Microsoft launches Office for iPad • Hacker News Board

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#51

Post by rayiner » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:17 PM UTC

mediaman wrote: post #46

k-mcgrady wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is this lame? If you only require viewing docs on the iPad you can do that for free. That's fantastic and most people will probably be satisfied with that. A subscription is only to edit and I believe gives you access to Office 365. For software you use daily a subscription shouldn't be a problem.

It's just the anti-corporate parade of users on HN who aren't used to paying for software. The majority of users here are wholly outside the target market. There's a huge universe of companies more than willing to pay for these, and it's about time that MS take advantage of re-establishing Office as a cross-device dominant platform for the everyday office worker, rather than losing its edge as an office platform beca…

> It's just the anti-corporate parade of users on HN who aren't used to paying for software.

No, they're in denial about the fact that they pay for their software, with their privacy, every minute they're on "free" services.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#52

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:18 PM UTC

dudus wrote: post #31

I wonder if Apple gets a cut of the subscription pricing. I also bet any other company would not get away with a model like that. Apple requires that you make payments through their AppStore or in-app Payment systems so it can collect its cut. Good luck trying to publishing something with the same model on the App Store.

[deleted]

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#53

Post by RyJones » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:20 PM UTC

dudus wrote: post #31

I wonder if Apple gets a cut of the subscription pricing. I also bet any other company would not get away with a model like that. Apple requires that you make payments through their AppStore or in-app Payment systems so it can collect its cut. Good luck trying to publishing something with the same model on the App Store.

there is an in-app purchase for the subscription.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#54

Post by be5invis » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:21 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #48

be5invis wrote: post #40

Microsoft releases Office for iPad just looks like that Nintendo publishes Super Mario Bros on Xbox! So, are they going to discard Windows (|phone|tablet|...) platform and become a pure third-party? It reminds me of Sega.

At some point you have to decide whether the the perfect (everyone using Windows phones/tablets and MS Software) is the enemy of the good (a lot of people using MS Software). Microsoft has for whatever reason never hit the target with mobile platforms. I guess the Windows Phone is decent enough by some accounts but was just way too late to the party. So they can try to make money selling mobile software for a mobile…

In the console game world, softwares(games) can decide the fate of consoles. Dreamcast failed BEFORE PS2 is released, due to Final Fantasy X, XI and XII. Another example is that Xbox survived because of Halo.

In my opnion, Office is the ace software of Microsoft. It is even the de-facto standard. Therefore Microsoft should keep them exclusive on their platform.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#55

Post by mortenjorck » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:22 PM UTC

sz4kerto wrote: post #4

MS is changing, and make no mistake, this has started with Ballmer. If you watch(ed) the press conf, it's quite apparent. App store for Android, Office for iPad, AD for Azure.. quite nice stuff, that's what we expect from a software giant: just release stuff for everything, everywhere, and make things be able to work with each other nicely. Good to see that, competition is always good for the users, and Apple, Google…

That Microsoft is broadening where and how customers can use Office is interesting.

But what's shocking is that the first tablet-optimized version of Office is arriving not on Windows RT, but on iOS. That speaks volumes about the state of Windows today – and about how Nadella is under no illusions.

Office for iPad may have started under Ballmer, but it's hard to imagine it getting this high a priority without his successor making what I'm sure was a tough call.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#56

Post by sremani » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:23 PM UTC

chrisdevereux wrote: post #12

The pricing structure is interesting: Free to view, requires an expensive Office 365 subscription to edit. Seems like they're missing an opportunity to drive adoption of Office as an online platform. Why would I want to publish using Office instead of Google Docs when I can't assume that people I send the Office doc to will be able to edit it? Sure, Office is better, but not better enough to overcome that. If it was…

For a family of two, we are happily using about 3 subscriptions. You can add a friend or family for the un-used of the 5 subscriptions. Just one mail for invitation and they have it.

The simplicity of the sharing the subscriptions made me a believer.

There will always be people who will complain about the cost of subscription for both XBL and Office 365, but I think it is reasonably priced at least in the US.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#57

Post by lie07 » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:27 PM UTC

be5invis wrote: post #40

Microsoft releases Office for iPad just looks like that Nintendo publishes Super Mario Bros on Xbox! So, are they going to discard Windows (|phone|tablet|...) platform and become a pure third-party? It reminds me of Sega.

> Nintendo publishes Super Mario Bros on Xbox

You have no idea how much i want this to happen...

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#58

Post by LeicaLatte » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:28 PM UTC

If it feel this expensive on iOS, this pricing has no chance on other platforms. And Google Docs is not going anywhere with this pricing for sure.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#59

Post by dublinben » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:28 PM UTC

be5invis wrote: post #54

ams6110 wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At some point you have to decide whether the the perfect (everyone using Windows phones/tablets and MS Software) is the enemy of the good (a lot of people using MS Software). Microsoft has for whatever reason never hit the target with mobile platforms. I guess the Windows Phone is decent enough by some accounts but was just way too late to the party. So they can try to make money selling mobile software for a mobile…

In the console game world, softwares(games) can decide the fate of consoles. Dreamcast failed BEFORE PS2 is released, due to Final Fantasy X, XI and XII. Another example is that Xbox survived because of Halo. In my opnion, Office is the ace software of Microsoft. It is even the de-facto standard. Therefore Microsoft should keep them exclusive on their platform.

Keeping Office off the iPad until now hasn't prevented millions of customers from buying them, or pushed any significant number of users to Windows 8 (RT) tablets instead. Microsoft's indispensable programs haven't been sorely missed for the last four years.

Re: Microsoft launches Office for iPad

#60

Post by bane » Thu, Mar 27, 2014, 6:29 PM UTC

Before anybody thinks this is weird, or unusual. Microsoft has quite often been more pragmatic about the platform offerings for their office suite than elsewhere. After all, Office exists and has existed on Apple products for a very long time. It's more unusual that it hasn't been on the iProducts than anything.