Compare: Office 2007 Windows vs Office 2008 Mac

Posted on 2009/06/23 21:49:56 (June 2009).

I don’t suppose I’m unique in any way but I have owned and used both Microsoft Office 2007 for Windows and Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac. Currently the Mac version is the one I use daily.

It was natural to expect them both to be pretty much the same underneath the glamourous new front ends and to a certain extent that holds true. Office for Windows features that controversial ribbon bar along with the big Windows Logo button at the top left of the Window. Office for Mac has been substantially upgraded from the 2004 version and is now Intel-Native and features a more OS X style menu structure. The infamous ribbon-bar is in the Mac version too but implemented in a slightly different way.

Underneath the glamour it’s clear that both these application suites have been rethought quite extensively. All the famous functionality of both Word and Excel is there as you’d expect. If you want to create industry-standard words and statistics you have the necessary tools to hand. There are many facilities you’ll rarely need but it’s comforting to know that if you ever do, they’re there.

There’s a big difference between the Windows and Mac versions though and it’s interesting to read around the Microsoft Office for Mac web-site to get a feel for this.

The Mac version of Office does not include Visual Basic for Applications, Microsoft’s built-in programming language. This means that if any imported documents for Word or Excel include this, the functionality will be lost. The Mac version is officially recognised as being an Office Lite. It does though come with the famous Entourage PIM which the Windows version does not.

Windows users must rely in their own email/PIM either in the form of Outlook Express or some other software. Only the expensive Pro version of Office comes with their flagship Outlook application. Apparently there used to be a Mac version of Outlook but that ceased around 2001. Mac users are fortunate then that they receive the comprehensive Entourage suite. According to Microsoft this is built on a totally different code-base to Outlook and not designed to replace it. Interestingly though, it does the same job. The Home and Student version of Entourage doesn’t connect with an Exchange server, that’s reserved for the Pro version. From my own experience of Outlook, Entourage does make a good stab at the task (sic).

Performance-wise I found the Windows Office 2007 software to be excellent at most jobs but it could certainly be a bit sluggish at times (my recent PCs have been 2.4ghz Dual-Cores with 4GB RAM). The quality of on-screen text and graphics has always been superb. The anti-aliased fonts and other enhancements really making a difference. The ribbon menu is comprehensive and useful, but not everyone likes it or has the necessary screen real-estate to make keeping it on screen all the time viable. On the Mac the screen doesn’t really look anything like the Windows version but in it’s own way is quite beautiful. Speed-wise it's a little faster and smoother than it's sibling, perhaps down to better memory handling techniques. It’s worth noting that in Mac parlance Office 2008 appears to be a “Carbon” app rather than a full “Cocoa“ one. The difference is in the compiler libraries used and an older approach to the O/S. To check what I mean try this: go to the customize menu for the toolbar and you’ll actually see a very familiar Windows pop-up along with a Mac Classic ribbon menu. Legacy code and a legacy compiler perhaps.

All in all I really like the Mac version and am using it regularly. The lack of a real manual anywhere is slightly frustrating and a dependence on the built-in help system a weak substitute because there’s no flow or learning curve to follow. File compatibility is the main mantra I’ve heard about using Microsoft products on a Mac, but in my opinion that’s only a part of the story. The truth is if you want a really good word-processor, spreadsheet, presentation app and PIM the Microsoft package is darn good and if you opt for the Home and Student licensed version, great value for money.

Anything I didn’t like in the Mac version? Well yes. That silly Save icon. Quite why Microsoft chose to use the floppy-disk icon beats me. The Apple machines were one of the first to eschew floppy drives, preferring USB pen-drives. I’m no graphic-designer so can’t offer a suitable alternative but I’m sure a professional could.

Mmmm I use Open Office. I did not like having Microsoft stuff on the Mac, it seemed as if it TAINTED my new Macbook. Now that the mac is 2 years old I do not regret the choice, I can do pretty much everything I used to do with Office, even the funky stuff that sometimes I need to chew for work (graphs, statistics and so on)... But maybe I do not see the good parts of Office, clearly if you use it there must be some! Comparative review perhaps?

Posted by Lox at 2009/06/25 02:56:41.

Yes, I know what you mean Lox! I had much the same feelings, but once I'd checked it out I realised it was quite good and being "elitist" just because I had a Mac was wrong.

It really is quite a good set of proper Mac apps - but costs money!

Posted by Nigel at 2009/06/25 11:25:28.

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