OffiSync as been created to integrate Google Docs naturally into Microsoft Office. The benefits are that Microsoft Office users can now save Office files to Google Docs without loosing any of the functionality provided by Microsoft Office as the documents can be accessed like any other locally saved documents. The documents do become accessible in Google Docs as well which means it is still possible to work with them directly from within a web browser.

The add-in makes it furthermore possible to manage the complete Google Docs library from within Microsoft Office. Another interesting feature is the option to add and manage collaborators in Microsoft Office. Changes that have been made to documents will also be applied to the corresponding Google Docs document.

The Office add-in provides access to search and communication features as well. It is for example possible to communicate with collaborators right from within a shared document or to send automated messages and notifications to collaborators.

The Office add-in is compatible with Microsoft Office 2003 or 2007 and requires a computer system running Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7 plus the Microsoft .net Framework 3.5. The latter will be installed if it is not present on the target system. OffiSync is currently in beta. It can be downloaded for free from the developer’s homepage. It is likely that the product will become commercial once it leaves beta stage.

The Verdict:

OffiSync is an excellent solution for users who work with Microsoft Office and Google Docs. It might also be interesting for users who only use Microsoft Office to use Google Docs to backup their documents on the Internet. The developers have announced that they plan to add more Google services to their add-in.

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