Thing #13 Web-Based Applications

After having spent a fair bit of time exploring Zoho I can say that it is a definitively rich service for the creation of documents and projects. The amount of features that Zoho offers its users for free is rather large, especially when you compare it to its competitor Google Docs. There are so many features offered by Zoho that using it is like learning how to use Microsoft Office all over again. However, I think that this may be an unfortunate problem for Zoho as it has too many features that make learning how to use it not as simple and much more cumbersome. It is though, a very powerful service that probably can not be rivaled by any other document creating software when it is being used by experienced users.

Google Docs, on the other hand is really a foil to Zoho as it is extremely simple. While users who are experienced in Office applications can pick both services up with almost no instruction, Google Docs feels like something you have used before and not foreign like Zoho. While it is not completely void of features, it does pail in comparison to Zoho's features. I rather enjoyed playing with their Microsoft Paint "copy". While I rather enjoy playing around with Zoho's features it feels far to foreign to me and as such I much prefer the simplicity of Google Docs.

The collaborative power of Google Docs has an almost unlimited potential in the classroom especially in the area of group projects and larger assignments. The simple fact that so long as one has a working browser they can edit and collaborate on the document is the single key feature that opens this potential in the classroom. If students were to use Google Docs in the classroom it eliminates the problems of accessibility so that it does not matter what kind of computer they have at home and the student is able to work on the assignment at home with ease. For group projects it allows students that lack transportation but must work together on the project a vehicle to work together. These two things can not be overstated in their importance to classroom activities. In my own teaching experiences I can easily see requiring students to use this service.