ANTenna Blog -- Hardware & Software

Can you guess what new feature Google Docs just introduced? Here's a hint: It doesn't involve a talking paperclip.

A few weeks ago, Google announced that it would use its open-sorce Google Gears platform to support offline editing and viewing of Google Docs content. Here is how Google software engineer Philip Tucker described how offline access works for Google Docs users:

With Google Docs offline (powered by Google Gears), I can take my little piece of the cloud with me wherever I go. Once enabled, I have a local version of my document list and editors, along with my documents.

As long as I have an Internet connection, every change I make is saved to the cloud. When I lose my connection, I sacrifice some features, but I can still access my documents (for this initial release, you can view and edit word processing documents; right now we don't support offline access to presentations or spreadsheets - see our help center for details). Everything I need is saved locally. And I do everything through my web browser, even when I'm offline (the goodness that Google Gears provides). When my connection comes back, my documents sync up again with the server.

It's all pretty seamless: I don't have to remember to save my documents locally before packing my laptop for a trip. I don't have to remember to save my changes as soon as I get back online. And I don't have to switch applications based on network connectivity. With the extra peace of mind, I can more fully rely on this tool for my important documents.

After a quick rollout period, Google announced last Friday that it is extending full offline support for word processing docs, spreadsheets, and presentations to all Google Docs users; if you want to try it out, you'll need to download and install Google Gears first. Google Docs' feature set is still a long way behind Microsoft Office or OpenOffice.org, but it certainly is headed in the right direction