Google apps! What is that? It is basically Word and Excel, but called Google Docs and Spreadsheets. Also, it includes a shareable calendar. The benefits are that these applications can be integrated or used along with Gmail, the e-mail software, Gtalk, the instant messaging and chat software, and Mobile software.
There is a mixed review on its online functionality. You need an Internet connection in order to run all of these programs. This is great if you use different computers, such as home, work, and on the road. So, you can access files via the Google online storage and not have to worry about where you store your files. The bad aspect is if you still are on the old dial-up or your Internet connection is not stable.
There is a standard edition which is free and the premier edition which has just been released. The big difference is that the premier edition allows more sharing and collaboration as well as a 10GB (versus at 2GB) e-mail storage capacity. The premier edition is $50/year and can be trialed until the end of April.
We think it is worth a shot and especially since the standard version is absolutely free. Overall, it is a great way to draft documents and spreadsheets. The cool factor comes along when you can use the mobile feature on your Blackberry or Treo to access files online.
