Comments on: Google spreadsheet http://atticmooses.com/blog/2006/06/05/81/ teaching in an e-world Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:16:50 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Paul Ed 205 http://atticmooses.com/blog/2006/06/05/81/comment-page-1/#comment-839 Paul Ed 205 Tue, 13 Jun 2006 22:34:17 +0000 http://atticmooses.com/blog/2006/06/05/81/#comment-839 You know Sean I keep flipping around on the open source issue because of your discussions. On this topic, I certainly agree with you, I think this is a great idea for schools. It is free, easy to use (most likely) and since most schools have access to high speed as fast as Google. I hope that it will force Microsoft to lower the price of Office. I do worry about a couple things. First is the potential Google monopoly. I like Google, use it all the time. However I worry about their business, they are becoming very large (in a shorter time even then Microsoft). With China they have shown they will break their code of ethics to do business. While I am sure the program will be free now and paid for by ads but what about the future? I do not believe Google is as evil as Microsoft but their growing power worries me. Second is the data. This will be stored online most likely. The government has already shown they want to collect data on just about everything we do. What happens if they decide terrorists are using Goggle Spreadsheet to keep track of money? What if Google takes a turn for the worst and starts selling data they collect through this service. I am frustrated by some of the trends I see with software and technology these days. Microsoft is talking about a pay by year service for some of their products. Like Genuine Advantage, I am sure this will start small and then take over everything. Then every year we will have to pay or our software shutsdown. This is already happening with Quicken and MS Money, now you have to buy a new package every two years or you can no longer use the online features. I recently purchased Half-Life 2: Episode 1 and had to activate it online. This also means that if Valve wants to, they can shut down the game for everyone. A lot of these trend anger me as a dialup user as well. I doubt Google Spreadsheet would be very fun with dialup. I had to spend hours downloading updates to Episode 1. Websites take longer and longer to load and I am cut off from most digital content like video. It frustrates me to see this huge online community and knowing so many people have to use the super slow lane. The fact the large telecommunication companies control so much infuriates me, and don’t get me started what they are doing to prevent local communities from getting high-speed. The internet is fast becoming like power and water, a necessity vs. a luxury. The fact that the USA is dead last in broadband availability/speed is insane. Let alone the cost that consumers are forced to pay. If Canada can have service that is 15 times the speed of the US and covers most of the country for I think 20 dollars, why can’t we? Now of course I do not need to use any of this software. However, computer’s today are unique. If Ford decides that I can only lease their car and that at any time they can take it back, I can go buy a Honda. There are not that many choices with computers. With Google buying up the planet (or so it seems some days) I worry about this. Will I be forced to use Goggle one day for a fee to search the web, or make my spreadsheets… Might have gotten a little off topic, oh well, I like to rant.  You know Sean I keep flipping around on the open source issue because of your discussions. On this topic, I certainly agree with you, I think this is a great idea for schools. It is free, easy to use (most likely) and since most schools have access to high speed as fast as Google. I hope that it will force Microsoft to lower the price of Office. I do worry about a couple things.

First is the potential Google monopoly. I like Google, use it all the time. However I worry about their business, they are becoming very large (in a shorter time even then Microsoft). With China they have shown they will break their code of ethics to do business. While I am sure the program will be free now and paid for by ads but what about the future? I do not believe Google is as evil as Microsoft but their growing power worries me.

Second is the data. This will be stored online most likely. The government has already shown they want to collect data on just about everything we do. What happens if they decide terrorists are using Goggle Spreadsheet to keep track of money? What if Google takes a turn for the worst and starts selling data they collect through this service.

I am frustrated by some of the trends I see with software and technology these days. Microsoft is talking about a pay by year service for some of their products. Like Genuine Advantage, I am sure this will start small and then take over everything. Then every year we will have to pay or our software shutsdown. This is already happening with Quicken and MS Money, now you have to buy a new package every two years or you can no longer use the online features. I recently purchased Half-Life 2: Episode 1 and had to activate it online. This also means that if Valve wants to, they can shut down the game for everyone.

A lot of these trend anger me as a dialup user as well. I doubt Google Spreadsheet would be very fun with dialup. I had to spend hours downloading updates to Episode 1. Websites take longer and longer to load and I am cut off from most digital content like video. It frustrates me to see this huge online community and knowing so many people have to use the super slow lane. The fact the large telecommunication companies control so much infuriates me, and don’t get me started what they are doing to prevent local communities from getting high-speed. The internet is fast becoming like power and water, a necessity vs. a luxury. The fact that the USA is dead last in broadband availability/speed is insane. Let alone the cost that consumers are forced to pay. If Canada can have service that is 15 times the speed of the US and covers most of the country for I think 20 dollars, why can’t we?

Now of course I do not need to use any of this software. However, computer’s today are unique. If Ford decides that I can only lease their car and that at any time they can take it back, I can go buy a Honda. There are not that many choices with computers. With Google buying up the planet (or so it seems some days) I worry about this. Will I be forced to use Goggle one day for a fee to search the web, or make my spreadsheets…

Might have gotten a little off topic, oh well, I like to rant. 

]]> By: Segu http://atticmooses.com/blog/2006/06/05/81/comment-page-1/#comment-779 Segu Tue, 06 Jun 2006 10:15:15 +0000 http://atticmooses.com/blog/2006/06/05/81/#comment-779 Google Spreadsheet screenshots looks neat. But did you try out www.zohosheet.com . In addition to basic excel features it supports Charting Multiple sheets Tags & Collaboration Just try out, its an url away, access www.zohosheet.com Google Spreadsheet screenshots looks neat. But did you try out http://www.zohosheet.com . In addition to basic excel features it supports

Charting
Multiple sheets
Tags & Collaboration

Just try out, its an url away, access http://www.zohosheet.com

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