The wait is over, Microsoft Office 2010 is here!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office_2010

But even more exciting is the release of Microsoft Office 2010 Web Apps

http://office.live.com

Microsoft has now provided slim down versions of it's best selling Office Suite for free on the Web. The lightweight suite includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote. In addition to these free to use apps, Microsoft is including SkyDrive, 25 GB of free space to store documents and other files of your choosing. The only requirements are a Windows Live ID and of course an internet connection. If you have a Microsoft Office Live account currently, your Office Live account will be converted to SkyDrive storage sometime in the near future.

Many new computer buyers will be able to forego the cost of the MS Office 2010 Suite. Most home users never need more than the basic formatting and editing features found in the MS Office Web Apps.

Portability: Office on the GO!

I have been using the beta version of MS Office 2010 for the past year and like it very much. However with the release of MS Office 2010 Web Apps, the scope of my office portability has just greatly expanded. I have been hesitant about purchasing an iPad because the device did not support Microsoft's Office for MACs (that and no way to attach an external keyboard). But now even though you are forced to use Apple's proprietary browser Safari, one is able to create/edit a basic Office document and save it to SkyDrive to be retrieved and edited later using a Desktop computer and Office Application.

BTW, I did this Blog posting using the new Office Web App!

Google Apps came close to satisfying my portable workspace needs but there is nothing like the real thing.

http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/group/index.html

I had the first netbook, the ASUS eee 3 years ago and circumvented the use of Open Office by using the Mozilla Brower within the Linux OS to access my desktop via Log Mein, satisfactory but cumbersome. With the release of MS Office 2010 Web Apps I can fire up the little ASUS and wait for the Dell Streak Tablet or an HTC Android 2.2 based phone, both of which have connectivity features lacking in the iPad.

If you must know, I do like the iPad. It is helping to usher in a new era of computing. Facebookers and other social media fans can keep each other abreast of their daily lives without the need for a computer or the limitations of their Smart Phone app.

With the advent of GPS incorporated into the phones and new technologies such as NFC (Near Field Communication, credit card/cash transactions by cell phone), it is no wonder that anti-virus and security software vendors are introducing applications for mobile devices.

It is also no surprise that AT&T has dropped the unlimited data plans... device security and data plans. Sounds like new revenue streams to me...

Run Microsoft Office on Linux!