Is there a real alternative to expensive PC-based office software?
Perhaps one of the most talked about applications of "cloud computing" is online application suites such as Google Apps. This provides web-based applications for email, chat, creating and editing documents, spreadsheets, presentations and so on, and various tools for collaboration between colleagues. In many respects, they provide capabilities similar to software such as Microsoft Office.
So should you consider Google Apps as a real alternative to Microsoft Office or similar PC-based office suites? What are the advantages and disadvantages?
You might have some concerns in the area of functionality. Certainly, Google Docs doesn't provide the full range of functionality of Microsoft Word for example, but in practice for most people, the missing functionality are things they don't use anyway.
Some users might worry about not having their files held locally. It is possible however to export to local copies (as Word, PDF or others), and in any case, would you rather have your files on what perhaps is a single local hard drive, or on Google's infrastructure, with its built-in resilence?
One of the areas that is particularly strong is collaboration. You an give other users access to your documents, and it is possible to edit the same document at the same time.
A recent addition to the Google Apps portfolio is a tool to migrate email accounts on Microsoft Exchange to GMail hosted on a Google Apps account. So even an established Microsoft user can consider this an alternative, and thus move from what could be an expensive Microsoft Exchange environment to the infrastructure behind GMail. Users can continue to use Microsoft Outlook as the interface to GMail if they prefer. You get much of the functionality of Exchange, without the expense and trouble of keeping an Exchange server running, and the consequent support demands.
In terms of costs, Google Apps is current US$50 per user per year - certainly worth consideration against what could be an expensive Exchange Server and the consequent support commitment.
You don't have to make a decision right away - you can "dip you toe into the water" by trialling Google Apps. We can provide help getting set up, general guidance and specific training to help you move forward.
If you're still not convinced if this is for you one way or the other, please feel free to get in touch for further discussion if you so wish.
