Apple takes iWork for iCloud out of beta, adds features
In conjunction with Thursday's iWork app updates for iOS and Mac, Apple has removed the beta tag previously adorning the icons of Pages, Numbers and Keynote in iCloud, while adding a number of new features like the ability to preview documents in mobile Safari and Android.
Prior to the change, each iWork app as displayed on iCloud.com appeared with a yellow "beta" tag on its icon to signify that the product was still in testing. Following today's iWork update, the tags no longer appear on the iCloud landing page or the iWork for iCloud informational webpage.
In addition to the aforementioned mobile preview capability, iWork for iCloud also comes with a commenting interface, document change tracking, version history, word count (for Pages) and support for ten additional languages. On the Web, users can work with Pages '08 and '06 documents, or Numbers '08 spreadsheets.
The last significant change to iWork for iCloud came in February when Apple made the Web-based productivity suite available to all comers, even users without iOS or Mac devices, by opening Apple ID account registrations. Previously, Apple ID logins were limited to owners of Apple hardware.
Prior to the change, each iWork app as displayed on iCloud.com appeared with a yellow "beta" tag on its icon to signify that the product was still in testing. Following today's iWork update, the tags no longer appear on the iCloud landing page or the iWork for iCloud informational webpage.
In addition to the aforementioned mobile preview capability, iWork for iCloud also comes with a commenting interface, document change tracking, version history, word count (for Pages) and support for ten additional languages. On the Web, users can work with Pages '08 and '06 documents, or Numbers '08 spreadsheets.
The last significant change to iWork for iCloud came in February when Apple made the Web-based productivity suite available to all comers, even users without iOS or Mac devices, by opening Apple ID account registrations. Previously, Apple ID logins were limited to owners of Apple hardware.
Comments
Good job Apple.
The next thing Apple has to do is build out their server platform with real honest-to-goodness hardware, in the vein of XServe (although they can come up with a new name for it if they so choose). Also, they should make an offer to buy JAMF Software, so they can bring their Casper Suite in-house, building it into OS X Server, so it can be a real EMM offering. They also need to adopt Active Directory as the default directory service in OS X, as Open Directory is not up to snuff for large enterprise deployments.
This would also aid in helping iWork and iWork for iCloud become real enterprise-grade productivity suites. This is because documents can be hosted both on OS X Server systems, as well as in the cloud, through iCloud.
Apple, please take notice of what I said, and make it happen!
Apple needs to go full-throttle, and beef up iWork and iWork for iCloud, making it feature-comparable to Microsoft Office and other professional productivity suites. There is no reason why this cannot be done. Apple should do this because Microsoft is a lousy partner, they have a long history of "embrace, extend, extinguish" antics, playing nicely at first, and then stabbing their partners in the back. They did this with Microsoft Office for Mac many years ago, and they also did it to IBM, at first collaborating on OS/2, and then shifting the focus midstream to their own Windows NT operating system. These are but two examples.
The next thing Apple has to do is build out their server platform with real honest-to-goodness hardware, in the vein of XServe (although they can come up with a new name for it if they so choose). Also, they should make an offer to buy JAMF Software, so they can bring their Casper Suite in-house, building it into OS X Server, so it can be a real EMM offering. They also need to adopt Active Directory as the default directory service in OS X, as Open Directory is not up to snuff for large enterprise deployments.
This would also aid in helping iWork and iWork for iCloud become real enterprise-grade productivity suites. This is because documents can be hosted both on OS X Server systems, as well as in the cloud, through iCloud.
Apple, please take notice of what I said, and make it happen!
I would rather see products like Casper and Dropbox remain platform agnostic and provide high quality support and feature parity for all platforms. Apple has a history of acquiring established software companies and then killing the PC versions of their software such as Shake and Logic. "Embrace, extend, extinguish"? Do you think killing these applications on the PC will drive those users to the Mac?
And sometimes Apple ends up discontinuing the acquired application even on the Mac (Shake). Filemaker seems to be an exception since it is still being actively supported and updated for both Mac and Windows.
This 90's and their gradient colors for backgrounds...
Did they add mail merge and text box linking?
I think the web apps is the reason why the text box linking feature was dropped from the desktop app. They can't figure out how to make that work in a web-based app, so neither version gets it. Makes sense... web browsers just don't have that level of intelligence.... to flow text out of one arbitrary box and into another one. That one feature is what really tarnished my fan status for Apple.
Yes! Finally!
Next feature that I need is easy to use mail merge in both the desktop and web versions. Thank You.
Go Apple!
I think the web apps is the reason why the text box linking feature was dropped from the desktop app. They can't figure out how to make that work in a web-based app, so neither version gets it. Makes sense... web browsers just don't have that level of intelligence.... to flow text out of one arbitrary box and into another one. That one feature is what really tarnished my fan status for Apple.
Could it be that hard? Maybe. That would go a long way to making it a full-fledged page layout app though.
This 90's and their gradient colors for backgrounds...
It is a little odd isn't it? Well, I like it better than those weird bubbles they were doing.
Haven't tried, but JavaScript should be able to handle that. Main div - hidden and visible spans dynamically loaded into boxes. Maybe it's more complex than I'm thinking...
I would rather see products like Casper and Dropbox remain platform agnostic and provide high quality support and feature parity for all platforms. Apple has a history of acquiring established software companies and then killing the PC versions of their software such as Shake and Logic. "Embrace, extend, extinguish"? Do you think killing these applications on the PC will drive those users to the Mac?
And sometimes Apple ends up discontinuing the acquired application even on the Mac (Shake). Filemaker seems to be an exception since it is still being actively supported and updated for both Mac and Windows.
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FileMaker and iTunes are two examples of applications that Apple writes for platforms (Windows) other than its own, you are absolutely right. So it is very conceivable that Apple, if they buy JAMF Software, could release EMM suites for both OS X/OS X Server and Windows, and possibly others, such as Linux. Especially since a much more business-friendly CEO (Tim Cook) is leading the company now. It would make a lot of sense for Apple to have a real first-party solution in the offering, to make it easier for IT departments to get service and support. As it is now, there are too many players involved, too much confusion, and too much overlap.
So it is very possible for Apple to release platform-agnostic versions of EMM, in addition to building it into their own server product(s). You are looking at Apple as it was years ago, it is a much different, bigger, and business-friendly company now. I just wish that Apple would pick up the pace a bit, it is taking years for this transition to happen, when it could be moving along much more quickly. They keep "quietly" making changes, which leaves their new products and services unknown to many people, limiting their appeal. Apple needs to make splashy announcements when they release new business-class software, such as iWork and iWork for iCloud, as well as OS X Server, and related products.
Yes! Finally!
Next feature that I need is easy to use mail merge in both the desktop and web versions. Thank You.
Go Apple!
For now: How to create mail merge documents with Pages and Numbers
http://www.macworld.com/article/2864355/how-to-create-mail-merge-documents-with-pages-and-numbers.html
What about true pivot tables (Numbers)? What about connecting to external databases?
I worked in IT for 20 years in a variety of positions and departments and only once did I create a pivot table, and never once did I have to connect to an external database. The vast majority of people, more than 80% probably more than 90% have no need for such functionality and can leave features like that to the big suites like Office. It's not a bad thing these apps don't do everything, why should they especially when they are free options that cover 100% of the vast majority of users' needs. For those who need more, it's nice there are options, even on iOS now.
90's colors are just now hitting the market again. Apple is on the mark style wise here.
They keep "quietly" making changes, which leaves their new products and services unknown to many people, limiting their appeal. Apple needs to make splashy announcements when they release new business-class software, such as iWork and iWork for iCloud, as well as OS X Server, and related products.
Here is Apple's "iPhone in Business" page: http://www.apple.com/iphone/business/
Nice customer profiles on the "iPhone in Business" page: http://www.apple.com/iphone/business/in-action/
Nice IT resources on the "iPhone in Business" page: http://www.apple.com/iphone/business/it/
Now let's see what resources are available on the "Mac in Business" page: http://www.apple.com/business/mac/
It has a Buy button. Seriously?
I would rather see products like Casper and Dropbox remain platform agnostic and provide high quality support and feature parity for all platforms. Apple has a history of acquiring established software companies and then killing the PC versions of their software such as Shake and Logic. "Embrace, extend, extinguish"? Do you think killing these applications on the PC will drive those users to the Mac?
In the case of Logic: Oh yes, did it ever. Especially when they bundled in everything they had and the kitchen sink and dropped the price from ~5000€ down to 1000€, and then 700€, then 450€, and now 200€.
Logic Pro X right now is cheaper than JUST the Alchemy synth that Apple bought earlier this year, killed for PC, and now includes for free in the Logic package (and, FWIW, in MainStage — which is just 30€!!!).
I would rather see products like Casper and Dropbox remain platform agnostic and provide high quality support and feature parity for all platforms. Apple has a history of acquiring established software companies and then killing the PC versions of their software such as Shake and Logic. "Embrace, extend, extinguish"? Do you think killing these applications on the PC will drive those users to the Mac?
And sometimes Apple ends up discontinuing the acquired application even on the Mac (Shake). Filemaker seems to be an exception since it is still being actively supported and updated for both Mac and Windows.
With the trend toward web based productivity suites you can run iWork, Office or Google docs from any platform including Linux.
"Free" does not mean worthless. Linux is free, yet it powers a sizable proportion of the Internet, the daddy of all networks (a big task). OS X and iOS are free, and they also are very capable systems. iWork is free, yet it can and should be developed into a killer office suite, and should even include FileMaker, since that is also part of the Apple family, and Microsoft includes Access, their own database client, with Office. Apple has the $$$ to devote resources toward developing iWork and iWork for iCloud into serious contenders in the office productivity space, and just because you don't use PivotTables, doesn't mean that they are not useful to many others. PivotTables are one example of a feature that should be added to the suite, and there are many others that can be added as well. iWork is not a toy, and should not be treated as such.