Stan Beer
Tuesday, 21 August 2007 15:55
Business IT -
Technology
SaaS office productivity provider Zoho is about to make its online word processor Zoho Writer available offline with the help of Google. The result could offer a glimpse into the not too distant future of all office applications.
One of the criticisms of online office
productivity tools such as Google Docs and Spreadsheets, Zoho Writer
and others is that without an Internet connection they're not
accessible. On the other hand, online versions of applications such as
word processors, spreadsheets and presentation software free users from
the constraints of specific computers and enable a degree of
collaboration not possible with offline software.
Google is working to solve this problem using a beta application called
Google Gears which enables online software services to be accessed
offline by recreating the online software and data in an offline cache
which is synchronized with the online version when the user connects to
the Internet.
Zoho has announced that in the next few hours it will unveil a version
of Zoho Writer integrated with Google Gears. A user will be able to
select a "Go Offline" button from the toolbar while editing a document
and automatically download a designated number of documents for offline
access.
According to Zoho, users will not initially be able to edit documents
offline but just view them. However, offline editing functionality will
be added within weeks, according to the company.
No doubt what Zoho will be presenting is a precursor to what we can expect soon from Google's online office productivity suite.
For a short flash video presentation of what Zoho is doing in this regard visit this
page .