Today Microsoft has announced start of its Office Web Apps. This online version of Microsoft office is introduced to add more power to Microsoft office 2010. The access to web version of office is currently invite-only and will be passed on to some participants using their windows live id. This is light weight version of normal desktop office applications. Microsoft is also announcing the formal names for the Web-based applications. Together, the applications are called Office Web Apps. Individually, they include Word Web App, Excel Web App, PowerPoint Web App and OneNote Web App.
Half a billion people use Microsoft Office every day and Microsoft is planning to give them office on the move. The idea of Google Docs is same as to provide you all the office features online. The only difference for now I can see is, Google Docs are free for everyone to use, but Office Docs which are going to evolve today onwards will not be free and will only be available to users who have its Microsoft Office’s license. However Microsoft gives option to subscribe for volume licenses as in case of Microsoft office.
This might be useful for the users who are in the habit to use Microsoft office and miss this application while they are on the move. Now they can get access to their office online, without the need to have any desktop application. To make the application respond faster , the web application will sync with the office installed in the system. However they promise to provide support on MAC and browsers like Firefox, Safari and of course Internet explorer.
The full feature set for Office Web Apps will be available in the first half of 2010, and offered in three ways. First, Windows Live customers will have access to Office Web Apps on Windows Live SkyDrive. Second, Office Web Apps will be available to Office 2010 volume licensing business customers, hosted with Microsoft SharePoint Server on-premises. Today, these include more than 90 million Microsoft Office annuity customers. Third, businesses will also have access to Office Web Apps through Microsoft Online Services.
Stay Digified !!
Sachin Khosla
