Exploration 6: Online Office Tools

Will Require @30 mins to 1 hour of hands-on time with Online Office Tools which will require account registration, an activity, and blogging your reactions.

Online office tools are websites that offer the same kind of features as you would find in desktop tools such as the Microsoft Office suite (e.g., word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software, email, calendar). The exciting part about them is that because they are online, it becomes much easier to share your documents with team members or coworkers – and, as you now know, Web 2.0 is all about participation and sharing!

The true strengths of these tools lie in both the collaboration options and convenience of use. Any document or file that you create (or upload to your account) may be shared with others or published online. Files are stored online and may be accessed by you anywhere with an Internet connection. No software needs to be downloaded; updates and bugs are taken care of without hassle. And you won’t have problems with different software versions or incompatibilities when you share the file.

On the other side of the coin, keep in mind that at the time of this writing, there are a few weaknesses to these programs as well. The editing tools tend to be fairly basic when compared with desktop tools. The speed with which the program will work is highly dependent on your Internet connection. And you should also consider the issue of data security, as all of your documents and files are stored on a remote server.

There are several websites that offer online office tools, each with slightly different features. A sample:

Microsoft Office Live Workspace: http://workspace.officelive.com/
Designed to work directly with the MS Office products installed on your work computer.
Online storage of approximately 1,000+ documents online.
Document sharing via email.

Google Docs: http://docs.google.com/
You can upload Word documents, HTML, OpenOffice, etc.; you can also create new documents from scratch.
Share your documents via email; real-time chat is also available for simultaneous editing of a single document.
Publish your work directly to your blog or website.

ThinkFree: http://www.thinkfree.com/common/main.tfo
You can create, view, and edit MS compatible files online.
You can share folders with others; any of the group may post files in the folder for the others to read or edit.

Zoho: http://www.zoho.com/
In addition to the online word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation functions, Zoho has project management software, a database application manager, a planner, and other features.
You can share documents or presentations via email, with real-time chat options for simultaneous editing and discussion of the same document.
Other things Zoho can do include web site monitoring, polls, and candidate evaluation.

Now it’s your turn! Follow the simple instructions below for writing a document in Zoho, then document your experiences in your blog. If you’re feeling adventurous, try the spreadsheet and presentation functions as well (instructions below).

Zoho Writer (equivalent to MS Word):
An online word processor could be a good alternative for a patron who needs to save his or her document but does not have a disk or flash drive. Creating an account is free and only requires an email address for verification.

1. Set up an account with Zoho: http://zoho.com/.


2. Read the "Welcome" document that automatically opens.


3. Click the New button in the top left corner to start a new document. Move your mouse over the buttons at the top of the page to see what each one does.


4. Type your name and the date aligned to the right of the document. (The Justify Right, or align right, button is on the top right of the menu bar.) Drop down a couple spaces, align left, and type a paragraph.


5. You'll notice that the document automatically saves after you start typing, as "Untitled". Click on Save As (top left) and save this assignment as a New Document and give it a name. Look at the Document Saved box in the bottom right – what is the word count and character count for your document at this point?


6. Did you see that although you've given your document a new name, the document "Untitled" still remained on your document list on the left? Click on "Untitled" and then click the Delete button (at the top of that column) to remove the untitled document.


7. It should automatically return you to your named assignment page. If not, click on the name on the left column, under My Docs, to open your assignment back up.


8. The next step is to add a picture. Find a picture online that you like using GoogleImages; click through to "See full-size image." The address bar now lists the location of your image. Copy that address. Back in Zoho Writer, look for the Insert/Modify Image button (it looks like a picture of mountains and a sun; it is located under the Bold button and Style menu). Paste the url for the picture into the appropriate box. Add Alternate Text to briefly describe your picture. Click OK. Use the Justify Center button to center the image horizontally on the page.


9. You can adjust the size of the picture the same way as in MS Word: click on the picture and a frame will appear; grab a white box on the edge of the frame and move the mouse to resize.


10. Next, justify left again and choose either the numbers or bullets button (at the top right of the screen -- Ordered List and Bulleted List, respectively) and make an itemized list of 4-6 things. On each line, choose a different font from the font menu.


11. Insert a table. (It's the button to the left of the "Insert/Modify Image" button.) Use at least 3 rows and 3 columns. Type one or more words in each box; try different font sizes, different font color (the button just below the font menu), and font background color or highlighting the text (also below the font menu).

Not sure what to talk about afterward? How about the following:

• What are the advantages or disadvantages to using online office tools (as opposed to desktop office tools) to you, working in a library?


• Describe ways that you – or your patrons – could use this kind of program.


• What personal experience have you had with online office tools? Will you continue to use them now that you’ve tried some of the features?


• Try using Zoho’s “Publish” feature to directly publish your document on your blog!

Optional: Zoho Sheet (MS Excel):
Have you ever had to send patrons away because your branch didn’t have spreadsheet software available? Try this online spreadsheet as an alternative to MS Excel.

1. Read the "Welcome" document.


2. Start a new document.


3. Create a table with at least 3 columns and 4 rows. Start your column labels in the box B3, so there is room above for a title and room to the left for row labels.


4. Start your row labels in box A4. After your 4+ rows, skip a line and then include one more row named "TOTALS".


5. Once your rows and columns are labeled (and you can pick whatever topic you like), enter some fake data.


6. In the "TOTALS" line, instead of adding up the numbers in each column by hand, enter a formula (just like in Excel). For example, to add the cell contents of B4-B8, you type in, "=B4+B5+B6+B7+B8". You must include the equals sign (=) and use the plus signs (+) to add the contents of each named cell.


7. Now come up with a title for your table. Highlight all of the cells across row A of your table and click on the Merge Cells Across button, at the center top of your screen, just under the Export menu. Then hit the Align Center button to center your title.


8. Save your document.


9. Just to the right of the Save button is a button marked Preview. When you click it, it opens a new window with a Print Preview. Print the new window. (It will not print, at the time of this writing, from the regular window.)

Optional: Zoho Show (MS Powerpoint):
The absence of Powerpoint has been another reason patrons have been frustrated; have them try this instead!

1. Open and read the Zoho Show "Welcome" document. Watch it as a slide show (link to slide show is on the top right of the screen).


2. Start a new presentation by clicking New on the left side of the very top of the screen. Name your presentation and select a theme.


3. As in MS Powerpoint, click to select a text box and write in a title and your name as the subtitle.


4. Click New Slide to add a new page to your presentation. Select the blank slide and add a picture, using the Insert Image button on the top of the screen. (It's the same button that you used when you added a picture on Zoho Writer.) If you would like to add a caption to your picture, click on the T or the Add Text button next to the image button, which provides you with a new text box.


5. Add two more slides to your presentation, trying different kinds of slides. Your choices: "Title with Text", "Title with Points", "Title Two Textblocks".


6. Make sure to include at least one Shape or Symbol from the menus on the left hand side of the screen.


7. Under the Actions menu on the top right, select Share. Share as "People who can view this presentation" and type in your supervisor's email. They will receive your presentation in their inbox and be able to look at it (but not edit).

Congratulations, you're done!!
(Don't forget to log into your blog and write about your thoughts on this activity and also check your RSS Feeds to find out what your fellow Explorers have to say!)