Microsoft Office for Mac & iWorks, which one is better?

T

t4tintin

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I'm planning to buy either one and need some advice.

They're approximately the same price, so I'm focusing on the software quality. Which one is more user-friendly? Which one takes up less hard drive space? Which one comes with programs/features that are unnecessary/rarely used? Which one has a good feature that the other one lacks?

Thanks!
 
You asked all the wrong questions and none of the right ones. Determine your needs and then purchase the software that better fits your needs. If your primary need is to create and share Office documents, then purchase Office. If your primary need is to create documents for your own use and that can be shared as hard copies or as PDF copies, then go with iWork.

To answer your wrong questions:
  1. Software quality. Office 2011 is a Microsoft suite. It is a big bloated mess. Quality does not enter the conversation in discussions of Microsoft products. However, if your needs allow you to purchase software based on quality alone, then you do not need Office.
  2. Unnecessary/Unused Features. This is the very definition of Office. Microsoft never saw a feature that it didn't like. OTOH, Apple provides the features required to produce beautiful documents. Your talent and skill as a user can more than make up for iWork's smaller feature set.
  3. User Friendliness. Microsoft? Apple? Come on!
  4. Footprint Size. Office is a big bloated mess. Do the math.
  5. Exclusive Features. Office has everything including several kitchen sinks. There are no plumbing fixtures in iWork.
You appear to be fixated on features. If you need an application that includes a command to create vertically-oriented tables on even-numbered Tuesdays, then Office is probably your better bet. If you want to produce beautiful documents, then iWork will serve you well. That said, Keynote presentations make PowerPoint presentations look like the scribblings of a child.

I will end where I began. Assess your needs. Purchase the software that better fits your needs.
 
If you need only a program, you could use Apple's new App store. There the programs are sold separately.
 
1.) Get the iWork '09 Trial from Apple's website. Test the apps, then remove iWork completely. If they fit your bill, get the single apps from the app store.

2.) If they don't fit your bill, because you need more and better compatibility with Windows Office users, get Office 2011 for the Mac. It's actually quite a good suite.
 
Or try with the free apps dirt farmer mentioned above.
Download either of them, and see if you are happy with them and if they do the job - if they do then you don't need either paid app.
I've got NeoOffice and while it's not as shiny as iWork, it does the job, and it's not as bloatware as Micro$oft crapplications.
 
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