Outlook's message gathering in Conversations
Conversations, calendaring: These are some of the new core features that Microsoft brings to the Mac community in late October with the Business Edition of Office for Mac 2011. These features show up in Outlook for the Mac, a version of the popular Windows mail client that’s making its debut on Apple products.
Outlook is included in two versions of the Office for Mac release: a Home and Business Edition priced at $199 and an Academic release at $99. Outlook has a mixed reputation among the Windows community, in part because it was wired into the PC environments so closely that hackers exploited its integration.
Microsoft doesn’t expect that to be an issue with Outlook for the Mac; the computer’s environment doesn’t offer the same sort of back doors for malware to muck up your business files. The Business Edition also includes familiar apps reworked for improved productivity: Word, Excel, PowerPoint and even Messenger. Buying a copy of Office 2008 until November 30 will earn you a free upgrade to the new release.
A promo video on Microsoft’s Office 2011 web page includes a comment from developer Amy Wang that they’ve “done UI (user interface) touch-ups that make these programs feel a lot more Mac-like.” Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit has been a real earner for the company that hovers right around Apple in Fortune 500 revenues. It’s easy to understand why these programs have a dedicated team at the company responsible for the widest choice for businesses, Windows.
The table below explains the pricing differences, but it’s Outlook that generates the $80 lift in the Business Edition.
Conversation takes all messages with the same topic and puts them together, a feature that you might notice if you click on a message in Apple’s Mail. But the Office method looks more intuitive and efficient, two advantages Microsoft is pushing with this release. There’s also integration with the Mac’s Spotlight searching, so you might be able to find a message faster than in Apple’s Mail. Spotlight, after all, has a dozen ways to dice up a search, while Mail’s only got a half-dozen.
Microsoft has details on how to qualify for a free 2008 to 2011 upgrade, as well as the new online upgrade functionality from the $119 entry-level Home and Student Edition, at the Officeformac.com web site.
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