Apple updates iWork, iMovie for iOS apps with trackpad and mouse support for iPad

Posted:
in iOS edited August 2020
After updating its iWork suite of apps for Mac, Apple on Tuesday pushed out refreshed versions of iWork and iMovie for iOS that take advantage of iPad's new support for trackpad and mouse cursor control.

iWork


Apple's iWork suite -- Pages, Numbers and Keynote -- nets a number of enhancements with today's update, but owners of current iPads running iPadOS 13.4 will ostensibly benefit the most from new trackpad and mouse support.

All three apps gain iCloud Drive folder sharing for fast and easy collaboration on group projects, a hold-and-drag gesture for selecting multiple objects, drop cap insertion, and an option to include comments in prints and PDF exports. Numbers and Keynote also see the addition of offline editing tools that allow users to edit shared documents and automatically upload those changes once reconnected to the internet.

Other features include:

Pages release notes
  • Select from a variety of gorgeous new templates to help you get started.
  • Apply a color, gradient, or image to the background of any document.
  • Easily access recently used templates in a redesigned template chooser.
  • Edit shared documents while offline and your changes will upload when you're back online. Requires iPadOS or iOS 13 or later.
  • Enhance your documents with a variety of new, editable shapes.
Numbers release notes
  • Create spreadsheets with more rows and columns than ever before.
  • Apply a color to the background of a sheet.
  • Easily access your recently used templates in a redesigned template chooser.
  • Add a drop cap to text in a shape.
  • Enhance your spreadsheets with a variety of new, editable shapes.
Keynote release notes
  • Select from a variety of gorgeous new themes to help you get started.
  • Easily access your recently used themes in a redesigned theme chooser.
  • Enhance your presentations with a variety of new, editable shapes.
  • New "Keyboard" text build in and build out animation.
The iWork suite is free to download from the App Store, with Pages coming in at 526MB, Numbers at 511.6MB and Keynote at 612.3MB.

Apple on Tuesday also issued a batch update for its iWork suite of apps for Mac, delivering support for iCloud Drive folder sharing.

iMovie


Apple's iMovie version 2.2.9 delivers a host of new features and enhancements.

The latest iteration of Apple's consumer video making software incorporates iPadOS 13.4's new trackpad- and mouse-based cursor control. In addition to bluetooth devices and keyboard cases from Logitech and Brydge, the update enables future integration with Apple's forthcoming Magic Keyboard.

With today's release, users can tap into keyboard shortcuts to toggle between five inspector modes -- Action, Speed adjustments, Volume, Titles and Filters -- when a clip is selected. Shortcuts can also be assigned to rotate video 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise, Apple said in release notes supplied with iMovie.

Other improvements include a "Download All" button in the soundtracks list that, when tapped, downloads all bundled soundtracks at once. The app also gains support for PNG, GIF, TIFF and BMP files, which can be inserted directly into a movie's timeline.

Today's update comes with the usual unnamed performance and stability improvements.

Apple's iMovie version 2.2.9 is a free 619.3MB download from the App Store.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    seanismorrisseanismorris Posts: 1,624member
    The lines are blurring between laptop and tablet.
    davenMisterKit
  • Reply 2 of 11
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
  • Reply 3 of 11
    sphericspheric Posts: 2,544member
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
    Really? „If accessing a new API requires updated apps, you know they blew it“? 

    For thirty years, I thought this was one of the fundamentals of how these komputar-doohickeys worked. 

    And now you’re telling me there’s some other majick they could have invoked all this time?
    razorpitStrangeDayschiawatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 11
    razorpitrazorpit Posts: 1,796member
    spheric said:
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
    Really? „If accessing a new API requires updated apps, you know they blew it“? 

    For thirty years, I thought this was one of the fundamentals of how these komputar-doohickeys worked. 

    And now you’re telling me there’s some other majick they could have invoked all this time?
    LOL, I'm going to go unpack my Commodore Vic 20. I'm guessing it should have mouse control by now right?  ;)
    edited April 2020 watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 11
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,247member
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
    Nonsense. This is how software development works. What do you expect?
    dewme
  • Reply 6 of 11
    jabohnjabohn Posts: 582member
    I wonder when they will update iMovie for Mac? It doesn't even support dark mode yet. You can't do vertical movies shot on and iPhone either without black bars on the left and right (unless you rotate the movie to landscape, export it, then flip it in Quicktime).
  • Reply 7 of 11
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,328member
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.


    Crazy talk. Even Steve's resurrection would not make a difference in this case. If you've ever written any GUI application software on any GUI-based modern software operating system or front-end that is event driven, including all versions of Windows, macOS, Linux, and various shells in the Unix world it would be very clear to you that all GUI applications must subscribe to events from system level features, like cursor movements, mouse/trackpad clicks, mouse hovering, selection rectangles, etc., to contextualize the application software to these system events.

    If you looked at the implementation of mouse/trackpad support in iOS that was shown in recent AppleInsider articles you'd see that the shape and type of on-screen cursor changes based on where the mouse pointer is placed or hovering above application software features like edit boxes, buttons, windows, window titles, etc. How the heck do you think the application software knows where the mouse/trackpad pointer is hovering if the application software has no notion of a mouse pointer? How the heck do you think the application software can convey to the system level service to change the type of cursor displayed based on features in the application software? To make these GUI applications work in an intelligent way with a mouse/trackpad pointer (and especially hovering behaviors) rather than simply acting like a finger replacement, there absolutely has to be a highly orchestrated interaction between the system level feature and the application software that takes advantage of the system level features.

    Yeah, it is sad that Steve is no longer amongst us, but the mechanisms that are required to make mouse/trackpad support work so wonderfully in Apple's operating systems are part of the beauty that Steve helped instill in them. 
    StrangeDayschiawatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 11
    djkfisherdjkfisher Posts: 130member
    Nice to see that they keep working on these products.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 11
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
    Ignorance seems to be your thing. First, he said no such thing. Second, these apps already worked with pointer support day one of 13.4. I know because I have them and used it. Did you? Additional or tweaked support isn’t the same thing. 

    Try harder. 
    chiawatto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 11
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    “If a system level feature of the mere driver kind requires an app update, you know they blew it.“ So sad Steve isn’t amongst us anymore.
    Ignorance seems to be your thing. First, he said no such thing. Second, these apps already worked with pointer support day one of 13.4. I know because I have them and used it. Did you? Additional or tweaked support isn’t the same thing. 

    Try harder. 
    It seems like he went out of his way too look incredibly stupid. Maybe it’s a fetish thing. 
    StrangeDayschiawatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 11
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    I wish we knew more about what the changes were pertaining to pointer updates. The apps already supported the pointer when 13.4 debuted. I’m sure there’s something new, but I can’t readily identify what. 

    I’ve been testing my iPad with a BT keyboard and mouse since last week, and it’s really pretty great. You can zip around the OS. Working with my Numbers spreadsheets is great. Obviously it’s a way smaller screen than my iMac and MacBook, but it’s solid as an ultra-portable. 



    edited April 2020 chiawatto_cobra
Sign In or Register to comment.