It came out in January, but Microsoft is already releasing the first service pack (SP1) for its Office 2008 for Mac. Although it contais no new features, the update will give increased stability and security, in addition to offering updates to specific applications. The update is available via Office’s integrated update feature, and as a standalone download from Microsoft’s Mactopia site (180 MB). Entourage users will want to note that the update changes the Entourage database, so users will not be able to revert to previous versions of the databases after the update.
But the big news, at least as far as Redmond is concerned, is the numbers of Office 2008 for Mac that it’s shifted. However, since the last version of the software was released in 2004, it’s perhaps not too surprising, although it does indicate the increased popularity of the Mac. But Microsoft must be happy that its software has done so well against Apple’s iWork suite.
Craig Eisler, general manager of the Mac BU at Microsoft, told MacNewsWorld:
"The response has been amazing — since we launched in January, the velocity of sales for Office 2008 is nearly three times what we saw after the launch of Office 2004. As we set our course for future versions, we are working closely with customers and will also expand our staff to ensure that Office for Mac remains the most powerful and compatible productivity suite for Mac customers."
In another significant announcement, Microsoft has also publicly committed to bringing back Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) in future versions of Mac Office. The automation and customization feature was removed from Office 2008 due to significant development hurdles and a desire to focus on Mac-specific automation technologies like Automator and AppleScript; however, outcry from a significant number of Mac Office users who need to create and run cross-platform macros has convinced the Mac BU to bring the feature back in future versions. The upshot is that users who rely on VBA may well wind up skipping Mac Office 2008 entirely, instead relying on VBA support that was present in Office 2004 until a new version of Mac Office is available.
