We have two big announcements: First, after two years, we are closing down the Numbers Templates Forums. Second, we are starting a new site called AppleInquiry.com, which will serve as the new home for the content generated on the forum.

We have many reasons for doing this. Chiefly, we believe that the software behind AppleInquiry.com (the same that runs the sites StackOverflow.com and SuperUser.com) is vastly superior for quickly finding answers to questions. Second, users earn reputation points as they ask and answer questions, which allows for additional site privileges as you earn points (e.g., the ability to comment on questions, or edit tags).

Also, we wanted to expand the scope of the discussion beyond Numbers into all things Apple. For example, if you are running Numbers and have questions, you probably have questions about the rest of the iWork suite, or iLife, or OS X. See the point?

AppleInquiry.com uses openid for logins, so your personal data will also be more-secure (we will be deleting our forum user database after the site transition is complete).

How does this differ from the discussion boards at Apple? It differs precisely because the Apple boards are forums. This means that the replies to any question are set out chronologically with no weight given to a particular response. With AppleInquiry.com users can vote up answers that they feel best answer the question. This allows the “wisdom of crowds” effect to kick in, resulting in the most-relevant answers rising to the top.

All content on AppleInquiry.com is licensed under the cc-wiki with attribution required license. This means anybody can use the content for any purpose as long as they link back to the source, and license their adaptations under a similar license. This also means the content can never be locked behind a “pay wall”.

Another awesome feature is the ability to subscribe to rss feeds for individual tags. So, if you wanted to follow all questions and answers related to Numbers, you could subscribe to this Numbers Tag RSS feed in your favorite reader. Also, you can choose to be emailed when someone answers one of your questions. Great, great, stuff.

What is the goal?

The ultimate goal of AppleInquiry.com is to become the first place users go to answer their Apple related questions; a Wikipedia for Apple questions if you will. In order to achieve this goal, we need your help. A site like this can only catch on with an active community. We hope that users will both find, and contribute useful content.

It is perfectly acceptable to use the site like a notebook. By that, we mean that you can answer your own questions if you feel that the knowledge you are posting would be something you may wish to refer back to quickly, and is something that you feel other users may find useful. Joel Spolsky describes it thusly, “You can find out about bread on the internet, but there should be an entry for bread in Wikipedia. That’s the purpose of an encyclopedia.”

One last caveat: The software that runs the software is currently in beta, so there could be some quirky issues at the start. Rest assured however, that these issues will subside. The software is being developed by Fog Creek Software, which has a reputation for hiring great developers and creating quality products.

If anyone is looking for a book on iWork ’08, or Numbers, Peachpit Press has recently released Apple Training Series: iWork 08, by Richard Harrington. I haven’t read it myself, but I did thumb through it at the Apple Store. It appeared to be a good introduction to the iWork Suite, as well as Numbers.

Here is the book description from Amazon:

Apple’s enhanced iWork productivity suite is poised to allow Mac users to create, present, and publish their work with style. iWork ’08 offers three powerful applications—Pages ’08, Keynote ’08, and the brand-new spreadsheet program, Numbers ’08—for creating everything from newsletters and stationery to polished business presentations to graphics-rich spreadsheets.
This self-paced learning guide, which includes a companion CD jam-packed with practical media files, takes readers step-by-step through essential, real-life tasks for home and office that cover all aspects of iWork ’08. The book is both a self-paced learning tool and the official curriculum of the Apple Training and Certification Program, used by schools and training centers worldwide, and is ideal for users of all levels.

To my knowledge, this is the only book currently in print that features Numbers.

Book details:

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Peachpit Press; 1 Pap/Cdr edition (October 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321501853
• ISBN-13: 978-0321501851
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.3 x 0.9 inches

Here’s something fun and useful: Graph Paper Templates. Just print a page out as you need it.

The zip contains four files:

1. graph-paper-small-grid.numbers: Graph paper template with grids spaced at .17 inches.
2. graph-paper-small-grid.pdf: PDF version of the small grid graph paper template.
3. graph-paper-large-grid.numbers: Graph paper template with grids spaced at .43 inches.
4. graph-paper-large-grid.pdf: PDF version of the large grid graph paper template.

Download and enjoy.

Download Graph Paper Template Template for Numbers

First off, yes this is a blog dedicated to Apple’s Numbers spreadsheet. 

That, in my opinion, does not preclude looking at other office programs on the Mac, and traditionally Mac Office has been the dominant player.  While I think Numbers is a great tool, and will meet the needs of a great deal of the casual spreadsheet user market, most power users will want to at least consider upgrading to the latest version of Mac Office.

Mac Office 2008 will be released on January 15.  It is the first version of Office that is specifically written to run on Intel chips (the last version, Office 2004, ran through the Rosetta emulator). 

Mac Office 2008 will fully read and write Office 2007 (the latest Windows version of Office) formats.  Numbers advertises that it can read and write to Office 2007 formats, but in practice, lets just say the execution leaves a lot to be desired. 

New features include "Elements Gallery", which allows you to quickly add layout features (which judging by the screen shots looks a lot like Pages).   Chart creation also seems to be greatly simplified and improved.  While creating Charts is fairly easy in Numbers, the types and customizability was lacking for most power and scientific users.

Users moving from Office 2007 will also notice that the "Ribbon" user interface did not make the move over to the Mac with this release.  I have been running Office 2007 at work and in Parallels on my Mac for some time now, and like the Ribbon for the most part, but I sometimes find myself digging for minutes looking for things.

It wouldn’t be Microsoft if they didn’t complicate things by putting out different versions, so here is a quick version comparison for Mac Office 2008:

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Home and Student Edition – This version will include licenses for up to three machines for non-commercial use.  It will include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage.  It will not support Automator scripting.

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Upgrade – If you have the standard version of Mac office 2004, you can purchase this to upgrade to Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac (see below).

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac – This version will get you all of the features of the Home and Student Edition, plus Automator support and full Exchange support.

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Special Media Edition – This version gets you all of the features of the standard edition plus Microsoft Expression Media, which is a digital asset management suite.

In conclusion, while I would prefer to not run Microsoft software on my Mac (it makes me feel a little dirty), I have to admit that I fall into the power user category and will be purchasing Mac Office 2008.

Speaking of which, I usually buy my Mac software through Amazon, since the nearest Apple Store is about 50 miles away.  You can also get a discount off retail and get free shipping.

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Home & Student Edition
$149.95 $130.99 Save $18.96 (13%) + free shipping

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Upgrade
$239.95 $214.99 Save $24.96 (10%) + free shipping

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac
$399.95 $354.99 Save $44.96 (11%) + free shipping

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Special Media Edition
$499.95 $449.99 Save $49.96 (10%) + free shipping

Hello everyone!  Sorry for the lack of new templates.  I have been very busy with the holidays, and work, plus my Mac has been acting up on me.  I hope to have some new stuff available soon. 

In the mean time, here are the posts featuring our most popular templates:

Checking Account Register Template: A simple template for managing a checking account with Numbers.

Loan Amortization Schedule: Detailed loan calculator / amortization schedule, with extra payment options.

Project Management Template with Gantt Chart: The title says it all.

Mortgage Refinance Calculator: See if it makes since to refinance your home.

Numbers version of David Seah’s Compact Calendar:  One of my favorite tools, a small yearly calendar for project planning.

Single Month Calendar: Make a monthly calendar for any year.

One Page Per Day Planner: This is still the best example, in my opinion, of what Numbers is capable of.

Toyota A3 Planning Template: This is a really nice template for planning the Toyota way.

Mileage Log: A simple sheet for tracking business related mileage.  Includes a reimbursement form.

Fuel Gauge Chart: A neat demonstration of what is possible with Numbers’ chart tools.

Scuba Diving Log: Template for tracking dives.

Fuel Mileage Template: Track your gas mileage.

Measurement Conversion Template: Convert measurements from one unit to another.

Net Worth Calculator: Figure out how much you are worth (money wise).

Blood Sugar Tracker: Track blood sugar levels daily.

Returning visitors may notice that we now have a new theme.

This theme is much cleaner than the old one, and is more easily edited.

I would also like to acknowledge MyMac.com for giving us a mention in a post yesterday.

For first time readers, please check back soon. I hope to announce a big new feature, hopefully later today, that will take this site to the next level.

More templates coming this weekend.

I’ve noticed something working with Numbers. It takes me a lot longer to create things in Numbers than Excel. It’s not because Numbers is missing a lot of features; it has 99% of what I need.  It’s that I want to make them look good! Unless you are designing a form in Excel, aesthetics are rarely a concern.

Stay tuned for the new templates.