REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 24, 2001 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the release to manufacturing of Office v. X for Mac, its latest productivity suite developed exclusively for Mac OS X version 10.1. In anticipation of Nov. 19 retail availability, Microsoft has been offering preorder sales of the Office v. X suite, generating excitement and anticipation in the Macintosh community.
“The Nov. 19 release of Office v. X for Mac is generating tremendous excitement in the Mac community,”
said Kevin Browne, general manager of the Macintosh Business Unit at Microsoft.
“We’re proud to say that we’ve been able to develop the best native Mac OS X application out there, in just about a year’s time. Our customers are going to be amazed at how well Office v. X runs on Mac OS X. With extensive support for Aqua, Quartz and Sheets, as well as the new features in all the applications, particularly Entourage™ X, this is an unprecedented release of Office for Mac.”
Expanding on its history of commitment to and investment in the Macintosh community, between now and Dec. 31, Microsoft is offering a Technology Guarantee to customers who have acquired Office 2001 for Mac or an individual application such as Word 2001 for Mac. The Technology Guarantee makes these customers eligible for a free copy of Office v. X for Mac. For details and to download the coupon for the Technology Guarantee, customers can visit http://www.microsoft.com/mac/ or their nearest reseller.
“Office v. X for Mac sets the bar for native Mac OS X applications. It is the prime example of how developers can take advantage of the power and features of Mac OS X,”
said Ron Okamoto, vice president of World Wide Developer Relations at Apple Computer Inc.
“Microsoft has gone to lengths to use the power of our Quartz graphics engine and the elegance of the Aqua interface to create stunning, fast applications with features available only on the Mac.”
Record Number of Mac OS X Users Download Word X Test Drive
To give users of Mac OS X version 10.1 the opportunity to try out Office v. X before it hits store shelves, Microsoft made available a free prerelease version of Word X Sept. 25. To date, the Word X Test Drive has been downloaded by more than 90,000 people via the Microsoft® Web site. Users of Mac OS X can still download the Test Drive from http://www.microsoft.com/mac/ .
Office v. X for Mac: A Native Mac OS X Productivity Suite
Office v. X for Mac combines the power of word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, e-mail and personal information manager (PIM) programs with the stability and reliability of Mac OS X. The suite has been designed with core Mac OS X technologies, including Aqua, Sheets and Quartz, built directly into the product. New feature enhancements also have been made to Entourage X, the e-mail application, and PIM, as well as to Word X, Excel X and PowerPoint® X.
Each of the applications in Office v. X includes a bold and classy new Aqua appearance that is in keeping with the Mac OS X user interface. All the components of the Office v. X user interface — from dialog boxes to toolbar icons — have been Aquified, offering a smoother and cleaner appearance as well as enhanced discoverability.
Sheets have replaced select dialog boxes and alerts in Office v. X, enabling users to multitask within or between applications. When a user clicks to save a Word document, for instance, a Sheet appears in place of a dialog box. The user can choose to open a different Word document or continue working in another application, without having to complete the save first.
Quartz 2-D Drawing technology in Office v. X makes it easy to create graphically rich and compelling documents that look truly professional. It allows users to add anti-aliased lines and shapes to give documents a smooth and finished appearance. Quartz also enables true transparency, so shapes, objects and pictures can be layered to reveal items behind them.
In addition to Mac OS X technologies built into Office v. X, the suite delivers features that enable users to complete projects faster and more easily than ever before. As the cornerstone of Office v. X, Entourage X boasts a refined, easier-to-use interface, improved support for Internet standards, and several new features to help users manage e-mail and personal information. Other new features in Office v. X include Multi-Selection and Clear Formatting in Word X, AutoRecover and Customizable Keyboard Shortcuts in Excel X, PowerPoint Packages in PowerPoint X, as well as many more improvements.
Pricing
Office v. X will be available as an upgrade version for an estimated retail price (ERP) of $299 (U.S.) and as a standard version for $499 (ERP).* Customers who are interested in preordering Office v. X can find a list of participating resellers at http://www.microsoft.com/mac/ .
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
* Reseller prices may vary.
Microsoft, Entourage and PowerPoint are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Apple, Mac and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.
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