Google Docs and Spreadsheets

Google has launched a service which is primarily aimed at making collaboration easy. Writely (Google’s word processing application) has merged with Google’s Spreadsheets, creating a free service called Google Docs and Spreadsheets. You can sign up for free but you need to have a Google account to use the service.

Google Docs includes many tools including printing, emailing and formatting facilities. You can collaborate with other people on the same document and you can save in a variety of formats including Microsoft Office formats and Open Office formats as well as PDF, Rich Text and HTML. You can insert images, links, comments, tables and bookmarks as well as adding styles and checking your spelling.

Google Spreadsheets is a perfect solution for small businesses who want to access their data from anywhere. It includes everything you need for a basic spreadsheet and can export in the most popular spreadsheet formats. As with Docs you can collaborate with other people on the same spreadsheet. You can have multiple sheets and Spreadsheets including a massive range of formulas.

All documents and spreadsheets are stored in your account. You can upload documents and collaborate and work on them, it supports a wide range of formats.

This service is not only perfect for if you are away from the office and need to write a report or update a spreadsheet but is a good alternative to office software. It includes all the features you need to create, collaborate, edit and export documents and spreadsheets.