Office+Suites

=Google Docs=

Google Docs is a suite of products that lets you create different kinds of online documents, work on them in real time with other people, and store your documents and your other files -- all online, and all for free. With an Internet connection, you can access your documents and files from any computer, anywhere in the world. (There's even some work you can do without an Internet connection!) This guide will give you a quick overview of the many things that you can do in Google Docs.

Documents List
Your Documents List is where you'll find all of the Google Docs you've created, files you've uploaded, and anything that's been shared with you. It's also where you can manage your Google Docs settings. Here's what you can do in your Documents List:
 * Create Google documents, spreadsheets, other file types, and collections.
 * Upload (from your computer, if you'd like), manage, and store files and folders.
 * Share Google Docs, files, and collections.
 * Preview your docs and files before you open or share them.
 * View images and videos that you've uploaded to your Documents List.
 * Search for items by name, type, and visibility setting.

Google documents
Google documents is an online word processor that lets you create and format text documents, and collaborate with other people in real time. Here's what you can do with Google documents: To learn more about Google documents, check out the [|Google documents getting started guide.]
 * Convert most file types to Google Docs format.
 * Add flair and format your documents, with options such as paint format, margins, spacing, and fonts.
 * Invite other people to collaborate on a doc with you, giving them edit, comment or view access.
 * Collaborate online in real time and chat with other collaborators.
 * View your documents' revision history and roll back to any version.
 * Download Google Docs to your desktop as Word, OpenOffice, RTF, PDF, HTML or zip files.
 * Translate a document to a different language.
 * Email your documents to other people as attachments.

Google spreadsheets
Google spreadsheets is an online spreadsheet application that lets you create and format spreadsheets, charts, and gadgets, and simultaneously work with other people. Here's what you can do with Google spreadsheets:

For more information about Google spreadsheets, check out the [|Google spreadsheets getting started guide.]
 * Import and convert .xls, .csv, .txt and .ods formatted data.
 * Export .xls, .csv, .txt and .ods formatted data and PDF and HTML files.
 * Use formatting and formula editing so you can calculate results and make your data look the way you'd like.
 * Chat in real time with others who are editing your spreadsheet.
 * Create charts and gadgets.
 * Embed a spreadsheet, or individual sheets of your spreadsheet, in your blog or website.

Google presentations
Google presentations is an online presentations editor that allows you to show off your work in a visual way. Here's what you can do with Google presentations: For more information about Google presentations, check out the [|Google presentations getting started guide]
 * Share and edit presentations with your friends and coworkers.
 * Import and convert existing presentations in .pptx and .pps file types.
 * Download your presentations as a PDF, a PPT, or a .txt file.
 * Insert images and videos, and format your slides.
 * Allow real-time viewing of presentations, online, from separate remote locations.
 * Publish and embed your presentations in a website, allowing access to a wide audience.

Google drawings
=== Google drawings is an online drawings editor that lets you create anything from a scribble to a flow chart while working collaboratively with other people. Here's what you can do with Google drawings: === For more information about Google drawings, check out the [|Google drawings getting started guide]
 * Share and edit drawings with your friends and coworkers.
 * Download your presentations as a PNG, JPEG, SVG, or PDF file.
 * Insert images, shapes, and lines, and format them to fit your preferences.
 * Real-time collaboration with other people, no matter where they are.
 * Insert a drawing into a document, spreadsheet, or presentation.

=Chromebook = **Windows Live SkyDrive** (also called **Microsoft SkyDrive** or simply **SkyDrive**) is a free-of-charge [|file hosting service] that allows users to upload files to a [|cloud storage] and then access them from a Web browser. It is part of [|Windows Live] range of online services and allows users to keep the files private, share them with contacts, or make the files public. Publicly-shared files do not require a Windows Live ID to access. The service offers 25 [|GB] of free personal storage, [|[1]] with individual files limited to 100 MB. [|[2]] The service is built using [|HTML5] technologies, and files can be uploaded via drag and drop. Built-in web apps for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote

CloudOn
The free CloudOn app lets you create and edit MS Office documents on your iPad.  (Credit: Screenshot/Story by Lance Whitney)

iPad owners searching for software to create [|Microsoft Office] documents now have a new and free app. The iPad app [|CloudOn] lets you create, edit, and view Microsoft documents using online versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Your documents are stored in the cloud via your DropBox account, letting you access them whenever you're online. Although it officially hit the App Store on January 3, [|CloudOn] was subsequently taken down when the company bumped into [|technical difficulties] as a result of huge demand. But CloudOn has since caught up with its service issues and is [|once again ripe for download] as of last Friday. The app is simple to set up. After creating your online account, you're asked if you have a DropBox account through which you can store your online documents. If not, you can create one on the fly. CloudOn then opens to reveal any documents you already have stored on DropBox. By default, the app displays your documents in List View showing you the name, date, size, and type. But you can switch to an Icon View to see small thumbnails of your files in one shot or a Flow View to swipe through a row of large thumbnails of all your files. Tapping a file opens it in a cloud-based version of Word, Excel, or PowerPoint 2010 that should prove familiar to any user of Microsoft's desktop suite. Complete with the ribbon interface, the online editions offer most of the basic editing, layout, and formatting commands that MS Office users know and sometimes love. Tapping within a document triggers the iPad keyboard--but with a few surprises. A row of blue keys above the standard keyboard displays the Ctrl, Alt, Del keys, the full range of function keys (F1 through F12), the four arrow keys, and dedicated Esc and Del keys. Beyond editing existing documents, you can create new ones in all three Office applications. And since the documents are automatically saved and synced with your DropBox storage, you can access them locally to edit them on your PC as well as your iPad. You can create new folders on your DropBox storage directly through CloudOn to organize your documents. The app also keeps a list of all open documents so you can quickly access any of them. Using CloudOn to edit your Office documents is about as close as you'll get to the full desktop experience on an iPad. The online versions worked very smoothly and provided virtually all the features I might use on a regular basis. The only drawback is that some of the icons and commands are small on a [|tablet] interface, so I found myself tapping the wrong ones at times. But like Microsoft's desktop version, CloudOn offers a handy undo button so you can erase any mistakes. The folks at CloudOn have hinted that they may kick in a [|tiered pricing structure] down the road that would keep some of the app's functions free while charging for others. The app also keeps [|track of the time you're online], suggesting that a future free version may limit your time.

**OnLive Desktop**

The OnLive Desktop is an app for your [|iPad] that gives you a virtual [|Windows] 7 desktop environment, as well as Office 2010 apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Adobe Reader and other basic Windows apps (Calculator, Notepad, Wordpad, Paint, Sticky Notes). Upgrading to the Plus service gives you access to a virtual Internet Explorer browser, which lets you surf the Web, including the ability to watch Flash-enabled videos, something the regular iPad doesn't do. Files created via the app are stored in the cloud by OnLive (2GB of free storage), and can be downloaded via your PC (you can also upload other files to the cloud storage area and access them within the iPad app). Why it's cool: Having a Windows 7 environment on your iPad adds another component for users (especially mobile travelers) who want to "ditch their notebook" for the tablet. The Office apps allow for content creation via the iPad that was only possible before with third-party apps. The Internet Explorer option is good if you want to view Web sites that use Flash. The app provides access to other apps, including four "Windows Touch Pack" games/apps (Blackboard, Garden Pond, Rebound and Surface Collage), but it's unclear whether you can install additional programs within the virtual environment. For example, when trying to view Netflix content via the IE browser, I couldn't get past the Silverlight plug-in install process. OnLive also says any changes the user makes to the Windows environment are not saved, except for IE browsing history and bookmarks. The app also works better if you have a Bluetooth-connected keyboard on your iPad, rather than relying on the Windows virtual keyboard inside the app. Most users interested in this as a way to "ditch their notebook" will likely already own an iPad keyboard for the purposes of content creation. There's also some very cool behind-the-scenes technology going on. The data connection between the OnLive servers and whatever site you're accessing is super-fast. OnLive says that "only the top layer of the currently visible part of a website is ever sent over the local connection." This can actually reduce Web browsing data usage for 3G/4G users, compared with the data usage that occurs on a normal 3G iPad, since less data is being sent over the mobile network. OnLive does recommend having a 1.5M to 2Mbps broadband connection, however, which could potentially create issues for 3G users, but not Wi-Fi home users with a modern broadband connection. Some caveats: This is not a complete OS integration between Windows and the iPad. If you have to do something like check your corporate email on the iPad, you leave the Windows virtual environment. Because you're saving files to the cloud, there's no local storage capability for documents on the iPad. It also appears that you can't install additional apps or even plug-ins to the environment.

Bottom line: This app and service won't cause you to stop buying notebooks and replace them with tablets (yet), but for existing iPad users (especially those mobile workers who want to travel lighter), the addition of Office app support and a Flash-supporting browser gets them a step closer to not having to take a notebook along with them. Watch this company to see how it develops in terms of offering environment customization (letting users download more programs or change plug-in settings, for example). 