Apple Releases iWork '09 9.0.3, Updates iWork.com

Apple today released iWork '09 9.0.3, bringing fixes for several minor issues as well as general improvements in a number of areas.

This update addresses general compatibility issues, improves overall stability, updates the help, and fixes a number of other minor issues in Keynote, Pages, and Numbers. The issues addressed include:

- Reducing file size of images that have Instant Alpha applied
- Managing file size when inserting some movies
- Working with dates and durations in the Chart Data Editor in Keynote and Pages
- Exporting to CSV from Numbers when using table categories

Improvements to comment notification and security in iWork.com Beta are also included in this update.

Detailed information on changes included in the update are available on Apple's support page for the update. The download weighs in at 59.62 MB and requires OS X 10.4.11 or OS X 10.5.6 or later.

Apple has also updated its iWork.com beta online collaborative document hosting service. The company is highlighting three changes deployed today as part of the revamp:

1. Protect Your Shared Documents With Passwords

Safeguard your shared documents on iWork.com by using a password. To add a password to your document, select the 'Privacy' box in the Publish window. Enter a unique password for the document. You can even use the OS X Password Assistant to help create a strong password. Remember to send the password to the intended viewer.

2. Stay Up To Date With Your Viewer's Comments

Viewers invited to an iWork.com document can provide feedback by leaving comments and document notes. Comments can be made on specific text in a Pages document, cells in a Numbers sheet, and on a Keynote slide.

iWork.com lets you know when a viewer has left feedback by sending you an email notification every time a new comment or note is added. You can adjust how often you receive these notifications by selecting from options on your Shared Documents page. Choose from Immediate, Hourly, Daily or Never.

3. Inviting Viewers Made Easy

The most recent update to iWork.com makes it easy for you to share your documents with your viewers. With the new server-based email, invitations are sent directly from Apple's servers. You don't need to depend on your desktop email application to send email invitations anymore.

Also, when you add new viewers online on iWork.com, the server sends them invitations directly without you needing to send a URL.