Microsoft Office Web Applications: Is It Available for Free and For Public? [closed]

Question

The title says it all.

I am currently using Google Docs exclusively, and it's a decent piece of software and particularly strong on collaboration feature. But it would be interesting to see Microsoft offers its office suite online.

The only thing is that whether it's now available for free, and for public, or at least to anyone who has a windows live account?

Answer 1

Microsoft Office 2010 will come with web-based version of Word and Excel etc., which can be hosted on customer's servers. This won't be free, but rather part of the volume licensing for business users. This is currently only availble in the 2010 Technical Preview (pre-beta) version for certain MSDN subscribers.

Microsoft are additionally going to offer a version hosted by themselves as part of Live, which will include a free version and a paid version. This isn't available now, but presumably will be around when Office 2010 is released in the first half of 2010.

It will be compatible with certain browsers and platforms.

Answer 2

Yes, Office Live Workspace is available right now (in beta) for all Microsoft Office Live (Windows Live) accounts and is free.

From the FAQ:

How much does Microsoft Office Live Workspace cost? It’s free file sharing and online storage. No purchase or credit card information is required. Microsoft Office Live Workspace beta may eventually include advertising, but we’re still testing different designs. At some point, we may also offer additional features or services at a charge.