Google Docs Gets Offline Support

We knew it was coming, and it’s here. Google Docs has finally integrated Google Gears to provide offline viewing and editing of word processing documents in Firefox or IE, without requiring an active internet connection.

You can’t create a new document while working offline, nor will you be able to collaborate with others in real time. Any changes made to the document will locally be saved and automatically synced with Google Docs whenever you connect to the internet. This video explains how offline access works:

This move comes several months after rival Zoho introduced offline version of their Writer web application. Offline capability will slowly be rolled out to users over the next few weeks. Users will notice "offline" link at the upper right corner of Google Docs, once the capability has been added to their account.

Currently, the offline view and editing ability is limited to word processor only, once this roll-out is complete, presentation and spreadsheet application should follow. Offline support is definitely an axe at Microsoft’s Office Suite.

[via: Webware, Google Blog]

This post was published by on April 1, 2008

About the Author: Thilak Rao works as a Social Media Expert. He is one of the first professional bloggers from India, and he loves to write, travel and click photos. Follow him on Twitter @thilak

  • http://green-flamingo.com Nathaniel

    Helpful! As a! But I am trying to get a stable Internet connection.

  • http://prosperitywriter.com/ Prosperity Writer

    so the war between google and microsoft has reached the “off line domain”

  • http://blog.eldoras.com Chris Trynkiewicz

    Yeah, but as far as I read, only 1 person on the web posted his screenshots of the feature… :(
    Not available for me yet too…

  • http://www.evawhite.com Eva White

    How on earth can these guys keep coming up with new things…………great stuff.

  • http://www.findhealthinfo.net Mark

    While I do see a use for this in corporations etc, and also considering the fact that ordinary people just use 10% or so of what MS Word can do, I am still moving the opposite direction. Offline storage is NOT a good thing imho. I am trying to move all my docs and info out on the web so it’s accessible from wherever I happen to be.

  • http://theofftopic.com/ The Off Topic

    I think google will end up coming out on top, in the war between goog and msft.

    However I do expect the price of the stock to continue to decrease for the next 6-12 months

    Both companies have some of the most creative minds working for them and it never ceases to amaze me that they find new entrepreneurial ways to generate more revenue.

  • http://tech-buzz.net/2008/04/28/google-docs-goes-more-offline/ Google Docs Goes More Offline!

    [...] last month, Google added offline viewing and editing features to their word processor using Google Gears plugin. That move was pretty much expected because rival [...]

  • http://www.findhealthinfo.net/ Mark

    While I do see a use for this in corporations etc, and also considering the fact that ordinary people just use 10% or so of what MS Word can do, I am still moving the opposite direction. Offline storage is NOT a good thing imho. I am trying to move all my docs and info out on the web so it's accessible from wherever I happen to be.