The relationship between Apple and Microsoft has been pretty stormy over the years. These days, though, the two companies are actually pretty chummy, and Microsoft has received a big thumbs-up from Apple for Microsoft Office: Mac 2004.

The nice thing about the Mac version of Microsoft Office is that it isn't just a straight copy of the Windows version. It does include copies of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, and these are all compatible with their Windows counterparts so you can easily share files with friends or colleagues that use a PC. However, the Mac versions of these programs include many new features that you won't find in the Windows version of Microsoft Office.

Word 2004 gets a nice new Notebook mode for taking quick notes. It looks a bit like an on-screen Filofax, with small tabs that allow you to quickly flick from page to page. There's an improved search option for sorting through your notes, and you can even link audio recordings to notes, perhaps recording a college lecture or a meeting at work for future reference.

Excel 2004 makes good use of the Mac's graphics capabilities by adding fancy new graphics options, such as transparency effects and graduated colour fills, so that you can create very impressive-looking graphs and charts. PowerPoint gets a similar graphical boost, with lots of new animation and transition effects that you can use to jazz up your presentations.

However, some of the most important new features are shared across the entire Office suite, rather than belonging to one particular program. There's a new Toolbox palette that can be found in Word, Excel and PowerPoint, which provides access to a number of new features. The Toolbox is divided into several sections, such as the Scrapbook, which allows you to store files or snippets of text and graphics. Copy some text into the Scrapbook in Word, and it will also show up when you open the Scrapbook in Excel or PowerPoint.

The most important part of the Toolbox, though, is the Project Pane. This links Word, Excel and PowerPoint to Entourage, the all-in-one email, calendar and contact-management program that is entirely unique to the Mac version of Microsoft Office.

Entourage has been upgraded and acts like a central project-management program. When you use the Create Project command, Entourage creates a special project folder that stores all the files, emails, calendar entries and contact information relating to a particular project.

All this information can then be previewed from the Project Pane inside any of the Office programs. It's a clever and efficient method of organising projects, and will appeal to anyone that uses Office: Mac at work or in school.

Our only complaint is that the £369 price tag will be a bit steep for most home users. However, there is a special 'Student' edition that costs just £119, so if you've got kids you can take advantage of this saving.

Contact: Microsoft 0870 601 0100
www.microsoft.com/uk/mac

Price details:
Standard Edition - £369
Student/Teacher Edition - £119
upgrade from previous version - £219