According to statistics released by Microsoft, around 77% of US Macintosh users have some form of Office application installed. They don’t however, specify exactly what these users have installed. Some, like myself, may have the full Office 2007 suite, while others only have Microsoft Messenger.

A recent poll conducted by SmokingApple’s suggests (from 420 votes) that only 16% of their readers primarily use Microsoft Office. Compared to the 34% that opt for iWork as their first choice. 182 of their readers however, mostly use iWork but still have Office installed. This is most probably due to compatibility issue’s with employment or schools and colleges, despite the conversion process being quite simple.

So why is there a clear line between iWork and Office? Is it because the majority of Mac users switched from the Windows PC but are so familiar with Office that they’d prefer to stick with it? Is it because their job requires them to use Microsoft Office? It’s always been a great suite of applications but after using iWork for a few weeks now, I doubt I’ll be relying on Microsoft for much longer.

There’s nothing wrong with Microsoft Office; it does everything most users to and being so popular, transferring files between computers and users is easy. Both iWork and Office do the same job, but its the way that they reach the end results that puts them apart.

Office. It’s a place of work and for many people, boredom. People complain about being stuck in their office all day. So Microsoft Office? It sounds professional, hard working and to the point. For a lot of the time, it’s what people are after. Something to finish the article, extend their spreadsheets. But it only does the tasks. There’s no alternative ways or nice designs to play with. You can spot an Office design template a mile away, so people generally avoid them. Up until Office ‘07, the design of the programs was very simple. Everything was there where you expected it. Nothing flashy, but it covered the job. Office ‘07 first brought slight confusion, with obvious tasks like ’save as…’ and ‘open’ hidden behind the Office logo. The new design that came with ‘07 gave a fresh look but was quite different to the previous layout, meaning users felt disorientated upon the first few uses.

iWork. Apple is known as the more playful between the two. Their highly popular TV adverts show the monotone life of the PC, compared to the vibrant world of Mac. Obviously there’s no avoiding the “office” scenario, but Apple’s take is a little easier to get by with. Their built in template designs are usable in most cases. They look professional and polished and can offer a good starting base for a document. The most needed tools such as fonts and formatting are all in front of you, with the most obscure features within the Inspector tab. While PC users may take a while to get this, the Inspector is used throughout Apple software housing most of the options relating to the current task, meaning everything that you might need is in one place. The new full screen option in iWork ‘09 offers distraction-free writing, allowing to you finish your work quicker and more efficiently. The option to upload work to iWork.com gives users a choice to connect easily and quickly between collaborated projects. While this service may be expensive and limited to iWork ‘09 users, the option is still present.

As I previously said, they both do the  job well. But iWork’s finish and polish towards the applications design, templates and small but useful features gives it the edge over Microsoft’s Office. Add into the mix that iWork ‘09 is considerably cheaper than the professional version of its counterpart, iWork seems the obvious choice for any Apple Mac user.

Have you had experience of using both platforms? Which has the edge for your own personal and work needs?

If you’re a returning reader, you may have noticed some things have changed. I have finally finished college for the year, and with the Summer ahead of me, I felt it was time I changed things around, and became more serious about my writing. You can expect to read more articles over the summer months, so stay tuned!

The first thing you’ll notice, is the design change. Over the short months that I’ve been using Wordpress, I have changed the design numerous times, in the search for the perfect theme. Some time ago, Glenn Wolsey released a version of his theme, RedThree, and it immediately stood out to me. The theme itself is simple and elegant. The font you’re reading this article in looks great, and the colour scheme compliments it. I have made a few alterations to the theme to personalise it, but the majority of credit must go to Glenn Wolsey and Andreas Lengyel from macintalk.com for the design.

You will also notice re-written colophon and contact pages too, in an attempt to make reading them and finding out useful information that little bit easier. Throw in some regular content, and you have yourself a blog.

I’m very happy with the changes that have been made here, and I hope you like them too. I look forward to writing more often here, and hope you can stay around and follow. Why not subscribe to the RSS?

Yesterday, I made a few upgrades to my current set up. The main addition was a second display. While I really like how the Apple Cinema Display’s look, there’s no way I could afford one at the moment. So I opted for an Acer model. At 19″, it does the job nicely, and provides a decent enough image for whatever I’m doing. I decided to keep my MacBook open, so that now sits in the corner of the desk, and offers space for IM, Twitter and iTunes, while the projects I’m working on can stay on the main desktop.

With the MacBook taking a side seat, I needed something to type on. I already have a wireless mouse, but a keyboard was needed. This time, I couldn’t see a suitable alternative but the Apple product. While the wireless version was out of my grasp, the wired version is perfect. So there’s a single wire – big deal. I decided to choose the smaller version, without the keypad on the side. I figured I’ve been fine without one for the past year, why would I need one now?

It’s pretty much identical to the keyboard on my MacBook (White), so I’m used to the feel and scrabble keys. The advantage of having two accessible USB slots is great, especially to transfer files to and from a USB pen. The only disadvantage I can see from using this keyboard, is the inability to change the height. It’s fine for short sessions, but if you’re spending a few hours at a time typing away, you occasionally feel the need to stop for a minute.

Otherwise, it’s a brilliant keyboard. It works straight away, and the accessibility keys along the top row are very useful – dashboard, Exposé and iTunes controls are all there. It also, of course, looks great on my desk, and takes up hardly any space for when there’s no option but to use pen and paper.

“Do you have a thirst for new technology, an obsession with the latest gadgets, or simply can’t get through the week without researching the latest must-have kit? Why not head down to the first ever Gadget Show Live (NEC 17-19 April 2009), set to be the UK’s largest interactive technology event. Based on Five’s successful TV programme, gadget hungry visitors will all get the chance to see, try and buy the very latest in consumer electronics.”

You’re a snail with the tedious task of delivering mail through the universe. Your life is made difficult by the fact that you must collet the parcels during your travels, while avoiding salt, aliens, and near-certain death. Sound like you’re kind of fun?

Snail mail features 50 levels increasing in difficulty. The first few are simple to master, the final 5 are a little more tricky. To put things into perspective, I’ve been playing Snail Mail on and off for about two months now. I got to level 46 within the first month. It then two me another week to get to level 50, which I still haven’t been able to finish. I have a friend who completed the game a few weeks ago, so I know it can be done.

Gameplay

Even though there are 50 levels, there’s probably over 100 combinations of tracks. I say that, because if you retry a level, it’s likely that it will have changed from the previous time. It’s usually only minimal changes, but its still enough to keep you alert. So to answer the obvious question – no, delivering mail in the universe through 50 levels is not boring. It’s quite addictive, actually.

Graphics

As the above image show’s, the graphics are of the top end for the iPhone and iPod touch. They’re not outstanding, but they’re perfectly usable for the game. There’s a lot of movement throughout the levels, and every angle is perfectly rendered, leaving little, if any pixelation.

This isn’t an in-depth review. Although it gave you a basic overview of the game and its merits. If you’re not sure whether you like the game, shoot me an email, and I’d be glad to answer any questions. But Snail Mail is a great game. It’s great fun, and easy to pick up and play a few levels at any point. You stay motivated to complete the game, how ever long it’ll take.

One of my favourite purchases from the iTunes App Store. If the thought of Snail Mail intrigues you, it’s a must-have. The full version costs you £1.79, but you can trial the game with Snail Mail Lite.

It has recently become apparent of Microsoft’s plans to bundle both Vista and XP with purchases of Windows 7 after it’s release. A feature that I’m sure everyone will be glad to hear of, but it doesn’t say much for Microsoft, does it?

Here’s our brand new operating system. We like to think of it as the Vista that works. Although, we here at Microsoft aren’t 100% sure that you’ll like our latest work with Windows 7, so just incase, we’ve also given you XP (8 years old) and Vista, allowing you to rollback to a previous version if Windows 7 doesn’t do it for you.

I should probably point out that was myself talking, and certainly not any form of quote from Microsoft.

It doesn’t fill us with confidence. People who have tried Windows 7 have enjoyed the experience, and seem pleased with how it operates. The public beta release allows Microsoft to iron out even more issue’s before an official release. Following this, they should have more faith in their latest OS. They’re even trying to build it so that it’s compatible with hardware and software originally built for Vista, so why anyone would want to rollback to Vista itself, I have no idea.

I’m feeling confident that Windows 7 will work. Although if it doesn’t, Microsoft will have a big problem. Vista annoyed a lot of people, causing a spike in XP sales yet again. Although maybe this time, people won’t want to rollback to an operating system first released in August 2001. Maybe this time they’ll respond to the gentle tapping on their shoulder. The tapping from Apple, and Snow Leopard. Or even Linux – proving to be a decent alternative, but still seen as a “geeky” option.

If you haven’t already, go ahead and watch the video below. It’s one of Microsoft’s latest attempts to lure people away from Apple, and back to Microsoft.

If you’d like to close down Safari and head out to PC World to buy a Windows based computer after seeing that advert, go ahead. Or, if you’d prefer, we could discuss and laugh at Microsoft’s…attempt.

First off, the advert itself is a good idea. Why not prove that Windows-based computers can be more powerful than a Mac? It’s the way they do it that sucks.

I’ve been a Mac user for just over a year now. I have XP installed for certain programs, but would not go back to a dedicated XP/Vista machine. Microsoft’s adverts certainly don’t make me feel as though I’m missing out on much.

People use Window’s mostly because they have to. Hence why XP is still so popular – people are tied to it for software they require on a daily basis. It’s also why people don’t switch to Mac, despite wanting to. Of the XP/Vista users that I know, the majority love Apple Mac. The only reason they don’t use them is usually the price tag. Apple has always been a premium brand, and will continue to do so. You won’t see a MacBook hitting the bargain bins anytime soon.

Microsoft’s adverts also only focus on hardware – of which none is produced by Microsoft themselves. A more powerful computer is only going to be choked by Vista’s constant need to check for security updates, or slight obsession with the sleep mode.

Don’t take this as a ‘Mac Fanboy’ fighting back, but as my honest opinion. Microsoft’s new adverts are what you’d expect from a little child, crying because a smaller child is slowly taking their toys away.

I hope Microsoft will change their advertising plans for Windows 7. The beta currently out looks to be a decent operating system, and could be the saving grace for Microsoft. If Window’s 7 follows trend with Vista, they may have a slight problem. That problem would have the name, Snow Leopard.

For the last few weeks, I’ve been using a piece of software called MarsEdit. A very useful tool for Mac users with blogs. It’s a publishing tool, that allows you to write your articles offline if need’s be, and offers a nice interface in which to write, if WordPress isn’t your favourite.

At the moment, it’s hooked up to ed-parry.com so I can view published posts, drafts, categories etc… I can also start a new post, add the relevant information and format images – click publish, and it appears as normal. It synchronizes very easily with WordPress – simply enter your username and password that you would to access the /wp-admin.

I’m looking into being able to use it with other blogs on different systems, but for most (Wordpress, Blogger, LiveJournal, Tumblr) it works fine.

If you’re also a blogger, and Macintosh user (sound’s good to me), make sure you check out the 30-day trial at least. It’s made my writing flow more easily, and the ability to edit wherever and whenever, and not dependent on a decent internet connection, is highly useful.

EventBox is a brilliant application, designed to aggregate your social networks together into one, nicely design, application. The beta currently supports Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Google Reader, Reddit and RSS feeds. Using all but one of those makes EventBox very useful, and it cuts down time I sometimes waste visiting each site individually.

So what makes EventBox worth it? For myself, it comes down to simplicity. One applications provides me with the latest from across my top social networks, and the most recent news/technology articles via my Google Reader. Everything updates automatically ranging from 1 minute for Twitter, to an hour for Flickr (set for my usage/importance of networks). I can easily spend an hour visiting each website, scrolling through pages of un-read content in an attempt to catch up again. With EventBox, everything updates and I receive a notification, similar to that of a new email. No flashy pop-ups, just a simple number on the icon.

The design of EventBox is also brilliant. Everything is kept clean and simple – with the focus being on the content. Items load quickly, along with users display images, and rarely does anything return an error (this is still in beta, remember).

Since it’s still not fully released, there’s still a few bugs lingering around that can sometimes get in the way. Loading 1000+ of new items in Google Reader crashes the application, for example. There’s also some places for improvement, that would make EventBox a truly great application. The biggest of which, for myself, is more integration with Facebook. You can update your status, and view other people’s, but there’s no option to comment on status settings, or to ‘like’ them – the latest update to Facebook itself. There’s questions about whether Facebook allows this through its APIs though, so it may be a feature missing for good.

What I see in front of me, is a highly useful application, that has already increased my productivity – guiding more time to useful projects, and less time re-reading irrelevant tweets.

You can grab a demo over at The Cosmic Machine, or alternatively go straight in a buy the full application for $15 (£10) while it’s still in the beta testing stage (the price will rise to $20 afterwards).

I’ve been getting quite a few messages recently from people new to the world of Twitter, having no clue how to use it. As Twitter is now becoming quite mainstream, I felt a post mentioning the basic’s of Twitter should be quite useful. If you’re already an avid user of the micro-blogging service, there’s not much need for you to be here. Otherwise, read on!

What is Twitter?
In the most simplest forms, Twitter is a website on which you write what you’re up to at any one moment in 140 characters or less. That does include spaces, punctuation, links etc. People can find your ‘tweets’ (the messages that you post) through a number of different channels. Whether that be another profile, a search, or simply by networking through other users. You can follow people, and people can follow you. Most of the time, you’ll find your followers have similar interests to yourself.

Why would I use it?
Quite a few people create their accounts, then never use them. Others, however, have posted thousands of tweets over the months or years. Some accounts are directly linked to RSS feeds, and so only show articles from a website, for example. Many news papers use this method, so you can easily follow the latest headlines via Twitter. Other people use it to self-promote their services and/or talents, while others simply connect with friends, chat, and put across their day’s events in short bursts.

You mentioned networking?
While you’re ultimately posting the 140-character messages, there’s also a lot of connectivity to have fun with. There’s two options for connecting with another user and the difference between the two is simple – one’s public, the other is private. The first (public), is known as an @reply. For instance, if you saw a tweet that I posted, and wanted to comment, you would start your own tweet with ‘@edparry92 ‘ which is then followed by your message. All of your followers see this as a normal tweet, while for myself, it would be highlighted. The second (private), is known as a DM, or Direct Message. This message would not be seen my your followers – only by the receiver. Say, if someone asked for your email address, you wouldn’t necessarily want to post this to all your followers – and allow it to be picked up by search engines. Using a DM means the person still receives your email address, but the world doesn’t know. This will become clear once you’re logged in and can see the options available in the sidebar. I will mention, however, that the person who you are trying to ‘DM’, will also need to be following you, for your message to send.

Can I use it on the go?
While Twitter is situated at twitter.com, there’s many different applications that offer access to Twitter on your computer and mobile phone. Search for twitter applications in Google, and you’ll be presented with many options – each offering different solutions. Whether you want a small application to send a tweet, or what an entire window space showing you what’s hot right now, what you’re followers are saying, and any DM/@replies you’ve recently got. They’re all out there. There’s also many applications available for your phone. Twitter’s mobile site is useful, but if you’re using Blackberry or iPhone/iPod touch, take a look at a few Twitter apps available to you.

Any rules to follow?
There’s no definite rules, no. Of course standard procedures would still apply, so don’t tweet about typing 321 instead of 123 for your credit card’s security code. Also – somethings will always be personal to you. It’s preferred not to tweet from inside the bathroom, or at least not about what you’re doing inside. You’d likely see a few followers leave around that point, especially if your descriptive English is good.

Anything else?
I think that’s covered the basics mostly. One thing I will mention, though, is don’t be disheartened if you don’t have many followers. It’s likely you’ll start of with only a few people, and it seems as though you’re talking to a brick wall. If you’re tweets are interesting, people will slowly begin to find, and follow you. Not in a weird way, either. Following people you find interesting is a good start too. Those people will also visit your profile, and if they feel the same about you – they’ll likely follow back. Twitter has been used in numerous news stories around the world, offering first hand accounts and beating the press to events too. You can use Twitter to follow your friends, people in the same, or similar field to you, newspapers/companies that you enjoy learning about – you get the idea.

I hope that answers a few questions people have been having regards to Twitter. If there’s anything else you’d like to know, shoot me an email: edparry@me.com.

Also feel free to follow myself on twitter: twitter.com/edparry92

Today, Apple unveiled a preview of OS 3.0 for iPhone and iPod touch. There were some very welcome updates featured, including cut, copy and paste functionality. Along side this, was MMS, push notifications, turn by turn GPS, and a version of Spotlight.

If you swipe left on the home screen, you’ll be presented with Spotlight – designed to help you search your entire iPhone. This includes contacts, calendars, music, email, applications – everything. If it can’t find what you’re looking for, it’ll go to the servers. Whether that be your email’s IMAP server, applications push servers, or MobileMe.

Turn-by-Turn GPS is another thing I wasn’t expecting to see this morning. Apple are now allowing developers to write programs offering true GPS functionalities, but have only one rule – bring your own maps. The iPhone uses Google Maps, but due to copyright and other such rulings, third-party developers will not be able to use Google Maps for their own GPS applications. This shouldn’t cause too big a problem for most, however.

Apple have released a Beta of iPhone 3.0 to developers who are part of Apple’s development program today. The full and complete version of the OS will be available to users at some point over the summer. Likely to be a random Tuesday either in May or June. Maybe they’ll release it along side new iPhone’s at this years World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June.

So is iPhone 3.0 all you thought it would be? I expected copy and paste to be there, as well as MMS. I was pleasantly surprised with push notifications – even though we’ve been waiting months to see them. The Spotlight feature will be interesting to use, and to see how effective it will be.

Apple also mentioned tethering. If you’re unsure of this term, it means hooking your iPhone up to your computer, and using it as a modem. So if you’re out of reach for a WiFi signal, but need to get online, you could use your iPhone as a modem card. Using your 3G/EDGE signal, you’d be able to get online. Apple stated that they’ve inbuilt the possibilities to do this, but are still waiting for information from carriers. So it’s in AT&T, and O2’s court for now. The technologies there if they’re willing to let it happen.

There were quite a few application demo’s during this mornings keynote. Reading live-blogs and viewing images doesn’t do demo’s justice. And so I’m waiting to watch the recording of the session via Apple’s website. It should be available to watch and download later tonight.

I’m certainly looking forward to iPhone OS 3.0. Over 100 new features for the customer, and 1000 API’s now available to the iPhone developer.

Read the latest information on MMS, Push Notifications, and Copy & Paste.

If you’re a user of Mac OS X, you will most probably be familiar with Spotlight, Apple’s search function for your Mac. It’s a clean simple tool that categorizes any search results into documents, music, applications, etc. for you to easily and quickly find what you’re looking for. But sometimes Spotlight can find too many un-related files. A search for ‘computer’ for example, found over 6,000 items. Many of which were source files or hundreds of browsing history items. So for finding that one document you wrote a few weeks ago, Spotlight may not be your best option. How about something specifically developed to archive and search your files, and not Apple’s source files? Something that scans your documents for the words and phrases used, and allows you to search through them quickly. Something, say, that kept everything Together.

Together, by Reinvented Software is a simple intuitive application allowing you to easily search your files and folders. To avoid seeing results of files you know you’re not interested in, you are instructed to import folders into Together so it knows exactly what, and where to search. The importing process can be quite lengthy for a large number of files, but this also includes scanning all word processed documents for keywords you may use to search. The actual search process is quick and efficient, with results sorted alphabetically.

Using labels familiar in Finder, you can categorize your files and folders, to keep them more organized and so making the search process simpler in the process. The library (again similar to Finder) splits your contents into its respective form, whether that be images, music, movies, documents or even bookmarks. Togethers’ interface is similar to that of Apple’s Finder and other applications such as iPhoto. The sidebar featuring the Library is a prominent tool and clearly shows exactly what files you have, what they are and where they are stored. Using Together, you have control over your files.

Together not only has a sleek interface, but also what’s referred to as its drag shelf. A small tab sits on the right of your screen that reveals your library when clicked. You are able to drag and drop files from anywhere straight into your library or specific folder from the drag shelf while the import process takes place behind your applications and does not slow your computer down. Another great feature of the drag shelf is note taking. I often find myself writing on scrap paper, or waiting for Pages to load to write a few sentences of information down. With the drag shelf, you can use the Quick Note option to quickly and effortlessly write yourself a reminder or information about a website etc. The notes are saved with the rest of your library and so can be easily viewed and of course, are included in searches.

MobileMe subscribers will also be happy to learn that Together syncs with MobileMe, allowing you to access your library and notes from any computer, and can keep multiple computers up to date with the current documents. Support for automations using AppleScript means you can effortlessly make imports, exports and modifications a breeze.

Reinvented Software’s Together application is a wonderful application, with a solid feature list and clean integration with your Mac and MobileMe. I find myself using Together instead of Spotlight for its sheer power in search and organization. With Together, I know where everything is, I can group it with related items and preview its contents in its original formatting.

A must-have application for people with hundreds of files that would improve their workflow with simple, yet highly effective organization and powerful search capabilities.

A touch-screen device from Apple has been in the rumor mill for quite some time. But recently, its once again emerged, this time with a little more evidence.

According to an un-named source, Apple have placed an order for 10-inch touch-screens from a Taiwan company. The source is apparently close to the company.

So maybe this will be Apple’s entry into the netbook/tablet market later this year. Something like this along with Steve Job’s return, would be great. It will, however, be very interesting to see how Apple handles this. Of course it won’t be another store update like the desktop updates or the new iPod shuffle. It’s most likely to be around WWDC if not later. For something of this scale, Apple may hold their own event at Cupertino.

Apple will need to be careful that this isn’t a cheap product, will still keeping the price low. The build quality, user interface and control methods need to be Apple’s usual excellent standard. But for the size and market, the price will need to be, as an estimate, around the £500 mark.

I’m not sure if I’d personally buy a touch-screen computer. At least not without a wireless keyboard to type on. A downside for the iPhone is typing on the screen – you loose screen space, and errors are quite frequent. Maybe a keyboard will slide out – who knows?

I’m sure more rumors will follow during the coming months, but we’ll have to wait until the third quarter of this year to see results, if anything, from Apple regarding an Apple tablet.

The internet has allowed the transfer of information to happen incredibly quickly. Twenty years ago, a news story may take days to reach everyone. Now, it takes a few minutes. The plane crash into the Hudson River in NYC last month was first reported through Twitter. A man who was on a passing boat saw the plane, took a picture with his iPhone, and posted it. He then forgot about it, until he had numerous news organizations wanting to know more.

Services such as Twitter allows news to travel fast. If something happens and someone tweets about it, everyone hears it. Many top news services, including the BBC, all have presence on Twitter, with some employing people to stream through searching for relevant news or updates.

So the internet has changed the way we receive information. Many stories published in print are old news by the time you’ve read them. So is journalism moving online? I’d like to think so.

I never seemed to good at English throughout school. I got two B grades, but they didn’t come easily. As soon as I thought I’d finished with creative writing, analysis etc… I began ed-parry.com. Now, I write regularly for here, Appletell and soon Desktop Vibes. The biggest of these is Appletell; an American website focusing on Apple news and information.

So what defines a journalist? I wouldn’t class myself as one at all, but what about editors for say, Engadget? Their job is to cover news to publish. That sounds fairly similar to a journalist, just simply online, not on paper. But surely that doesn’t matter in this day? I hardly ever pick up a newspaper, but I regularly scan BBC News, and follow the BBC and my local newspaper through Twitter for updates during the day.

I would imagine contributors to solely the BBC News website, are journalists. Bill Thompson is the BBC’s technology journalist. While he writes for printed publications such as Focus Magazine, he also appears a lot through news.bbc.co.uk. He’s a journalist though, right?

I feel as though I’m wondering slightly, so I’ll get to the point. I feel, in this age, a blogger or online writer, is a type of journalist. Although not necessarily by profession. I don’t mean personal bloggers, though. This site is my personal blog. I write about topics that interest myself – not the wider public. But say, at Appletell, I write about the latest happenings – similar to a news website – but focusing on Apple.

Wouldn’t you say that’s journalism?