Consider the many ways you can move into the cloud. There are many different applications and services you can use for the various tasks below, but we took a look at one each per category; additional options are listed in the “Other Offerings” sidebar.

Office Software Suites

Office productivity software, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, are so ubiquitous that the notion of living without them seems ludicrous. However true that may be, living without Microsoft-specific office software is not only possible, but common. There are lots of other office software suites available. Some, such as OpenOffice.org, are free. Others are available in the cloud—all you have to do is access the pages via your Web browser.

There are certain advantages to working on office documents cloud-style. For one thing, it lets you work on projects without the need of any software (other than your browser). Additionally, if you want to collaborate with someone, you can share the document with them (which they can also access via the Internet) without worrying about attaching file to emails or about who has the most recent version of the document.

A downside is that if you suddenly find yourself without Internet access, you can’t work on your files unless you had the forethought to export your work as a file to your computer’s hard drive.

One of the most compelling uses for online office suites is the incredible savings on storage costs incurred by businesses. Consider if three or four people were working on, for example, a PowerPoint presentation filled with images and a few sound files. By the time they attach the presentation to a few emails back and forth, the email server has to store many megabytes of data. If they collaborate on a document in an online office application, they can cut that storage need to virtually nothing.

Google Docs (docs.google.com) is an online office suite that requires only a Google account to use. It just takes a couple of minutes to create one if you don’t have one already, and if you have an account and stay logged in, you can ignore this step in the future.

You can create new documents within your browser and enter and edit text as you normally would in a Word document, including colored text; highlights; inserting tables, images, and special characters; and much more.

You can upload existing documents and edit them, as well. In some cases, the text formatting or other feature will change, as Google Docs doesn’t support a wide variety of fonts.

When you save a document, it lives on your Google Docs home page. It’s nice to be able to have these listed there, and if you have too many to view at once, you can search for a document by keyword or by type of format (PDFs, Documents, Spreadsheets, or Presentations).

A knock on Google Docs (and for most other similar applications) is that juggling multiple open documents is a bit ungainly, and depending on the network speed and traffic, you may experience slow response times or generally sluggish performance.

Online Desktops

They go by a variety of monikers, including online Desktops, online operating systems, and Webtops, but these programs are all essentially the same: They offer an online Desktop-like environment where you can use built-in or embedded applications, communicate with others, and store files. The basic concept is that with an online Desktop, you can access all your files and applications from virtually anywhere with an Internet-connected device.

There are dozens of these out there, all of varying quality. Some are still in beta. But there are some that are fairly mature and eminently useful. One that we ran through the paces is Glide OS (www.glidedigital.com).

Glide OS is an online operating system with a slick interface, dozens of applications, file-sharing capabilities, and 10GB of online storage—all for free. Not only can you opt to share files and folders with others, you can synchronize data between your computers. For example, if you use Glide OS as a workspace but keep more than one computer, as well—such as a work computer and a home computer—you can configure everything so that your files are up-to-date in all three places.

One major bonus for the business traveler is that you can access and edit documents in your Glide OS from your smartphone, as long as the device supports Adobe Flash. Additionally, Glide OS sports a host of useful applications for everything from word processing to email to media applications.

As with any cloud service or application, the online OS’s performance can suffer from any network-related slowdown. Another note is that because Glide OS is flash-based, you can right-click when navigating the Desktop. You’ll get past it in short order, but it can be annoying for PC users who are accustomed to right-clicking.

Storage

Online storage and backup services are legion. For the most part, they do all the same things but with subtle differences and for slightly different demographics. In general, most of these services offer a tiered account structure, with a free limited account being one option. Most offer free storage of up to 1GB or 2GB, though some offer capacities of up to 5GB or 10GB.

If you’re willing to pay a monthly fee, you can get storage of anywhere from 10GB to virtually unlimited storage, depending on the services offered. Beyond simple storage, many offer file-sharing options; as with storage, the price for these services can vary.

The bottom line with online storage services is that you have to pay for anything close to the storage you can get locally on your own computer. However, if you’re serious about protecting your data, it’s well worth it; even if you make regular backups to an external hard drive, maintaining an online backup provides a secure means of providing data backup that resides in a secondary location. In business, remote data backup is virtually indispensible; this offers individuals, small businesses, or individual employees the means to keep a remote backup for little (or no) cost.

Whereas most online storage and backup services offer 1GB or 2GB of online space, ADrive (www.adrive.com) is unique in that it offers 50GB for free. If you pay for a plan, you can nab up to 1TB of online storage for each account.

If you have a free ADrive account, you’re stuck with ads, but the paid accounts eliminate this nuisance. ADrive has a number of useful features, including SSL Data Encryption for secure data transfer; File History Recovery, which lets you find and restore older versions of files that have become corrupted or befouled in some way; file search capabilities to help you quickly locate a file; and compatibility with virtually any FTP client.

Further, ADrive has backup servers in multiple geographic locations, thus further ensuring the safety of your files.

In terms of usability, you’ll find the ability to upload or download entire directories extremely efficient and helpful for organization. Plus, if you need to edit any Word or Excel documents, you can do so within ADrive online by using the embedded Zoho Online Document Editor.

by Seth Colaner

Other Offerings There are several alternatives to the applications listed in this article. Check them out for yourself to discover if they work for you. Office Software Suites Zoho www.zoho.com Zoho used to offer a suite of office applications; now, it offers a slew of additional applications and services for both consumers and businesses. Interestingly, Zoho is sometimes embedded into online desktops and even online storage systems. Peepel www.peepel.com Peepel is still in beta, but it’s certainly fully functional. It features Word and Excel-type applications, as well as file-managing and workspace applications, all of which you can work in multiple windows within a browser window. Online Desktops/Operating Systems Goya www.mygoya.de/us Goya boasts a clean, intuitive interface and plenty of applications and capabilities for both the home and office. eyeOS www.eyeos.org This is an online Desktop that is geared primarily toward businesspeople rather than the average consumer. It features office productivity applications, file management capabilities, extra third-party applications, and its own networking functionality. G.ho.st http://g.ho.st Even with a funny-looking name, G.ho.st is a popular online Desktop, complete with a bevy of built-in features, including dashboards, widgets, games, office productivity applications (courtesy of the embedded Zoho), and much more. Storage Dropbox www.getdropbox.com Still in beta, Dropbox is a simple, elegant way to upload, store, share, and organize your files. With a free account, you get 2GB of storage; for $9.99 per month, you can up it to 50GB. Dropbox works with and synchronizes between Macs, PCs, and Linux computers. AllMyData www.allmydata.com If you like the concept of unlimited data storage (and are willing to pay $9.99 per month for the privilege), AllMyData is for you. You can also add a 1GB iPhone Drive if you so desire.