Word 2007 equations on Mac

[ahostmadsen]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

Since Microsoft employees are also active on this board I would like to ask the following:

Are there any plans to implement the new equation format in Word 2007 Windows on the Mac version at some point in time? If not, that leaves those of us in science who use Word in a bad shape. At the moment it's not a problem, as equation editor is still the standard (e.g., Science, Nature, IEEE journals do not accept the new format), but eventually the new format will be adopted widely. If it is not available in the Mac version that will make Word essentially useless for people in science.

I hope I can get at least a vague answer. If there is no plans to implement it, I will have to move even more to LaTex, which I already use to a large extent.

 

[Michel Bintener]

Hi,

I can't speak for Microsoft, but they generally tend not to make
announcements such as these in public. Microsoft is aware of the fact that
equations do not translate very well from Word 2007 to any of the Mac
versions, so one might assume that they are working on it, but again, keep
in mind that I do not and cannot know for certain.

Out of curiosity: are you aware that PDF is supported in Word 2008? I'm
asking because it might make it easier for you to get your LaTex equations
into Word documents. There used to be lots of problems with PDF and EPS in
earlier versions of Word, but things have improved considerably in that
area.

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

Since Microsoft employees are also active on this board I would like to ask
the following:

Are there any plans to implement the new equation format in Word 2007 Windows
on the Mac version at some point in time? If not, that leaves those of us in
science who use Word in a bad shape. At the moment it's not a problem, as
equation editor is still the standard (e.g., Science, Nature, IEEE journals do
not accept the new format), but eventually the new format will be adopted
widely. If it is not available in the Mac version that will make Word
essentially useless for people in science.

I hope I can get at least a vague answer. If there is no plans to implement
it, I will have to move even more to LaTex, which I already use to a large
extent.

--
Michel Bintener
Microsoft MVP
Office:mac (Entourage & Word)

*** Please always reply to the newsgroup. ***

 

[ahostmadsen]

Yes, I'm aware that PDF is supported (and works better than in iWork!), and I use some for other things. A possibility is to use LaTexIt. The problem for equations is 1) that it is one-way; you cannot edit the equations again 2) inline equations don't align correctly on the baseline. LaTexIt works well with Keynote (the reason I use Keynote over Powerpoint), fair with Pages, and not well with Word and Powerpoint. The workflow is anyway too complicated with many equations.

But the main issue is standards. Science is seldom done alone. People often collaborate on papers with others, who might use Windows. Also, journals need the source file, and currently what is accepted is 1) LaTex 2) Word .doc. Probably in the future .docx will be accepted, but then equations has to be done in Word 2007 format. So, I hope that at some time this will be available on Mac.

 

[ahostmadsen]

What I would hope for is a statement from Microsoft similar to the one about VBA: that at same time it will be implemented in Word.

 

[John McGhie]

If you want such a statement, you need to ask "Microsoft" for it. They're
not reading in here, so please don't expect it to be answered here.

Use Help>Send Feedback to make your request.

Of post a comment on the Mactopia Blog.

There's no point asking here: they won't see it.

My guess is that if Word 2007 has it, then Word 2010 will also have it. But
that's just a guess. And Word 2010 will be out in -- 2010 I guess

Cheers

What I would hope for is a statement from Microsoft similar to the one about
VBA: that at same time it will be implemented in Word.

--

Don't wait for your answer, click here: http://www.word.mvps.org/

Please reply in the group. Please do NOT email me unless I ask you to.

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP, Word and Word:Mac
Nhulunbuy, NT, Australia. mailto:[email protected]

 

[Bob Mathews]

...The problem [when using LaTeXit] for equations is 1) that
it is one-way; you cannot edit the equations again

If you want to use LaTeX for equations on the Macintosh, let me
suggest MathType. If you have an existing LaTeX equation, you can
paste it into the MathType editing window, and MathType will convert
it to a MathType equation. You can also type LaTeX directly into the
editing window. MathType also has translators that allow you to
translate existing equations into LaTeX equations, either one equation
at a time or the entire document with one command. (The "entire
document with one command" part isn't supported in Word 2008 because
of the lack of VBA.)

2) inline equations don't align correctly on the baseline. LaTexIt
works well with Keynote (the reason I use Keynote over Powerpoint),
fair with Pages, and not well with Word and Powerpoint. The workflow
is anyway too complicated with many equations.

MathType will "baseline" the equations nicely in Word. If there is a
product that will align text and equations in PowerPoint or Keynote,
I'm not aware of it. One solution is to type both text and equation in
the MathType editing window, but this being a Word newsgroup, we won't
discuss that here. Call my other office. ;-)

But the main issue is standards. Science is seldom done alone.
People often collaborate on papers with others, who might use
Windows. Also, journals need the source file, and currently what is
accepted is 1) LaTex 2) Word .doc. Probably in the future .docx will
be accepted, but then equations has to be done in Word 2007 format.
So, I hope that at some time this will be available on Mac.

Word + MathType is widely accepted by scientific journals, and makes
for easy collaboration between versions of Word, or between operating
systems.

--
Bob Mathews
Director of Training
Design Science, Inc.
bobm at dessci.com
http://www.dessci.com/free.asp?free=news
FREE fully-functional 30-day evaluation of MathType
MathType, WebEQ, MathPlayer, MathFlow, Equation Editor