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Beyond Office

The sites clearly have something Microsoft currently does not: the ability to create easily shareable documents, spreadsheets, and calendars on any Internet-connected PC, regardless of OS--and without your having to install expensive software. After creating or editing your doc or worksheet in Google's offering, for example, you can use one-click publishing to put it on public display at a unique Google-created URL. Or you can collaborate by sending an e-mail to workmates containing a link to edit a particular document. Both ThinkFree and Zoho offer similar sharing options.

As suites, these services also offer useful central document repositories you can access from any system with an Internet connection. Google gives you space for 1000 documents and 100 spreadsheets, while ThinkFree and Zoho both offer 1GB of space free, and add more for a monthly charge. gOffice stands apart by saving only to your hard drive, with no plans for online storage.

All the suites largely mimic Office's interface with familiar menus and toolbars, and create a desktop-app feel with Ajax (asynchronous JavaScript and XML). Largely credited as the magic behind the more interactive "Web 2.0" approach, the popular Ajax style of Web programming means that users don't have to wait for a page refresh after making changes, and it can also enable right-click menus specific to the online application instead of to the Web browser. Although ThinkFree uses Ajax for quick editing, it loads a slower and more resource-hungry Java Virtual Machine for its more feature-rich "power editing" mode.

All the services permit quick rollbacks to previous versions of files, and Zoho can show the differences between versions without fully reverting. All can--with varying degrees of success--upload and import Office files, as well, though formatting and text placement often don't line up correctly for imported documents (particularly for spreadsheets and document charts).

Given Office's overwhelming dominance, Microsoft may not seem to have much to worry about. But the folks in Redmond are definitely taking notice: In its August 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Microsoft specifically listed ThinkFree as an Office rival.

"The sharing that the Internet offers is an awesome opportunity to do things we aren't doing well today," notes Chris Capossela, vice president for Microsoft's Business Division Product Management Group. Microsoft says that it has plans to create an online version of its entry-level Works package, but the company's opportunistically named Office Live Web site doesn't actually offer any Office applications.