page layout... it does work, but its font support really is awful.

LouZer
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Joined: Nov 2000

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01/18, 11:31pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: don't wander too far

Appleworks - It was great in the day - the Apple 2 day. I used it, maybe 2x since I got my Mac. When I had my HD replaced, I didn't even bother reinstalling. It was just poor compared to Office.

Great, but since I don't feel like spending $400 for MS Office, Appleworks is what's left (or one of the crappy 'free' software Office suites, but they all blow chunks).

And the complaints I've read of AW 6.0 reside mostly about bugs and lousy typography (not that it matters much to me, since I use mostly the spreadsheet side of things - another reason iWork isn't for me).

But, they do sell Word, Powerpoint, and Excel separately - check www.microsoft.com/mac

Yes, you can. But at $200+ a module? Seems awfully expensive (although not as bad as it used to be, when it cost $400 for a module, or $500 for the entire suite).

rtamesis
Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: Jan 2000

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01/19, 12:23am | report spam | close Reply |
I want iWork

As soon as I saw it demoed at MacWorld SF, I immediately ordered it at the Apple Store. I do my presentations almost exclusively in Keynote, and Keynote 2's new text animation capabilities and Flash export will already make iWorks a worthwhile investment for me.

Mac-a-Bayan
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Joined: Jul 2004

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01/19, 02:01am | report spam | close Reply |
sp'dsheet+FMaker+iCal

If Apple can merge its database app with its upcoming spreadsheet app and incorporate iCal then we have an new Office suite that is independent and yet somehow, complimentary with MS Office (since M$ is not porting access to MAC).

Mac-a-Bayan
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Joined: Jul 2004

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01/19, 02:15am | report spam | close Reply |
You know

... what would be cool?

If Apple can incorporate to iWorks an app for creative brainstorming and idea management (inspired from Zengobi brainstorming) plus flowcharting (inspired from omnigrraffle) then we have a productivity suit uniquely designed beyond office needs.

Mac-a-Bayan
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Joined: Jul 2004

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01/19, 03:01am | report spam | close Reply |
Missing tools in Pages?

For me, its essential that the magnifying tool(for zooming) and the hand tools (for panning the page )should function the same way in inDesign or P'Maker,in order for an app to qualify as a true desktop publisihing.

I hope Pages has them (if not in the future) because This tools makes navigation in every long document a lot easier. Oftentimes I need to transfer docs from word to pagemaker. These tools become real handy especially when comparing numerous open and "tiled" documents. Otherwise I might as well print them.

testudo
Forum Regular

Joined: Aug 2001

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01/19, 10:02am | report spam | close Reply |
Re: You know

If Apple can incorporate to iWorks an app for creative brainstorming and idea management (inspired from Zengobi brainstorming) plus flowcharting (inspired from omnigrraffle) then we have a productivity suit uniquely designed beyond office needs.

Great! More software Apple can be inspired by, and then raise the ire of so many people on these boards because they've 'stolen' someone else's idea.

Mac-a-Bayan
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2004

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01/19, 08:00pm | report spam | close Reply |
Good point testudo

But Apple can simply buy these app. Apple has done it before like soundjam which became iTunes. Also Adobe bought pageMaker and incorporated its features to inDesign. And ofcourse M$ which bought Presenter which became PowerPoint.

My point is if Apple is really serious in developing its own Productivity suite, then not only does iWork needs to provide an equivalent office app (that would directly match up with M$ office suit) but also apps that are so unique that it would make iWork indispensable even for customers who prefer to stick with office.

The apps I mentioned in my previous post are just an example. But I believe there are other not so popular apps out there that are really essential to everyday work and not yet offered by MS Office.

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iWork biggest Apple announcement from MWSF?

updated 07:25 am EST, Tue January 18, 2005

Closer look at iWork debut

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