Keynote Objects is a package of 100 attractive icon-like objects that can be used not only with Keynote, but also with Microsoft PowerPoint and Word. All of the objects have a transparent background, and are easily resized, rotated, made more or less transparent, or shadowed.
I'm actually going to use several of the objects as icons for a new web site that I'm designing, simply because they offer an attractive and cohesive set of art objects. What will you use your free Keynote Objects for?
Do you find it annoying when you go to type in an e-mail address or hyperlink into Pages and it automatically thinks you want the text turned into a hyperlink? Well, you can easily change this setting in the preferences.
Just open Page's Preferences (Pages > Preferences, or use command + , (comma) to open preferences). Once there, select the "Auto-Correction" tab and un-check the box labeled "Automatically detect email and web addresses." Now when you start typing a link or e-mail address inside of Pages it will appear as text.
Apple has posted a online seminar on using iWork '08 in a business environment. Presented together with Rebecca Breitenkamp, the CFO of a biotech company that uses iWork internally, the half-hour video goes over some of the basic ways that Pages, Numbers, and Keynote can be used in a corporate setting. It not really a step-by-step tutorial, but more of a series of examples of how well iWork functions on what many folks think of as Microsoft Office's turf.
To watch the video you will need need to complete a free registration.
Today, Apple posted an update to the Keynote presentation app (part of iWork '08). This update, version 4.0.3, says that it "addresses performance and stability issues when working with large documents."
You can download this update by opening Software Update (Apple menu > Software update) or by downloading the installer package from the Apple support downloads site.
Please note: Users must have Keynote 4.0.2 installed on their computer to install this update.
We've written about KeynotePro before. They make very nice themes for Keynote that you'll be happy to use for your presentation.
This week, they've updated the "Ohm" theme for Keynote '08. It's been completely rebuilt to use shapes and placeholders native to Keynote '08, contains up to 58 master slides (the Pro version) and two palettes.
The Pro version includes 16:9 and 16:10 aspect-optimized versions, and the new OM '08 EP Edition is optimized for the iPod and iPhone. They look just as great on those tiny displays as they do when connected to a projector via video out.
Both versions require Keynote 4.0 or higher, and the Gill Sans and Helvetica Neue font faces. A single license will cost you $24.95US, though discounts are available for bundle orders and those who purchased earlier versions of the theme.
If you give many presentations on the Mac, chances are you're using Apple's Keynote presentation software. One cool feature in Keynote is the ability to demo something on your Mac without giving away your next slide or notes. When you're in the middle of a presentation, just hit the "h" key on your keyboard. This will hide the entire Keynote application and show your desktop.
When you press the h key, the Keynote icon in the dock will change and include a play button. When you want to resume your presentation, just click the Keynote icon in the dock.
Apple keeps the updates coming with new versions of Keynote (version 4.0.1), Pages (version 3.0.1) and Numbers (1.0.1). The description of each is typically cryptic. According to Apple...
The Keynote update primarily addresses issues with builds and performance.
The Pages update primarily addresses issues with change tracking and performance.
The Numbers update primarily addresses issues with tables and performance.
Sound good? If you've purchased iWork '08, launch software update.
David Weiss is an employee at Microsoft's MacBU, and while he has makes it clear that he doesn't speak for Microsoft or the MacBU, his recent post about iWork '08 is interesting from a couple of directions. He starts with a little self-congratulatory back-patting for Microsoft's embracing an "open" XML file format and talks a little bit about the challenges involved with "starting from scratch" in writing an office application. Most telling, however, is his conclusion. He writes that the "core value of Office on the Mac" is simple: compatibility. What's interesting about this is about what he doesn't say. He doesn't say that the "core value" of Office is getting your work done efficiently, or producing nice documents, spreadsheets or presentations. Basically what we need the MacBU for is to keep us compatible with Windows. And as I've started to play with iWork '08 I think he's more or less correct. Office for Mac is just about compatibility with Windows, not about giving Mac users the best user experience in document creation. And with Office for Mac dropping support for Windows-compatible macros, it increasingly looks like the MacBU isn't even doing that particularly well.
At this point, and assuming they make their January ship date, we're not going to see an Intel native Office for Mac until two full years after the first Intel Macs were released (two and a half years since the transition was announced). With Numbers, Apple has taken a decisive step. While it's not going to replace Excel for big-time number crunchers, it's absolutely good enough for casual users like myself. Keynote was already well ahead of PowerPoint in terms of beautiful presentations and the new Pages is a significant improvement as well, particularly for straight word-processing. Considering all this, it's getting hard to see what purpose there is in having Office unless you have to deal with cross-platform issues on a constant basis (especially since iWork '08 is already more compatible with Windows Office 2007 formats than Office for Mac 2004 is). I don't think Microsoft Office is going to die anytime soon; it's too entrenched in business for that to happen. But with iWork moving ahead the way it is, I don't really see any reason for non-business Mac users to fork over hundreds of dollars to Microsoft for a sub-standard user experience. I had initially assumed I'd automatically upgrade to Office for Mac 2008 whenever it ships; now I'm quite doubtful. These look like dark days for the MacBU to me. What do you think?
This isn't earth-shattering, nor is it breaking news but sometimes you just have to step back and enjoy the little things in life. I was watching a few of the iLife '08 and iWork '08 tutorials (posted about here and here) to get a feel for some of the new features. I clicked on a movie, watched it, and then clicked on another. Pretty straightforward, but then I noticed a little check mark had appeared next to the tutorials I had already watched.
Brian sent us (thanks!) what is probably the very first Keynote '08 hack. He found that there's a new stroke option in the program called Picture Frames, which are various types of framing graphics to put around a slide. The standard choice screen lets you choose from 12, but Brian opened up the Keynote files, and found that there were actually 72-- apparently Apple included Frames for its own Themes, but didn't allow the user to use them separately.
Fortunately, all it takes to show the extra frames is their names in an xml (actually a .plist) file inside the Keynote .app folder, so Brian cracked it open, and added all the names. Turns out, also, that no matter how much you stretch it, the Picture Frames choose can only show 50 at a time, so Brian even created a customized .plist file that shows his 50 favorites-- all you have to do is download it from him, put it inside your Keynote .app file, restart Keynote, and you've got access to almost all the Picture Frames that Apple does.
It's pretty clear why Apple didn't want people playing around with custom frames too much (opening a Keynote file with a custom frame requires that you have it installed, apparently, so sending a Keynote file to your friend without the custom frame could lead to trouble), but who knows why they didn't at least give you the option of using all the frames everyone has. Thanks to Brian's superfast hack, now you can.
Update: Just to make it clear, it's fine to use these hidden frames, since everyone has them installed. The problem with sharing frames comes when you send someone a slide with a frame you created-- they don't have that frame installed, and so they won't see it.
We've already told you about the iLife '08 tutorials that are available, but now it is iWork's time to shine. That's right, Apple has created a bunch of tutorials for their newly refreshed, and beefed up, productivity suite. This is your chance to learn how to use that 30 day demo to the fullest.
We reported that Office 2008 for the Mac has been delayed until January 2008, which means you'll have to use the beta file converter before you can open Word 2007 for Windows documents on your Mac (Office 2007 introduced a new file format called Office Open XML which Office 2004 for the Mac doesn't support. The converter dumbs down the file so Office for the Mac can open it).
Sure, you could do that, or you could use the first word processor for the Mac that supports that file format natively: Pages '08. That's right, Apple's little word processor that could can open Word 2007 documents (and earlier). It doesn't just open them either, Apple says that styles, tables, and other parts of the document are intact as well.
That sound you just heard? The MacBU screaming in frustration.
Are you chomping at the bit for iWork '08? Chomp no more (I mean, that can't be good for your teeth)! Apple has just made available a free 30 day trial for download. Take Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for a spin before you plunk down your hard earned cash for it. Now, if only Apple would do the same for iLife '08.
Today's been a real active refresh day. Not only did we get iLife '08, but iWork '08 debuted as well. iWork '08 contains Keynote, the presentation app, and Pages, the word processing program that also lets you perform basic layout tasks. The big news, though, is the new spreadsheet app, Numbers. Numbers offers a light version of non-microsoftish-Excel, much as Keynote and Pages do for Powerpoint and Word. Good news for everyone who was saddened at the Office '08 delayed release.
[Update: Looks like assumptions were right! Steve did indeed debut a new member to the iWork family, Numbers, and Erica has the details in a new iWork '08 post.]
Our hat is tipped to MySkitch user Steve for spotting what appears to be a new iWork icon in Steve Jobs' dock during today's Apple press event. Could this be some sort of iSpreadsheet? Possibly a Quicken-killer? We'll just have to wait and see, as Steve is still singing the praises of the new iLife and .Mac.
iPresentee, a small company providing themes and objects for Apple's iLife and iWeb software suites, is offering a free download of Keynote Objects. 
Today, Apple posted an update to the 
Apple keeps the updates coming with new versions of Keynote (version 4.0.1), Pages (version 3.0.1) and Numbers (1.0.1). The description of each is typically cryptic. According to Apple...
This isn't earth-shattering, nor is it breaking news but sometimes you just have to step back and enjoy the little things in life. I was watching a few of the 
Brian sent us (thanks!) what is probably 
We've already told you about the 
We reported that Office 2008 for the Mac has been delayed until January 2008, which means you'll have to use the 
