Google Apps vs. Microsoft Office.

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    Google Apps vs. Microsoft Office.


    Posted: 29 Apr 2010
    Google Apps or Microsoft Office? That is the question on the minds of many CIOs today.

    Microsoft has long dominated the e-mail, collaboration and office tools market, and its customer list dwarfs that of Google and all other competitors. But despite the presence of well-established alternatives such as OpenOffice and IBM's Lotus Notes, some industry analysts believe Google may pose the strongest long-term threat to Microsoft's office dominance.

    "Google is still a wannabe, but they're Google so this is a very strong challenger," says Laura DiDio, lead analyst with Information Technology Intelligence Corp (ITIC).

    Tech Debate: Google Gmail vs. hosted Microsoft Exchange

    Why should a business choose Google over Microsoft? Google is inexpensive, at $50 per user per year. Employees are often familiar with Gmail, so user training shouldn't be too burdensome. Outsourcing IT functions to Google lets businesses reduce internal IT expenditures and wasted time maintaining servers and applications. With Google, businesses get the basic productivity tools of e-mail, calendaring, and document creation and editing, as well as a Web site builder, private video sharing and other functions. (See related article, "Google Apps basics".)
    Source -
    Google Apps vs. Microsoft Office - Computerworld
    Posted By: JMH
    29 Apr 2010



  1. Lee
    Posts : 1,796
    Win 7 Pro x64, VM Win XP, Win7 Pro Sandbox, Kubuntu 11
       #1

    Still not convinced. Sorry been using MS Office for to long, and have tested most of the different Office Suites and still haven't found one that can even come choose to MS Office. :)
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 200
    Vista Business x64
       #2

    I agree, and i think google is gonna remain "a wanna be" at least in a corporate environment. I would be surprised to see any significant jump.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 195
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
       #3

    While I could see a small business trying to keep expenses down using the Google Apps as long as their requirements are basic. However, if you have to do some real publishing, even OpenOffice 3.0 falls short, in my opinion. I tried both the Google Apps and OpenOffice 3.0, and went right back to Office 2007 Professional.

    Bye.
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 5,807
    Windows 7 Home Premium x64 - Mac OS X 10.6.4 x64
       #4

    Lee said:
    Still not convinced. Sorry been using MS Office for to long, and have tested most of the different Office Suites and still haven't found one that can even come choose to MS Office. :)
    I totally agree....Interface arguments aside...Microsoft Office 2010 is the most powerful Office productivity software on the planet

    There is absolutely NO WAY Google will steal people away from Office (unless people don't want to pay for Office).
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 1,241
    Windows 7 Profesional x86, Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard
       #5

    My small business currently uses Google apps.

    Plus points:
    It's free for up to 50 users.
    They'll host your email for you for free with tonnes of storage.
    They have the best webmail ever (in my opinion, I've tried them all I like Gmail the best)
    They offer complete mobile integration on most platforms (something that MS Exchange doesn't do particularly well)

    Cons:
    All of it's desktop web apps bar gmail are not up to scratch compared to MS Office or iWork.

    Oli
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 11,990
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
       #6

    Lee said:
    Still not convinced. Sorry been using MS Office for to long, and have tested most of the different Office Suites and still haven't found one that can even come choose to MS Office. :)
    Bootz said:
    I agree, and i think google is gonna remain "a wanna be" at least in a corporate environment. I would be surprised to see any significant jump.
    Crunchy Doodle said:
    While I could see a small business trying to keep expenses down using the Google Apps as long as their requirements are basic. However, if you have to do some real publishing, even OpenOffice 3.0 falls short, in my opinion. I tried both the Google Apps and OpenOffice 3.0, and went right back to Office 2007 Professional.

    Bye.
    Zidane24 said:
    Lee said:
    Still not convinced. Sorry been using MS Office for to long, and have tested most of the different Office Suites and still haven't found one that can even come choose to MS Office. :)
    I totally agree....Interface arguments aside...Microsoft Office 2010 is the most powerful Office productivity software on the planet

    There is absolutely NO WAY Google will steal people away from Office (unless people don't want to pay for Office).
    I agree with all of the above. For the home user or small business, Open office may suffice and it is free. But for heavy duty use and total office apps integration, Google does not come close to MS Office.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 68
    Windows 7 Professional (64-bit) / OS X Snow Leopard
       #7

    I would think a business would be very concerned about the many privacy
    issues connected with Google.
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 333
    Linux (Debian, Android)
       #8

    Since I mostly read powerpoints/word docs/pdfs, and occasionally make small spreadsheets I almost exclusively use Google Docs. Practically all the docs on the web are connected straight to Google Docs Viewer via a browser extension. For some of the docs that disregard the extension they are downloaded to my local disk and I have to upload them to Google Docs (which can be a hassle).

    For some features and better performance I need there's always Microsoft Office 2010 Beta 64-bit on my machine :)

    I do like Google's future commitment:

    Google's main goals for the next year, he says, include increasing the functionality and number of Apps; maintaining simplicity and intuitiveness; improving IT administration tools including auditing, discovery and reporting; building secure connectors between the enterprise firewall and the Google cloud; and expanding accessibility across devices such as netbooks, smartphones, iPhones and iPads.
    That bolded text is where Microsoft wins hands-down.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 5,941
    Linux CENTOS 7 / various Windows OS'es and servers
       #9

    Hi there
    anything else doesn't even come close -- just ask any users of IBM's utterly appalling Lotus Notes -- should have been retired YEARS ago.

    I don't think MS should be worried about other competitors in the Business Office stakes.

    Cheers
    jimbo
      My Computer


 
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