When CloudOn launched, it was so popular that the service was up and down for several days.. This apparently was just based on usage from United States users, as CloudOn has now announced that their app is available in the UK.

This means that more users will get to use Microsoft Office applications like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel using CloudOn’s cloud computing technologies. As this is a cloud-based solution, there appears to be mild input lag when operating with the apps. Files still can be saved and loaded from Dropbox, although these require to be saved in Office formats; opening up plaintext or markdown formats in Word isn’t possible at the moment. This is all still available for the low, low cost of free as the service begins to roll out. For users looking for a new way to use their familiar Microsoft Office tools directly on their iPad, this is a very viable option.

FREE!

CloudOn

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-01-03 :: Category: Productivity

When looking back over some of the most exciting developments of the last two years, it would be hard to ignore the groundbreaking cloud gaming solution, OnLive.  The company was founded around the idea of taking dated hardware and allowing gamers to play a high-end gaming experience, all through the streaming power of the internet.

The technology behind the service is impressive enough to provide a quality gaming experience, with very little lag time, which makes today’s announcement a relative no-brainer.  OnLive is planning to apply this streaming technology to desktop virtualization.  All those crazy pipe dreams about being able to have a true desktop experience away from the keyboard may finally be coming to fruition.

iPad will be the first iOS device to be able to fully take advantage of this new technology, when they debut their free OnLive Desktop app soon.  Among the pieces of software available for virtualization at launch will be Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel, which are viewed by many as the holy trinity of office productivity.

Though the base application will be a free, there will be microtransations that can be used to add in additional storage space, applications and, you guessed it, games.  There are also plans of releasing a professional tier application, for $9.99 a month. This second service would bump the storage space from a mere 2GBs to a hulking 50GBs, as well as add in even more applications and features.

If the technology works as well as their gaming service has, business folks will undoubtedly be lining up in droves to take part.  Better yet, the company’s use of cloud computing could put the need for purchasing a high end workhorse PC on the back burner, in exchange for an iPad.  That seems like the kind of trade off that the mobile masses could strongly support.  Plus, this sure makes it a whole lot easier to suggest expensing an iPad on the company’s dime. THANK YOU ONLIVE!

Source: Gigaom

Ever since its launch, iPad users have had the chance to create and display slideshow presentations thanks to the Apple’s own Pages app. However, while presentations made in that app can be easily brought over into Microsoft’s popular PowerPoint program, doing the opposite is far more troublesome. Brainshark’s new SlideShark app hopes to fix that.

Bringing PowerPoint presentations to an iPad through SlideShark is a three step process. First, users create an account and get access to their own private server. Presentations are then loaded onto that server and converted. Finally, the app downloads the presentation in a form the iPad can display. Unlike other similar apps, SlideShark promises that no fonts, colors or animations will be lost.

Using the iPad’s native mirroring capabilities, users can play their presentations through a computer or projector. Best of all, the service and the app are completely free. The SlideShark app is currently available on the app store and accounts are created at www.SlideShark.com.

FREE!

SlideShark

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-10-18 :: Category: Productivity