Zoho Office Suite

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Zoho Office Suite
Zoho logo
Developed by AdventNet Inc.
Operating system Any (Web-based application)
Type Online office suite
Website http://www.zoho.com

The Zoho Office Suite is an online office suite produced by a division of AdventNet Inc. It includes tools for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, databases, note-taking, wikis, CRM, project management, invoicing and other applications. Like the better-known Google Docs, Zoho applications are web-based and therefore operating system independent. [1] [2] [3] The Zoho Office Suite was first created in September 2005 as a word processor, with additional products later added to the suite.[4]

The applications can be used either to create content or to manipulate files created with other suites, including Microsoft Office, OpenOffice.org, and other systems. The programs in the suite can be used individually, but offer integration benefits when used together. The data (document) files can be saved on the company's servers as well as those of several integration partners, including box.net and Omnidrive, to support synchronization back to a local PC.

Although some applications, e.g. Zoho CRM and Zoho Projects, have additional features available for a fee, the company has stated a commitment to maintaining a free tier of entry-level applications with free registration.

There is an open Application Programming Interface (API) for six of its products: Writer, Sheet, Show, Creator, Meeting and Planner. Some third parties have created programs using these services [5]. The company itself has a plugin to integrate the product into Microsoft Word and Excel, as well as a browser plugin that can open text documents or spreadsheets without the applications installed. It has also created a desktop widget that allows users to run these products on their desktops in a similar way to traditional office programs. It has an OpenOffice plugin for access to documents stored at Zoho Writer, Zoho Sheet, and Zoho Show services. Mobile versions of Zoho Writer, Sheet, and Show for the iPhone. [6] The applications were made available on Facebook after that social networking website opened its API.[7]

Contents

[edit] Components

[edit] Zoho Writer

The suites' word processor, supports simultaneous collaboration between multiple users. It supports common formats, including Microsoft Word (DOC), Office Open XML (DOCX), OpenDocument text (ODT), OpenOffice text (SXW), HTML, RTF, JPG, GIF & PNG files. It can support embedded media from hosting sites, such as Flickr, Zooomr, Youtube, and Vimeo. It supports some direct blog publishing. Zoho Writer was one of the earliest online word processors to support both online and offline editing by using Google Gears.[8]. The program originally relied on polling every 8 seconds, but the latest version uses real time notification from Zoho Chat.

[edit] Zoho Sheet

Sheet is the spreadsheet application in the suite. Zoho Sheet can auto-process external data feeds (RSS/ATOM), and the ability to publish charts into blogs or other websites. Like Writer, it facilitates real-time collaboration. It has a plugin to integrate with Microsoft Excel and is available both as a desktop widget and as part of online services such as box.net and Facebook.

[edit] Zoho DB and Reports

An online database and reporting application in the suite. [9] It can also "create charts, pivots, summary and other wide-range of reports through [a] powerful drag & drop interface".[10]

[edit] Zoho Show

An online presentation program that allows users to create or (as is often the case) import Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pps) or OpenOffice (.odp, .sxi) presentations.

[edit] Zoho Projects

Projects supports creating tasks, assigning ownership, setting deadlines and tracking milestones; working with calendars, Gantt charts, reports, share supporting files—standard features in a project management package. The free version of the software accommodates only a single project; the paid versions have greater capacities.

[edit] Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM is a branded commercial version of the free open source CRM platform VTIGER. ZOHO CRM offers customer relationship management functionality,and procurement, inventory, and some accounting functions from the realm of ERP. The free version is limited to 3 users.

[edit] Zoho Creator

An online database / custom application development tool which allows users to create fairly sophisticated process logic by dragging & dropping script elements on screen, without knowing code. Data can be imported from .xls, .csv, and .tsv files and create a variety of forms either from scratch or by using one of several common templates.

[edit] Zoho Wiki

A simple WYSIWYG wiki that allows users to create their own website. It supports group pages as well as sub-pages, with features like tags, tables of contents, and custom themes, custom CSS and appearance. The program can link to and work with documents the user has created with other components, such as slideshows from Show.

[edit] Zoho Planner

An online planner with a calendar, to-do lists, pages, and e-mail reminders for collaboration with other users. This component competes with Microsoft Outlook, and more directly, Google Calendar.

[edit] Zoho Notebook

Similar to Microsoft OneNote or Google Notebook, it also includes greater support for multimedia content. Users may include text, images, video, and audio in a "notebook," and then share the notebook or individual pages. The component allows integration of documents, full-fledged applications, and content via RSS.[11] The content from the notebook may be uploaded or gathered from the web by using the a plugin for Mozilla Firefox or Internet Explorer.

[edit] Zoho Chat

A chat application that can be embedded into pages or blogs. It also supports traditional private instant messaging.

[edit] Zoho Mail

Formerly known as Zoho Office Suite, is web-based collaboration groupware. The service was renamed Zoho Mail because of the misperception that it was an integration of the other Zoho services.[12] Still in public beta, it provides services such as email, calendar, document management, task management, and contact management. Zoho Mail also integrates the Writer, Sheet, and Show components.

[edit] Zoho Meeting

A web conference application, the current version requires the creator of the conference to be using Microsoft Windows, but participants can use any operating system. Zoho Meeting allows participants to see the screen of the presenter by using either ActiveX, Flash, or Java. The "Show" and "Chat" components are integrated into the meeting, and participants can control the desktop of the presenter. The Meeting Viewer can be embedded in a separate webpage or a slide from "Show". Zoho Meeting is currently free in public beta and offers live support.

[edit] Utilities

Zoho also offers some services that are not part of the Office Suite. Zoho Challenge is an online test and evaluation application for employers and potential employees, It is free for up to 25 candidates. Zoho Polls is a free surveying or rating tool that can be embedded in any page or blog. "Site24x7" is a website monitoring service that is free on a limited basis.[citation needed]

[edit] See also

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ "In sync with Zoho". The Globe and Mail. December 4, 2006. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061204.gtingramtwooh04/BNStory/Technology/home. Retrieved on 2008-11-23. 
  2. ^ Hoover, J. Nicholas (July 3, 2007). "Zoho's Facebook Integration Brings Office Apps To Social Networking ... Sort Of". InfomationWeek. http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=200900243. Retrieved on 2008-11-23. 
  3. ^ Krasnoff, Barbara (February 5, 2007 i). "Zoho Notebook Takes Aim At Microsoft OneNote". InformationWeek. http://www.informationweek.com/news/windows/microsoft_news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197002841&cid=RSSfeed_TechWeb. Retrieved on 2008-11-23. 
  4. ^ CrunchBase. "Zoho Company Profile". http://www.crunchbase.com/company/zoho. Retrieved on 2008-12-05. 
  5. ^ reference needed
  6. ^ "Zoho Blog". 2007. http://blogs.zoho.com/general/izoho-zoho-for-iphone/. Retrieved on 2007-06-29. 
  7. ^ "Zoho joins Facebook, Between the Lines, ZDet Blog". 2007. http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=5560/. Retrieved on 2007-07-02. 
  8. ^ Lifehacker (2007). "Zoho Writer Adds Full Offline Access with Gears". http://lifehacker.com/software/word-processor/zoho-writer-adds-full-offline-access-with-gears-326456.php. Retrieved on 2007-11-26. 
  9. ^ {{cite web| url=http://db.zoho.com
  10. ^ "Zoho DB and Reports (home page)". http://db.zoho.com. Retrieved on 2008-05-28. 
  11. ^ "Zoho Announces Notebook, Read/Write Web, Richard MacManus". 2007. http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/zoho_notebook.php/. Retrieved on 2007-07-02. 
  12. ^ "Zoho Mail, Zoho Blogs". 2007. http://blogs.zoho.com/general/zoho-mail/. Retrieved on 2007-07-02. 

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoho_Office_Suite"
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