Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) just made it easier for people to collaborate with each other using Microsoft Office (NASDAQ:MSFT), by officially launching Google Cloud Connect Thursday.
Although it’s been in beta since last November, the synchronization service is now available to all, using Google’s vast cloud to store and synchronize any Microsoft Word, PowerPoint or Excel document.
If you have Microsoft Office, using Google Cloud Connect is as easy as downloading a plug-in, installing it and then seeing a toolbar at the top of your Office application. After your authorization, Cloud Connect saves a copy of your document online, and lets you share it with anyone you choose via an e-mail address.
Those on the receiving end click on the share link they’ve received via e-mail, and the file opens in Google Docs. At that point, they can download the document and work on it in Microsoft Word. When they make changes, the edits show up on the original document, too.
Documents can be edited in either Google Docs or Microsoft Office, and whoever is collaborating with you does not need to own Microsoft Office to edit those documents and synchronize the files with each other. It would seem that Google is using this free and convenient plug-in as a lure for those who might be tempted to use Google Docs instead of Microsoft Office.
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