Virtual Walls

“Google Docs is Chock Full of Fail" is a comment that came out a few days ago in response to a blog post about the potential of Google apps. What’s most disagreeable to me is the fact that the commentator appears to be making much more of a personal attack instead of an argumentative response to the blogger.

I am of the opinion that Google Apps is the winning solution. As Vicente Fox stated in his autobiography: “If there is one thing that history teaches us, it is that walls do not work.” The Berlin wall, the Great Wall of China, and the Wailing Wall are all good examples. Microsoft Office is a walled garden, Google Apps is not.

True, Microsoft Office is more developed; it is more convenient for power users; it has functional shortcut key commands; etc. Google lacks much of this, but all of it can simply be copied from Microsoft – sans walls.

To me it seems that Microsoft will be the one hard pressed to replicate Google's collaboration advantages.

Ohh, also, Google Apps is free.

Free, open and online vs. expensive, closed and offline. It's only a matter of time.