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Microsoft Office

L

Lucascsula

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 6, 2007
101
0
Orange County, California
I was wondering if anyone has installed Office on their Macs?

1. Can I use an old Microsoft Office 20004 or does it have to be the Mac version?

2. Does it slow down the Mac's performance? I have the 1 g of Ram model.

Thanks for the help!
 
Office 2004 is a Mac version. 2003, for Windows, would need Boot Camp or a virtual machine running Windows to work.

It won't slow down the Mac unless one of the Office apps happen to be running at the moment (just like any other program). There aren't really any hooks or anything that would sap performance with the Office apps closed. Mac Office does run in emulation on the intel-based Macs, but it's not especially piggy. 1 GB should be enough, less than that does cause real problems for emulated stuff.
 
I am running Office 2003 in XP through Boot Camp.

It runs like a charm. No glitches whatsoever.

It would probably run the same under Parallels or VMWare.

The problem with the Mac version of Office is that Access isn't available.

Not many people use Access, but those of us who do need to run the Windows version.

Hope that helps!
 
iMeowbot said:
Office 2004 is a Mac version. 2003, for Windows, would need Boot Camp or a virtual machine running Windows to work.

It won't slow down the Mac unless one of the Office apps happen to be running at the moment (just like any other program). There aren't really any hooks or anything that would sap performance with the Office apps closed. Mac Office does run in emulation on the intel-based Macs, but it's not especially piggy. 1 GB should be enough, less than that does cause real problems for emulated stuff.
Click to expand...

Can I just buy one office for the Mac? In other words, if I purchase the Mac version, can I also install it on my wife's Mac as well?
 
Lucascsula said:
Can I just buy one office for the Mac? In other words, if I purchase the Mac version, can I also install it on my wife's Mac as well?
Click to expand...

It depends...

Licensing for the standard edition:

1.1 General License Grant to Install and Use Software Product. You may install and use one copy of the Software Product on a single computer, device, workstation, terminal, or other digital electronic or analog device (“Device”). You may make a second copy of the Software Product and install it on a portable Device for the exclusive use of the person who is the primary user of the first copy of the Software Product. A license for the Software Product may not be shared.
Click to expand...

If you qualify to purchase the student and teacher edition, these are the terms:

1.1 Installation and use. You may install a copy of the Software on three computers or other devices in your household for non-commercial use by people who reside in your household.
Click to expand...
 
Lucascsula said:
Well, we are teachers! I am a graduate student as well!

That's encouraging! Thanks for the help!
Click to expand...

Excellent...you'll get a cheaper price and have more flexibility in the licensing, as long as you don't need to use it for commercial use.
 
side question here a bit but... I have bootcamped xp on to my MBP and will get MS office for $10 at university. Which version should I get Mac or Windows or does it matter? Thanks
 
freedrinks said:
side question here a bit but... I have bootcamped xp on to my MBP and will get MS office for $10 at university. Which version should I get Mac or Windows or does it matter? Thanks
Click to expand...
How often can you take advantage of that $10 deal? Office for Mac 2008 is scheduled to come out around November or December, so if you get Office for Windows now, you could get the updated Mac version at the end of the year.

Otherwise, it depends on how you'll be using your machine. If you have Parallels of VMWare, I'd recommend getting the Windows version, since it's more up to date, and might actually run faster than the mac 2004 version runs through emulation.
 
freedrinks said:
side question here a bit but... I have bootcamped xp on to my MBP and will get MS office for $10 at university. Which version should I get Mac or Windows or does it matter? Thanks
Click to expand...

Thats mostly a personal preference on your part.. it just matters which OS you spend the majority of your time in and which one you would like to do your Office-related tasks in.. I guess the only deal-breaker either way is if you need Access, then you would have to get the Windows version.

Personally, if I was making the decision, I would just buy both.. By doing that, you know you won't be inconvenienced by a reboot.. And you really can't beat 10 bucks for Office, you can hardly get any useful software for that price..

edit.. guess mikey beat me to it.. apparently i take to long to make a post..
 
Like I said earlier, if you need Access, you MUST use the XP version.

If not, then it is really your choice.

But, please correct me if I am wrong on this, Office 2004 for Mac has to run through Rosetta, right? Longer load up times, right? Any other problems using Rosetta?
 
Office 2008:Mac is due out within the next 2 months so I'd hold on for that..
 
Sounds Good said:
Other than Access, is Office 2004 for Mac identical to Office 2003 for Windows?
Click to expand...

Kind of. Menu's are different and layout is different - but you get used to it.

Formatting and the functionality is exactly the same. And documents made with Office:Mac will work on Office:Windows and vice versa.
 
Kilamite said:
Formatting and the functionality is exactly the same. And documents made with Office:Mac will work on Office:Windows and vice versa.
Click to expand...
Cool. I'm hoping the price on 2004 comes down once 2008 comes out. I'm not a student so I can't get these great student deals. :)
 
Sounds Good said:
Cool. I'm hoping the price on 2004 comes down once 2008 comes out. I'm not a student so I can't get these great student deals. :)
Click to expand...

They ditched the "Student Edition" and just it made the "Home Edition" for Office 2007 and it is only $200.

You only get Word, Excel and a few other bits n bobs, but not bad for that price.
 
Kilamite said:
They ditched the "Student Edition" and just it made the "Home Edition" for Office 2007 and it is only $200.
Click to expand...
Huh? I'll have to do some research, I guess. Thanks!

Although come to think of it, I already own a legal copy of Office 2003 for Windows. It might be cheaper (in the long run) for me to just buy a copy of Windows XP and Parallels or VMWare. :D
 
Kilamite said:
Office 2008:Mac is due out within the next 2 months so I'd hold on for that..
Click to expand...

It isn't a sure thing. Microsoft said in the second half of 2007. That means that December 31st would still be a valid date. And, seeing as how Microsoft is so good at keeping deadlines:rolleyes: We might not see it until early next year. Although I doubt this, as Office 2007 is already out, how much more work can it be to make a Mac version?
 
From various sources I'm fairly confident that it should be out within 2 months.

Office2008:Mac will include same features of 2007 plus a few more I've heard. I read a few reviews from beta testers and it sounds promising.

It'll be better than Office 2007 for the PC it seems.
 
Opening a PowerPoint Presentation created in 2007 for windows

I have a Power Point presentation that was created in Office 2007 for windows that I am trying to modify in 2004 for mac. When I open it on my mac all the pictures that were inserted into the document show up as black boxes. When I open it it on a PC with office they all show up properly.

Any ideas?
 
Office 2007 uses new extensions and formatting that previous versions won't be able to read properly.

Make sure when you go to "Save As.." you select a format that is fully backward compatible.
 
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