Microsoft Office for MAC (1 Viewer)

[stevec]

I've just updated my PC to an iMac (please no discussions about the advantages/disadvantages of either!). My wife would like to have Microsoft office as that is what she is used to for her documents and spreadsheets. I've seen ads for full price from Microsoft (£120ish), key downloads for Microsoft for £65 (current offer today) and key downloads from other vendors for about £22. All these are on Amazon. Is there any reason not to go for the cheapest? I presume the software is downloaded from Microsoft and the purchased key (from wherever) is entered when it is run.

 

[funflair]

She could try "open office" I believe all the Microsoft office files will transfer, and it's free.

Martin

 

[Floydster]

Another vote for "Open office"

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[buttons]

I've given open office and others a try but returned to MS office which in my opinion is the real thing...

 

[hilldweller]

Does Libre Office run on a Mac ? Freebie, does what it says on the tin.

 

[stevec]

Wife needs something that has the same user interface. She doesn't want to learn new techniques. I have downloaded LibreOffice on the Mac (so yes it does exist) but she hasn't tried it yet. Anyone used it and can comment about how similar it is to MS Office?

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[Deleted member 29692]

It’s a Mac. Why would anyone in their right mind even consider M$ products?

Even the open source alternatives (OpenOffice, LibreOffice etc) are a poor choice for Mac.

Pages and Numbers are all you need. They are Apple’s WP and spreadsheet packages and both are as naturally intuitive as Macs are in general so picking up the slightly different techniques is very simple.

 

[G7UXG]

Do any of you work for an organisation that subscribes to the Microsoft Home User Program? If you use it at work and your organisation is part of the program (lots are) then you can get a code to buy a full version of Microsoft Office for Mac for about £10 direct from Microsoft. Helps people work from home etc.

Visit www.microsofthup.com and enter your work email. It should tell you if you're eligible. If you are, code will be sent to work email and then you can download it on your Mac.

Got full copies on both of my Macs using this method.

Mike

 

[G7UXG]

I've just updated my PC to an iMac

Good move by the way...

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[hilldweller]

Anyone used it and can comment about how similar it is to MS Office?

My wife went from M$ to Libre and if she can your wife can.

 

[JeanLuc]

Pages, Numbers and Keynote may well fit the bill and they have the advantage of being ‘native’ Mac programs.
If you need a lot of spreadsheet capability then Excel is better than Numbers but for most domestic or light commercial use Numbers should do.

 

[Jim]

We have the family office licence for Macs . I think its 5 machines for £70 a year. Word and Excel are much better than Numbers and Pages which have been neglected for years and resemble kids programs. A bonus of using Office on a Mac is that OneNote is superb. Office works well on the Mac though I don't use outlook or Powerpoint so can't vouch for them

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[ceejayt]

We have the family office licence for Macs . I think its 5 machines for £70 a year. Word and Excel are much better than Numbers and Pages which have been neglected for years and resemble kids programs. A bonus of using Office on a Mac is that OneNote is superb. Office works well on the Mac though I don't use outlook or Powerpoint so can't vouch for them

But harsh that Jim, Office is great and I use it all the time but if I have a report to write and want to format something quickly and easily to a professional standard then Pages and Numbers are the best there is - less complicated and just works. If I want to do serious data analysis then Excel every time.

 

[peterc10]

To answer the original post, you can get a lifetime copy of Office or one on a yearly license, where you pay each year to use it. The higher price will be for lifetime the lower prices will probably be per year.

 

[ymfb]

I use MACs for everything and have to work with documents that flow between myself and Windows users. I have Microsoft Office 365, it has all the generic software except Project and Access the licence allows me to share with my family.

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[stevec]

To answer some posts on here my wife has used MS Office for years and has lots of documents and live spreadsheets in Word and Excel. She really doesn't want to learn something new at this stage especially as she also uses her laptop (Windows........we can't afford to upgrade desktop and laptops to Macs!). We'll give Libre a go though.

 

[Jim]

But harsh that Jim, Office is great and I use it all the time but if I have a report to write and want to format something quickly and easily to a professional standard then Pages and Numbers are the best there is - less complicated and just works. If I want to do serious data analysis then Excel every time.

It was a bit I suppose, both the mac programs are 'pretty' but when you need it to work hard and collaborate with others it falls way short. My daughter thinks it's great for school stuff and prefers it.

 

[makems]

It’s a Mac. Why would anyone in their right mind even consider M$ products?

Even the open source alternatives (OpenOffice, LibreOffice etc) are a poor choice for Mac.

Pages and Numbers are all you need. They are Apple’s WP and spreadsheet packages and both are as naturally intuitive as Macs are in general so picking up the slightly different techniques is very simple.

I am sorry, but Pages and especially Numbers are no substitute for Word and Excel if you have been using advanced features.
Numbers in particular is fine for simple stuff but has no support for macros, linking multiple spreadsheets and lots of smaller ease of use features.
Now I am retired I can put up with Numbers and Pages, but I would not have been able to do my previous job at all.
Don't get me wrong, both are competent products if you are not a particularly demanding user, but they are a long way from Industrial Strength.

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[makems]

But harsh that Jim, Office is great and I use it all the time but if I have a report to write and want to format something quickly and easily to a professional standard then Pages and Numbers are the best there is - less complicated and just works. If I want to do serious data analysis then Excel every time.

Less complicated yes - but that is because they have vastly less functionality.

 

[Deleted member 29692]

I am sorry, but Pages and especially Numbers are no substitute for Word and Excel if you have been using advanced features.
Numbers in particular is fine for simple stuff but has no support for macros, linking multiple spreadsheets and lots of smaller ease of use features.
Now I am retired I can put up with Numbers and Pages, but I would not have been able to do my previous job at all.
Don't get me wrong, both are competent products if you are not a particularly demanding user, but they are a long way from Industrial Strength.

How many people really seriously need all that functionality? A few might but not many.

I manage to run my business quite happily using Numbers but then I've never felt the need to over complicate things just for the sake of it

 

[Coastal Cruiser.]

I had to partition the drive on my Mac when I bought it as the payroll software we used was not available on Mac only Windows system.
Easy to do, load windows on and then on start up you press another key and it opens up in windows, you can Also put in how much of the available storage you want to assign to the Microsoft part...
A lot of people say that Windows runs better on a Mac!

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[makems]

How many people really seriously need all that functionality? A few might but not many.

I manage to run my business quite happily using Numbers but then I've never felt the need to over complicate things just for the sake of it

As i said if all you need is simplicity Numbers and Pages will do. If your needs are more complex then you will find Numbers in particular seriously wanting.
I could not have done my previous job with Numbers because some of the spreadsheets I had to use were corporate standards using macros, links, cell protection, print range, and numerous formatting features not supported.
A lot of people using Excel spreadsheets developed corporately might not even realise what lies behind the interface.