Back in March, I posted to Mac Mojo about Excel's Analysis ToolPack add-in and Office 2008.
For those that don't know, Analysis ToolPak (ATP) is a wildly useful tool that provides 19 different data analysis options to Excel users. If you're looking to do a quick histogram, ANOVA or covariance test, ATP is one of those features that can make you fall in love with Excel all over again.
There's just one problem: while ATP shipped with earlier versions of Office (such as Office 2004), it didn't come with Office 2008. Why? Well, ATP was built on top of Visual Basic. When VB was removed from Office 2008, ATP went with it. That meant the Excel team has had no way to offer these data analysis functions to Office 2008 customers.
Until today, that is.
I'm incredibly pleased to announce the return (and immediate availability!) of a data analysis solution for Excel 2008 customers.
StatPlus:mac LE is a free, downloadable data analysis application for Mac OS X that works with Excel 2008 (12.1.5 or later). It works on Tiger (10.4.11) and Leopard systems (10.5.6), as well as PowerPC and Intel processors. It's available in English, French, German, Italian, Portugese, Russian and Spanish.
StatPlus:mac LE is not an Excel add-in. Like Solver for Excel 2008, it is a full-blown Mac application ("StatPlus.app") that uses AppleScript to communicate with and drive Excel. It provides all the same functions as Analysis ToolPak, which makes it a nice, drop-in replacement for ATP users.
Finally, one of the best things about StatPlus:mac LE is its pedigree. StatPlus:mac LE is a limited-edition version of the professional-grade analysis tool StatPlus:mac from AnalystSoft. AnalystSoft's business is analytics, and they make a family of analytics products for Macintosh and Windows systems. Consequently, StatPlus:mac LE is built from the same, professional-grade engine that StatPlus:mac customers have come to rely on.
The Mac Excel team and AnalystSoft have been working together for the past several months to tailor StatPlus:mac LE to mirror ATP's functions, and meet the needs of ATP users. We're very, very pleased with the result, and we think you will be, too.
So how do you get it?
Obtaining StatPlus:mac LE
We have tried to keep the process of getting, installing and using StatPlus:mac LE as simple as possible. The steps are:
Double-click on the newly-created "statplusmacle" folder.
Double-click on the "Install" folder.
Double-click the "SPM" disk image file to mount it. The "StatPlus:mac" window will appear.
Move the StatPlus.app file to your /Applications folder (or any other place you like).
If you plan to use StatPlus:mac LE a lot, drag its icon to your Dock.
That's it!
Using StatPlus:mac LE
Once StatPlus:mac LE is on your machine, you're ready to go. Just do the following.
Launch Excel 2008.
Open (or create) the workbook with the data you wish to analyze.
Click the StatPlus icon in your dock. StatPlus:mac LE will launch.
Select the analysis function you wish to use from the StatPlus:mac LE menu system, and the relevant interface will appear (see Figure 1, "Linear Regression").
At this point, you'll select the range of data in Excel you wish to work with, set target values and variables, and perform the analysis much as you would expect.
Figure 1 - Linear Regression In StatPlus:mac LE
Since ATP and StatPlus:mac LE are different products, the nomenclature is a bit different between the two. If you're an ATP user who is upgrading, you can use the following list to find your favorite function (the ATP function is in bold):
ANOVA - Single Factor
Statistics >> Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) >> One-way ANOVA (simple)
ANOVA - Two-Factor With Replication
Statistics >> Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) >> Two-way ANOVA
ANOVA - Two-Factor Without Replication
Statistics >> Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) >> Two-way ANOVA (Advanced Option)
Correlation
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Linear Correlation (Pearson)
Covariance
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Covariance
F-Test Two-Sample For Variances
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> F-Test For Variances
Fourier Analysis
Statistics >> Time-Series Forecasting >> Fast Fourier Transform - Direct
Histogram
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Histogram
Moving Average
Statistics >> Time Series/Forecasting >> Moving Average
Random Number Generation
Data >> Random Numbers Generation >> Normal Distribution
Rank and Percentile
Statistics >> Nonparametric >> Rank and Percentile
Regression
Statistics >> Regression >> Linear Regression
Sampling
Data >> Random Sample
t-Test: Paired Two Sample for Means
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Comparing Means (T-Test)
t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Equal Variances
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Comparing Means (T-Test)
t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Comparing Means (T-Test)
z-Test: Two Sample for Means
Statistics >> Basic Statistics and Tables >> Two-Sample z-Test for Means
Finally, as you're using StatPlus:mac LE, you will notice some of the menus are marked with a "PRO" icon (see Figure 2). This designates a function that is available in the commercial StatPlus:mac, but not the free StatPlus:mac LE. If you're in need of a more full-featured analysis solution, consider StatPlus:mac. (It currently has a 30-day trial, and retails for $250; discounts for academic and volume users are available.)
Figure 2 - StatPlus:mac LE Menu System
So that's the news. Data analysis has returned to Excel 2008, and Mac users who rely on ATP functionality are just a free download away from what they've been missing.
One final note: all of us here on the Mac Excel team are grateful for the help and hard work of the folks at AnalystSoft. They definitely went the extra mile to make this a solid release for the Mac community, and we're incredibly happy with how things came together. Hats off!
yay, a FREE version of software that we need to pay to upgrade to get lots of features, for something that should have been included for free, made by MICROSOFT, as it does in the PC edition.
It may be good, but it's not going to be the same as the PC version, making it more confusing and complicated.
I'm grateful, yes, but disappointed also.
Nice job. And when the hell is the next version of messenger for mac coming?
Maaren
May 07, 2009
10:22am
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
Nice tool
Some remarks:
I don't have Office 2008 for mac (yet)
so I don't need this tool now
The only thing than is: I read this topic, and I am interested. But when searching for more details, I was referred to that other site.
When I ever need this tool, I hope there is more info on the Mactopia site itself? Or at least a link so we easier can find this tool? When I need this tool I will not remember the name anymore...
Somewhat off-topic:
-I am also waiting for messenger for mac (I hope it has support for offline messages, the most missed thing in my environment)
-I doubt if I will buy MS Office for mac, because it is not the same as the Windows version.
Just place the tabs after the Apple-menu, but give it a color when active, or a good visible colored line under the menu (that's easier to make)
Further: continue to work!
Maaren
Mohamed
May 06, 2009
11:19am
Thanks a lot!
Thanks a lot for this, hope u find a way to include support for arabic and other RTL.
Corentin Cras-Méneur
May 06, 2009
11:19am
Not working
I simply can't get the free version to work on my Mac. I can select the ranges to be analyzed the the OK buttons doesn't do a thing.
The demo version for the Pro edition works just fine though.
I was also reading the previous comment: most of what I see accessible for free in this package already is in Excel… You don;t need this package to do a t-test for instance. THe package is simply supposed to make it easier I guess
Jeff2525
May 07, 2009
8:08am
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
So your 'solution' is for your customers to buy software from another company? Interesting way you guys are going.... and then you have software that advertises that the user is using a water-down version by showing all the grayed out "Pro" options that they *could* get. I hated it that quicktime did it, and now you guys are doing it too.
But at least it is something, and I am sure you guys worked hard on some parts of this.
And as tominic asked, when is Messenger for Mac finally coming out?
I'm sorry if my post was unclear. StatPlus:mac LE is a free product - there's no need to buy anything. While AnalystSoft does make a pro version (StatPlus:mac), you're not required to buy it; furthermore, the LE version doesn't expire (e.g., isn't time-limited).
Relative to Analysis Toolpak, StatPlus:mac LE isn't watered down at all. We worked very closely with AnalystSoft to ensure that we provided the same functions and features that we shipped with ATP & Excel 2004.
If you've got specific concerns about the functions in the product, I'd be very happy to hear them and see if we can get them addressed with AnalystSoft.
We have updated the help topics for Office 2008 to assist people in finding information about StatPlus:mac LE. Any Office 2008 customers have have their online help turned on (which is most of them) will get the updated article over the next few days. We've also made the article easy to find with lots of relevant search terms. It should be no problem at all to find it.
Thanks for your question!
R_poetic
May 08, 2009
7:42am
Great work!
With StatPlusLE and Solver, you at MacBU and the folks behind these 2 products have filled in some significant gaps in the initial capabilities of X2008. It might be heresy, but for some tools, such as histogram, I prefer the StatPlus version to the earlier Excel versions!
Hey, thanks for the kind words, R_poetic! That totally made my morning.
Jani
May 16, 2009
7:11pm
Good start for fixing issues! But still a long way to go...
The StatPlus pack is a nice thing. Thx to all that worked on it! (Same for the solver!)
But please integrate the Statplus and the solver into Excel. I don't want to spam my dock with all these excel add ons. And I don't like all these different user interfaces (the "pro" marked menu items look horrible). Having to update all these add ons from different web pages is not very practical either.
I bought Excel and I had Excel in mind when I bought it. So please finish it and send it out as an update, servicepack what ever for all office 2008 users. This would help everyone very much.
Having not enough people in the programming staff is not an excuse. You are Microsoft. The largest software company on the planet
Jeff2525
May 16, 2009
7:11pm
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
Gavin,
You guys do an absolutely amazing job, and I am sure you guys are highly (stressed highly) skilled. The use of another company just threw me off, even just MS working with another company threw me off. Also, seeing the grayed out "Pro"s in the menu caused me to feel like its a watered-down version... it makes me feel like that with any software that does that.
I just wanted to explain why I said it feel/felt like a watered-down version, and also to make sure you guys didn't get offended.
Also, can you see about getting an update blog on Messenger for Mac.... Its like waiting for your favorite holiday, but it seems to never come (I'm a geek, I know haha). I just want to replace my ugly aMSN.
Comments | Who's Blogging This
tominic
May 06, 2009
10:51am
great...
It may be good, but it's not going to be the same as the PC version, making it more confusing and complicated.
I'm grateful, yes, but disappointed also.
Nice job. And when the hell is the next version of messenger for mac coming?
Maaren
May 07, 2009
10:22am
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
Some remarks:
I don't have Office 2008 for mac (yet)
so I don't need this tool now
The only thing than is: I read this topic, and I am interested. But when searching for more details, I was referred to that other site.
When I ever need this tool, I hope there is more info on the Mactopia site itself? Or at least a link so we easier can find this tool? When I need this tool I will not remember the name anymore...
Somewhat off-topic:
-I am also waiting for messenger for mac (I hope it has support for offline messages, the most missed thing in my environment)
-I doubt if I will buy MS Office for mac, because it is not the same as the Windows version.
Just place the tabs after the Apple-menu, but give it a color when active, or a good visible colored line under the menu (that's easier to make)
Further: continue to work!
Maaren
Mohamed
May 06, 2009
11:19am
Thanks a lot!
Corentin Cras-Méneur
May 06, 2009
11:19am
Not working
The demo version for the Pro edition works just fine though.
I was also reading the previous comment: most of what I see accessible for free in this package already is in Excel… You don;t need this package to do a t-test for instance. THe package is simply supposed to make it easier I guess
Jeff2525
May 07, 2009
8:08am
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
But at least it is something, and I am sure you guys worked hard on some parts of this.
And as tominic asked, when is Messenger for Mac finally coming out?
May 07, 2009
8:13am
I'm sorry if my post was unclear. StatPlus:mac LE is a free product - there's no need to buy anything. While AnalystSoft does make a pro version (StatPlus:mac), you're not required to buy it; furthermore, the LE version doesn't expire (e.g., isn't time-limited).
Relative to Analysis Toolpak, StatPlus:mac LE isn't watered down at all. We worked very closely with AnalystSoft to ensure that we provided the same functions and features that we shipped with ATP & Excel 2004.
If you've got specific concerns about the functions in the product, I'd be very happy to hear them and see if we can get them addressed with AnalystSoft.
Thanks for your post!
May 07, 2009
10:26am
We have updated the help topics for Office 2008 to assist people in finding information about StatPlus:mac LE. Any Office 2008 customers have have their online help turned on (which is most of them) will get the updated article over the next few days. We've also made the article easy to find with lots of relevant search terms. It should be no problem at all to find it.
Thanks for your question!
R_poetic
May 08, 2009
7:42am
Great work!
May 08, 2009
7:43am
Jani
May 16, 2009
7:11pm
Good start for fixing issues! But still a long way to go...
But please integrate the Statplus and the solver into Excel. I don't want to spam my dock with all these excel add ons. And I don't like all these different user interfaces (the "pro" marked menu items look horrible). Having to update all these add ons from different web pages is not very practical either.
I bought Excel and I had Excel in mind when I bought it. So please finish it and send it out as an update, servicepack what ever for all office 2008 users. This would help everyone very much.
Having not enough people in the programming staff is not an excuse. You are Microsoft. The largest software company on the planet
Jeff2525
May 16, 2009
7:11pm
Re: Now Available: Data Analysis For Excel 2008!
You guys do an absolutely amazing job, and I am sure you guys are highly (stressed highly) skilled. The use of another company just threw me off, even just MS working with another company threw me off. Also, seeing the grayed out "Pro"s in the menu caused me to feel like its a watered-down version... it makes me feel like that with any software that does that.
I just wanted to explain why I said it feel/felt like a watered-down version, and also to make sure you guys didn't get offended.
Also, can you see about getting an update blog on Messenger for Mac.... Its like waiting for your favorite holiday, but it seems to never come (I'm a geek, I know haha). I just want to replace my ugly aMSN.