In what can be construed as evidence of a fanatical determination to get right up Microsoft’s nose, Google has revealed that it is performing a limited test of Google Spreadsheets, which will be free and secure and allow users to work collaboratively on spreadsheets over the internet.
The search giant described the product as designed for users who create basic spreadsheets that need to be shared or updated by several contributors.
Google Spreadsheets, the company said, will enable increased accessibility. Spreadsheets will be securely stored on the web so that they can be accessed from any computer. Using Google Spreadsheets on the web also avoids the need to install any software on the local computer.
Google Spreadsheets can also be shared, updated and edited by several users at the same time, in real-time, saving users from the hassle of manually consolidating multiple spreadsheets from others.
The company said that users can also chat while editing or viewing the same spreadsheet and control who may edit and view their shared spreadsheets by listing the specific people by email address.
Google Spreadsheets will also enable easy importing of data as users can upload spreadsheets or information from other desktop applications (.CSV and .XLS formats supported) with a click of a button.
“Google Spreadsheets will be available to a limited number of users on the Google Labs page at labs.google.com. We will regularly send invitations to users on the waitlist on a first-come, first-serve basis,” Google stated yesterday.
By John Kennedy
