PowerPoint - page 2

Yeah it’s the set of apps we love to hate—Microsoft Office 2011 for Mac. I know, it’s all be downhill since Word 6.0, but still MS Office is the standard for sending and receiving files. Myself, I’ve always liked Excel and I taught myself how to use Pivot Tables, but it wasn’t fun or easy. When I told other people “Oh, just use a Pivot Table and you can do all of that…” their response was “That’s too hard to learn, I’ll do it the way I’ve been doing it…”

Wow.

So how would you like to tap into all the features of MS Office 2011? Really learn it inside and out? Now you can with today’s deal—Microsoft Office for Mac Video Training Bundle for only $79! That’s almost a 60% discount off the usual $196!

One of the standout features of Apple’s iWork suite is how easy it is to make really standout documents and presentations. Compared to the basic and often drab files that Word, Excel, and PowerPoint produce, iWork-created files look bright, polished, and offer a sense of personality and style. While Office for Mac comes with a set of templates and design functions, they seem bland next to iWork and they aren’t anywhere near as easy to use.

Only Microsoft has the ability to make its tools less clunky and more intuitive, but other companies can spice things up with additional themes and templates. This week Theme Inn took up that challenge and succeeded rather spectacularly.

Quickoffice Pro HD is one of the App Store’s best third-party office suites, and until Microsoft Office hits the iPad, it’s the best way to view and edit Word and Excel documents on the go. Its latest update adds Powerpoint editing to that, in addition to native email support, an enhanced visual interface, and more.

Quickoffice is launching an enterprise version of its signature Microsoft Office-like iPad app that includes several noteworthy enterprise features, including data encryption and the ability to disable some consumer-oriented features that could lead to confidential business data being copied off of a user’s iPad. The update also incorporates volume licensing through Apple’s volume purchase plan as well as a year of premium maintenance and support.

While there are a number of solutions out there that offer iPad users the ability to view, create, and edit Office files, including Apple’s iWork apps, they tend to fall short of some enterprise needs. While it’s possible to meet these security and management needs by using a combination of mobile management products and native apps, those combinations really don’t integrate well into a single solution. The new Quickoffice ProSelect HD app is designed to address the security needs of IT and the productivity needs of users with a single app.

Last week Microsoft accused cloud gaming company OnLive and users of its OnLive Desktop of pirating Windows 7. OnLive made headlines when it launched OnLive Desktop earlier this year and again when it updated the product to support additional features and subscription plans. The app, which is available for the iPad and for Android, provides users with a cloud hosted Windows 7 desktop complete with the core Office apps (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) as well as Adobe Reader and a copy of Internet Explorer that iPad users can use to play Flash content.

After not voicing an opinion about OnLive Desktop for several weeks, Microsoft publicly announced that the OnLive was violating its license agreements and effectively breaking the law in the process. The issue appears to be specific to the licensing restrictions when offering Windows 7 in a virtual desktop scenario.

Although OnLive Desktop is probably the most well known cloud-based Windows and Office mobile solution, it isn’t the only one. And its competitors are quick to point the legality of their services and their compliance with Microsoft’s licensing policies.

The Apple TV isn’t positioned as a business or enterprise product, but its small size, easy setup, and AirPlay make it a very solid presentation tool – and the low cost doesn’t hurt, either.

While the Apple TV has the obvious advantage of being wireless and integrated with other Apple products, specific business advantages beyond its small form factor and the ubiquity of HDTVs and other HDMI-enabled display devices like projectors aren’t always immediately obvious (though those are pretty big advantages in their own right) – but at least one company is designing its business solutions around Apple’s so-called hobby device.

Business Intelligence developer MicroStrategy has taken the Apple TV/iOS combination to a new level by building its mobile apps around AirPlay and the Apple TV.

Last month, OnLive launched its free cloud-based Windows desktop app for the iPad. OnLive Desktop provides iPad users with a cloud-based Windows 7 desktop that comes complete with the standard Microsoft Office apps (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) and 2GB of storage. This week, the cloud-gaming company expanded the features and storage available to OnLive Desktop users via new subscription plans – one of the most notable being that OnLive Desktop can now play Flash videos and content.

The company will also be adding a more full featured “Pro” plan that will let users install additional Windows applications and an enterprise service that would allow companies to configure and manage virtual Windows desktops on the iPad’s of employees.

An official Microsoft Office suite for the iPad has long been the subject of hopeful rumors, but a leaked shot of the software in action on Apple’s tablet proves for the first time that it’s real, and that it is on its way to the App Store.

Following its launch in the U.S. back in January, CloudOn has finally arrived in the U.K., allowing British users to access Microsoft Office applications on their iPad. The free app lets you view, edit, and create Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents on your tablet, which can then be saved directly to your Dropbox account.

OnLive made headlines earlier this week when the company announced a new iPad app at CES which brings Windows 7 to the iPad, allowing you to run Microsoft Office applications like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Those of you who are interested in the app and you live in the U.S., you can grab it now, for free, from the App Store.

It’s been rumored that Microsoft is planning an iPad version of its popular Office productivity suite, but until then, we’ve got a free alternative. CloudOn is an iPad app that brings Word, Powerpoint, and Excel to your favorite Apple tablet.

CloudOn integrates with Dropbox to let you edit and create documents on the go. Your work is then synced back to your desktop.

Shared Paper is a lovely iPad app for making and sharing presentations on a huge scrollable canvas.