Zoho-ho-ho!

THING 18: ZOHO WRITER

I am actually writing this post in Zoho, so that I can experiment with pasting it into my blog. I recently had the experience of writing a lengthy post in MS Word for another class blog, and couldn't copy/paste it into the blog. After hunting around online (and seeing that lots of people have had this problem), I found a solution, but who needs the anxiety? I am eager to see how this works.

Other reasons I have come to love online word processing:

• I can create a document on a computer at SLIS (I don't have a laptop or netbook), save it, and it's mine again for the asking when I get home.
• I can write a doc and then access it from anywhere without having a flash drive, a laptop, etc.
• If I am feeling paranoid -- let's say I just finished my 100-page research paper but haven't turned it in yet --I can quickly save it in Google Docs or Zoho Wite, and I know it's safe if my computer blows up, the house burns down, etc.
• I can collaborate with groups in producing papers and projects, sooo much more easily than email.

I especially like the revert-to-version function of Zoho. And the tags! I adore tags.

As a library/reference tool, it can be of service just as I have described: a patron is in the library and needs to make notes on readings, write a document, post to a blog, whatever. And doesn't happen to have his/her own computer (or other device, such as a flashdrive, an iPhone, etc.). Not a problem. Use one of the library's computers to transcribe, save in Zoho (or Google Docs, or...) so it stays out there in a cloud for Patron to retrieve any time, anywhere. Nice.

Hmmm, this #18 Thing page could use some updating, by the way. (I've said this about other Thing pages, too. Are they still maintaining it?) Google Docs has been around for a while now. And then some.

UPDATE: Wow! Posting to the blog from Zoho is incredibly easy! You don't have to know the URL or anything. Okay, I am a convert. :-)