Google presentation and spreadsheet applications now accessible off-line

Google has extended its range of web applications that can be used offline to include spreadsheets and presentations. The applications use the Google Gears browser plug-in that Google presented to the public last year as an open source project. When a user clicks on the "Desktop" icon, Gears downloads files held online to the local hard disk. When the user goes back online again, the data are synchronised.

Previously, the offline option was only available in the word processing components of Google Docs. In contrast to word processing documents, however, spreadsheets and presentations can only be viewed, not edited. This allows presentations to be run without worrying about online status.

The first application for Google Gears was Google Reader, an RSS reader that makes news accessible offline and updates it when the user goes back online. Google Gears for Firefox and Internet Explorer, under Windows XP as well as Vista, is ready for download.

(trk)