Share via

Welcome to our blog!

  • Article

Hello world! We’re excited to launch our first official blog for the Office for Mac team at Microsoft. To some we are also known as the Macintosh Business Unit or just “MacBU”. We are developers, testers, user assistance managers, product managers, usability engineers, product marketers and executives who offer different perspectives but share the same passion for Office and the Mac. We hope this blog provides you with a deeper insight into our work and who we are, and we’re very excited to be out here talking to you!

At the end of each post, you can click on the author’s name to get bio and profile information. We’ll also have guest bloggers from MacBU on occasion to provide you with additional perspectives and insights.

Keep on the lookout for upcoming posts from our team members this week and beyond. If you're interested, RSS and Atom feeds are available for all posts or specific categories.

Thanks so much for visiting our blog. Enjoy!

- The Office for Mac blog team

Comments

  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    Hello world!  
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    I admit I'll check in because one of the bloggers is a friend of mine, but I'm also a brand-new Office:Mac user.  I've spent a lot of this evening putting Word through it's paces, being a longtime Windows user, it's really interesting to see how different the two flavours are.  Welcome to your new blog!
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    SECOND POST!

    I AM TEH CAPTAIN OF TEH CARPET SHIP!
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    I am looking forward to some insight into the Mac Office 12!
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    It looks like the RSS 2.0 and Atom 1.0 feeds don't include full text.  It'd be great if they did, since it'd make the posts a lot easier to read.  And I'm definitely looking forward to reading them....
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    Hello MacBU, is it true that Office 12 for Universal Mac's is slower compared to the Windows version running in XP on the same machine? Can you explain how such a technical difference might occour at the 1/0 level? How many lines of code is the Windows version compared to the Mac version.

    Asam aka B-Punk ;)
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    Oh, PS have you seen http://mydreamapp.com, it a super spiffy idea wot ;)
  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2006
    The "read more" link doesn't work from RSS.
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    Oh btw, can't you make the style of this site more Mac like? Match it to styles in MacBU products :)
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    I'd love to read about the next version of Office--when it's coming out, what will be in it, etc. I'll check back.
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    Asam - Given that neither WinOffice nor MacOffice are released, and only WinOffice is currently in beta, how could anyone have heard anything about relative performance?
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    The Mac underground has always had it's ways of finding pre-released software and beta code Nadyne, if you know where to look ;) Or so I've heard, and can neither confirm anything nor deny anything, apart from the existance of the FORCE.....
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    Eric and Markus,

    You should be able to view the full text of each post (from now on) from your RSS/Atom reader. Thanks!
  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2006
    Greetings folks at MacBU
    some inside view of next products for mac would be the spice on your blogs...
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Glad to see you guys out there with a blog, it is all too easy for Microsoft bashing - have done it myself a few times in the past! Couldnt live without Office though & Excel rates in my top ten favourite ever programs - in fact somewhere I still have v 1.01 on Mac floppys!

    Hope you get a positive response - dont think I can look at office quite the same knowing that a professional clown has been involved!!!

    Regards

    Julian
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    I check this blog because I am eager for the day when the PC/Mac transition is seamless.  It is almost, but not quite there.  Entourage is the real sticker - so this is my plug to get your PC peers to let you develop a killer and better Outlook like app.
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    I would be interested to find out why there are so few updates to the Office software. Companies much smaller than yours provide updates quite often.
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006

    Nice. Glad to have you in the Mac blog scene. And the blog looks classy, like much of the Mac BU.

    Now, let's talk about that *&^$ Word normal template and just how flaky it is ...

    much love,

    john laudun
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Great idea- it means we see a human face to the MBU. Thanks. Looking forward to reading your thoughts and getting some insight...
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Thanks you for your blog!

    It will be certainly interesting to have your view on Leopard and how you will use leopard's technologies to increase your next software (office ?)

  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Hello MacBU, nice to read you (from Paris)

    Jérôme
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Hi MacBU... looking forward for all info regarding Office for Mac. Looking forward for Universal version of Office, since currently it runs reaaally slow on the MacBook. ;D

    From Yuza - visit us at id-mac.org! ;p~
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    Well, I'd like to thank the MBU team for reaching out to  Mac Office users for their feedback and comments. I am particularly interested in seeing a topic initiated on your recently announced decision to eliminate VB-based macros from the next universal version. I believe this sets the stage for more unwelcome divergences between Windows-based Office and Mac Office. Personally I have no great love for Windows-based office, but I am literally forced to deal with it on a daily basis in my work environment. The absence of a totally compatible platform on the Mac (still the current state in my opinion) is a major annoyance. I am beginning to think the only real Mac solution for this situation isn't Mac Office at all, but rather running Windows-Office on the Mac in Parallel or with the upcoming WINE-type environments (crossover or whatever; we'll see when its released). Where does that leave Mac-Office? Perhaps to set its own course (seems like that is maybe your decision too?). I think it would be interesting in discussing what is probably the most controversial strategic decision your division has ever made (perhaps short of crippling Entourage and failing to make it all that it could be in Windows-based organizations). I am new to blogs so perhaps you could set up an appropriate arena for what I am fairly certain will be some interesting discussion.
  • Anonymous
    August 30, 2006
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    PLZ RELEASE NOW OFFICE FOR MAC INTELS!
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Hello,

    Thank you for starting the blog. I hope it goes well.

    How is Office:Mac for Intel Macs coming along? Do you have some idea of when it might be released?

    Maybe you could post some information about the project and/or approaches to it.

    Thank you.
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    I'd love to be able to post product feedback.  I personally want MSN Messenger for the Mac to be improved seriously.  Yahoo did a great job with their latest Yahoo Messenger beta.  Why can't Microsoft do the same?
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Hey, I enjoy your programs, keep up the good work.

  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Welcome to the world.  I'm glad you're hear and hope you're ready to listen.
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    So over here @ Skype we love the fact that the MacBU are blogging like we are! Good to see.

    Keep up the good work and looking forward to an Intel version, and I know it's never going to happen - but it'd be nice to get a proper Outlook client. :)

    Ryan.

    PS. Do you offer any sort of Beta testing program? If so please contact me privately - ryan DAWT hunt AT skype DAWT net
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Thanks for taking the time to chat.. I appreciate it.. :)  
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Good idea guys. Now, if only you could just get with the plan and use OSX's address book instead of having to use your own one, I could use Entourage again!
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    PLEASE when are we gonna get a proper MSN Messenger ???? For when the Video ??? Yahoo is doing really good job so far. PLEASE !!!!
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Congratulations to the MacBU for this new blog! It's really good to have some kind of human interaction behind all the code.

    I'll have to agree with lazonacafe, who stated above about a place (Either here on Mac Mojo or in Mactopia) where users could place feedback about products. Sometimes using the web form in Mactopia seems empty, as if you are writing on a paper and then throwing it in a abyss.

    I'm a Mac user for as long as I can remember (Starting with an Apple II), and I'm currently working as an IT Specialist on a company with an all Windows network. My Mac has been able to keep up fine, but there are areas that do need improvement. We have just installed Microsoft Office Communicator for instance, and my Messenger for Mac can connect, but there are many things I can't take advantage of.

    In the other hand there is Remote Desktop Connection, which has not seen an update for quite a while, I use it everyday (Along with a third party plug-in) to connect to our 15 servers, and to be honest, it terrifies me the idea that you may pull the plug on it.

    Last but not least, there is Office. To be honest, I love MS Office, either for Macintosh or for Windows (MS should really think about releasing a Linux version). I was able to install it since we receive CD through our Software Assurance contract, and boy it really helps me get the work done! Of course, a UB version would't hurt at all ;) Also, an Outlook-like version for the Mac is overdue, neither Entourage nor Apple Mail.app have what it takes to tackle corporate email needs.

    Best regards!
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    I don't have a very good taste in my mouth when it comes to blogs; they usually degenerate into mindless ego blather about "me" or have little relevance to things that concern me.  

    One thing that concerns me when it comes to Microsoft is trying to convince MacBu to port Trips and Streets over to the Mac, as I have seen nothing like it on the Mac.  Even Garmin doesn't support the Mac except for their new micro SD chips that sell for $299.00 retail.

    Another concern of mine is that MacBu stay true to the spirit of the Mac:  Functional simplicity and user-based software (as opposed to business-based software.

    I changed from Windows to OS X because I thought Apple was and is more tuned into users, while Microsoft was almost completely weighted down by business and legacy issues that actual users could care less about. I'm not quarreling with the dollars and cents of this strategy; but it doesn't do a lot for me.

    Is this the right place to articulate concerns such as this?
  • Anonymous
    August 31, 2006
    Usability Engineers? You have more than one now? When did that happen?
  • Anonymous
    September 01, 2006
    Indeed we do! I'd venture we probably have more devs, testers, pgms, marketing etc folk since you were here too. :- )
  • Anonymous
    September 06, 2006
    One suggestion I'd make for your blog is to put a headshot of the author with an article.  It's nice to have a more obvious visual cue as to who's doing the writing and it makes your blog seem more personable.