MS Office users repent! Zoho opens to Yahooers, Googlers

Are you a Microsoft Office user? Then you, my friend, are the target in what many think will be the headline bout of the next decade, between Microsoft and Google. The victor will win the right to provide your word processing, spreadsheets, and the myriad of other programs you've come to depend on Office for.

Most industry gurus see the day coming that, with dependable, high-speed access to the internet, we will no longer run programs on our PC to write a letter or crunch our budget. Instead, we will use our internet browser to access similar programs that run on the provider's server. This release from Office bondage bodes ill for Microsoft, but well for Google and others that are already up and running with good products.

One of my favorites is Zoho. On Zoho I can access word processor, spreadsheet, database, Powerpoint-like presentation, meeting, wiki, project, invoicing, and other programs; pretty much anything I can do with MS products I can do with Zoho. The kicker? It's free, and comes with generous online file storage.

And now, even easier to use. Zoho now has opened up its suite to anyone with a Google or Yahoo! account without the need to register.

The only reason I'm still a MS slave is my fear that, if my internet connection goes down, I won't be able to work. I expect both Zoho and Google to soon offer downloadable versions of their software that will provide a safety net in case of the loss of internet connectivity. At that time, Microsoft, I'm outta here!