 |
the web•Directory |
|
the web•Directory |
|
Free wordprocessor, spreadsheetHere's the situation: you need to do some occasional wordprocessing, nothing complicated, just use basic functions, and you need to pass the documents you write onto others. But you don't want to spend a small fortune for a wordprocessing package when you know you're only going to use a small fraction of all the functionality that's offered in a costly office suite. Where do you go? The web is now offering a multitude of free services such as online wordprocessors and spreadsheets. All that's required is a free signup with an email address and password, and away you go! For an overall picture of services that are available, take a look through All Things Web 2.0 - The List. Services are grouped under headings such as audio, blogging, community, ecommerce, games, images, multimedia and wordprocessing. Naturally some of these services will suit your needs better than others. For example, you may need to share your wordprocessing documents with others either to be read or worked on together so look for service that offers a collobaration feature. webDotWiz has been using the Writely wordprocessor to save himself the bother of emailing his column from home to the Waranga News office. After copying the text from the column's web page at home, it's pasted into Writely and edited to fit in with the layout required by the Waranga News. The step that's no longer required is to send an email with the wordprocessor document attached. webDotWiz logs into his Writely account when he's at the Waranga News office and copies and pastes into the Waranga News' layout editor - all done in a few mouse clicks. Something else webDotWiz could do is to allow other people to view a particular document (either everybody or just a selected few) or enable others to work on a document collaboratively. All this is easily done without having to download and install any software - everything is done within the web browser. Other services, such as Microsoft Office Live or Zoho Web Services, incorporate email addresses for a small business or organisation, a web site and domain name, and document storage and sharing, as well as wordprocessing and an online spreadsheet application. Spend a bit of time going through a list such as that at All Things Web 2.0 - The List - you won't only save time in the long run but you may find, whether it's for individual, business or organisation use, that you save yourself hundreds of dollars. Windows Live updatesOver the past couple of weeks there have been a couple of new Windows Live services and new features added to other services. Of particular note is Windows Live Academic Search that helps you find academic articles held by libraries and institutions. The search results pane splits in two and when you hover the mouse over one of the found items, the abstract is displayed on the right. Note that you may have to subscribe to a journal or institution to read an article in full. You can access your Friend's List from Windows Live Messenger (Messenger 8) by right-clicking any contact and choosing the option from the popup menu. Another new feature in Messenger is a tab from which you can access your Windows Live Favorites. By the way, you can now order your list of favourites and change the view to a more detailed one. The next build of Windows Live Messenger is due at the end of this month and it should also have an updated user interface. When you use Windows Live Search, by moving the detail-level slider fully to the right, your list of results will expand so that each item contains a search input box which enables you to search an individual site. The best, and most convenient, way to keep up to date with Windows Live services is to subscribe to the webDotWiz Space from your Windows Live page. Here are some sites to get you started:
• All this week's Wiziest sites are listed on the web•Sites page. 
Daily updates to web•TrainSim line news are readily available. Check out the latest news, tips and the best downloads for Microsoft Train Simulator at www.webDotTrainSim.com. Help | About• Need help finding your way around? It's just a click away...» • web•Wiz Online is published fortnightly, on the same day as The Waranga News, and updated regularly as sites are added to the web•Directory. • Comments? Questions? Contact the webmaster • web•Wiz Online is best viewed at 800x600 screen resolution in 16-bit colour. • © Bernie Halpin, web•Wiz Online 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006. |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Back to the top
