Back in April 2013 Google released an Extension for Chrome called ‘Chrome Office Viewer’. Though tagged a BETA, the extension performed (or did not perform) more like an alpha release. Testing it out was a real pain, but due to my own (emotional) pain at that time did not write or laugh about it.
Last week Google updated the Chrome Office Viewer extension to 2.9.2.14, and though still a Beta, performs a bit better. Back in April, viewing an Excel or World file with Chrome Office Viewer needed a special skill. The fonts were bizarre, the formatting was absurd, headers/footers went missing and the numbered lists were marching to their own tune.
Chrome Office Viewer 2.9.2.14 is a solid download at ~26 MB. Like all Google Chrome extensions, it installs without any problems.
The first hurdle in trying to open a doc(x) or xls(x) file with Chrome is to tell the OS about it. Taking Windows by hand to the Chrome.exe file is like jumping quickly through hoops. Lest we forget the chrome executable is actually inside the
C:\Users\%user name%\%AppData%\Local\Google\Chrome\Application
Once shown Windows has no problem in allowing Chrome to open the files. It even gives the option of opening with Chrome next time around in the ‘Open With’ context menu.
Many of the errors of April seems to have been fixed in June. The fonts are reasonably close; the headers and footers are in their respective places; the paragraph formatting including hanging indents are alright. But the numbered lists still seem to hear a different tune.
Look at this. Two numbered lists have been combined into one by the Chrome Office Viewer and when the list spills out to the next page, the remaining text is given a new number.
:-P
It is a real puzzle since the extension is built around the excellent QuickOffice product, which was acquired by Google last year. Just proves modifying a standalone product into a browser extension isn’t just slapping a GUI on it.
So will Chrome become the default viewer for Office documents? - like it has become the default viewer for PDF documents.
Personally I doubt it. The basic difference between a PDF and a Word or XLS file is both the sender and the receiver expect the DOC or XLS file to be editable.
No one expects to edit a PDF file - they are treated more like circulars of old - to be read and filed/passed-on. Thus the Chrome PDF viewer is an excellent, easy alternate to the bloated Adobe Viewer.
But people receiving a Word or Excel file, expect to mess around with them - the files are treated more like shared documents. Merely viewing an Excel file without being able to edit it isn’t going to cut much ice.
However, in the age of PRISM, there is an (as yet) unpublicized advantage with this extension. Google Chrome sandboxes running extensions and it sure would be a good idea to view unsolicited Office documents with Chrome Office Viewer first thereby protecting the OS.
Last week Google updated the Chrome Office Viewer extension to 2.9.2.14, and though still a Beta, performs a bit better. Back in April, viewing an Excel or World file with Chrome Office Viewer needed a special skill. The fonts were bizarre, the formatting was absurd, headers/footers went missing and the numbered lists were marching to their own tune.
Chrome Office Viewer 2.9.2.14 is a solid download at ~26 MB. Like all Google Chrome extensions, it installs without any problems.
The first hurdle in trying to open a doc(x) or xls(x) file with Chrome is to tell the OS about it. Taking Windows by hand to the Chrome.exe file is like jumping quickly through hoops. Lest we forget the chrome executable is actually inside the
C:\Users\%user name%\%AppData%\Local\Google\Chrome\Application
Once shown Windows has no problem in allowing Chrome to open the files. It even gives the option of opening with Chrome next time around in the ‘Open With’ context menu.
Many of the errors of April seems to have been fixed in June. The fonts are reasonably close; the headers and footers are in their respective places; the paragraph formatting including hanging indents are alright. But the numbered lists still seem to hear a different tune.
Look at this. Two numbered lists have been combined into one by the Chrome Office Viewer and when the list spills out to the next page, the remaining text is given a new number.
:-P
It is a real puzzle since the extension is built around the excellent QuickOffice product, which was acquired by Google last year. Just proves modifying a standalone product into a browser extension isn’t just slapping a GUI on it.
So will Chrome become the default viewer for Office documents? - like it has become the default viewer for PDF documents.
Personally I doubt it. The basic difference between a PDF and a Word or XLS file is both the sender and the receiver expect the DOC or XLS file to be editable.
No one expects to edit a PDF file - they are treated more like circulars of old - to be read and filed/passed-on. Thus the Chrome PDF viewer is an excellent, easy alternate to the bloated Adobe Viewer.
But people receiving a Word or Excel file, expect to mess around with them - the files are treated more like shared documents. Merely viewing an Excel file without being able to edit it isn’t going to cut much ice.
However, in the age of PRISM, there is an (as yet) unpublicized advantage with this extension. Google Chrome sandboxes running extensions and it sure would be a good idea to view unsolicited Office documents with Chrome Office Viewer first thereby protecting the OS.
No comments:
Post a Comment