Microsoft Office Live
Encyclopedia
Microsoft Office Live is a discontinued web-based service providing document sharing and website creation tools for consumers and small businesses. Office Live has consisted of two services, Office Live Workspace, which was superseded by Windows Live SkyDrive
, and Office Live Small Business, which was be superseded by Office 365.
, reducing the portability of the service in comparison to other providers of online office suites. In order for workspaces to be accessed directly from Office, users of Word
, Excel
, and PowerPoint
needed to install an Office Live Update. Files couldn't be edited from within a workspace, but clicking on "edit" would open them up in Microsoft Office. The workspace didn't offer offline collaboration — instead documents were "checked out" and "checked in" — but the service did integrate with SharedView
for real-time screen sharing.
, Windows Server 2003
, Windows Vista
, Windows 7, or Mac OS X 10.2.x
and later. It works with the following browsers:
Office Live Workspace is currently not supported on Office 2010. In May 2010, it was announced that Office Live Workspace customers would be moved to Microsoft's SkyDrive service, which offers 25GB of storage and the ability to view and edit documents through Office Web Apps
.
.
, Windows Server 2003
, Windows Vista
, or Mac OS X 10.2.x
and later with one of the following Web browsers installed:
Windows Live SkyDrive
Windows Live SkyDrive, initially called Windows Live Folders, is a free-of-charge file hosting service that allows users to upload files to a cloud storage and then access them from a Web browser...
, and Office Live Small Business, which was be superseded by Office 365.
Office Live Workspace
Office Live Workspace was a free service for storing and sharing documents online. The company claimed it was most commonly used for work, school, and home projects because documents could be managed from remote locations without a flash drive. The service required web access and a compatible browser; the interface was available in over 25 languages. Certain functionalities were tied to a browser plug-in called SilverlightMicrosoft Silverlight
Microsoft Silverlight is an application framework for writing and running rich Internet applications, with features and purposes similar to those of Adobe Flash. The run-time environment for Silverlight is available as a plug-in for web browsers running under Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X...
, reducing the portability of the service in comparison to other providers of online office suites. In order for workspaces to be accessed directly from Office, users of Word
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
, Excel
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is a proprietary commercial spreadsheet application written and distributed by Microsoft for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It features calculation, graphing tools, pivot tables, and a macro programming language called Visual Basic for Applications...
, and PowerPoint
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft PowerPoint, usually just called PowerPoint, is a non-free commercial presentation program developed by Microsoft. It is part of the Microsoft Office suite, and runs on Microsoft Windows and Apple's Mac OS X operating system...
needed to install an Office Live Update. Files couldn't be edited from within a workspace, but clicking on "edit" would open them up in Microsoft Office. The workspace didn't offer offline collaboration — instead documents were "checked out" and "checked in" — but the service did integrate with SharedView
Microsoft SharedView
Microsoft SharedView is a remote desktop and internet collaboration application for screen sharing, group chats and sharing documents with multiple people in real time. The program is free but no longer supported by Microsoft, and the last released version is 1.0. -Overview:Microsoft SharedView...
for real-time screen sharing.
Features
- Online storage – Office Live permits users to save up to 5 gigabyteGigabyteThe gigabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage. The prefix giga means 109 in the International System of Units , therefore 1 gigabyte is...
s (GB) of information in many file formats, which can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection, even if Office isn't installed. The company claims this replaces the need for flash drives or CDsCompact DiscThe Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
as a storage solution, and provides capabilities for updating project schedules, organizing events, and delegating assignments without scheduling a meeting or relying on emailEmailElectronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
- Information sharing – Office Live Workspace is designed so that computer users can share a single document or a workspace containing multiple documents, as well as collaborate online as a group. Workspaces are passwordPasswordA password is a secret word or string of characters that is used for authentication, to prove identity or gain access to a resource . The password should be kept secret from those not allowed access....
-protected and users can control who views and edits information. Files or workspaces can be shared with up to 100 people
- Software compatibility – While Office Live Workspace works with Microsoft Office programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OutlookMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft Outlook is a personal information manager from Microsoft, available both as a separate application as well as a part of the Microsoft Office suite...
, it also allows users to store documents of other file types. If the Office Live update is installed, files and documents may be opened and saved directly from Microsoft Office XPMicrosoft Office XPMicrosoft Office XP is a productivity suite written and distributed by Microsoft for their Windows operating system. Released on March 5, 2001, it is the successor to Office 2000 and the predecessor to Office 2003, and was known as Office 10 in the early stages of its development cycle...
, 2003, 2007 or 2008 for Mac. Users may also synchronize, contact, task, and event lists with Outlook 2003 and 2007, and workspace lists can be exported to ExcelMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Excel is a proprietary commercial spreadsheet application written and distributed by Microsoft for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It features calculation, graphing tools, pivot tables, and a macro programming language called Visual Basic for Applications...
. However please note that the Office Live update is no longer available for download from Microsoft and is not supported.
- Resources and support – Microsoft established a Community Support websiteWebsiteA website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, which includes a blogBlogA blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
, wikiWikiA wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include...
, how-to videos, and the opportunity for customers to ask and answer questions about using Office Live Workspace
System requirements
Office Live Workspace requires an Internet-connected computer running Windows XPWindows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
, Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...
, Windows Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
, Windows 7, or Mac OS X 10.2.x
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
and later. It works with the following browsers:
- Internet Explorer 6.0Internet ExplorerWindows Internet Explorer is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year...
or later - Firefox 2.0Mozilla FirefoxMozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. , Firefox is the second most widely used browser, with approximately 25% of worldwide usage share of web browsers...
or later - Safari 3.0Safari (web browser)Safari is a web browser developed by Apple Inc. and included with the Mac OS X and iOS operating systems. First released as a public beta on January 7, 2003 on the company's Mac OS X operating system, it became Apple's default browser beginning with Mac OS X v10.3 "Panther". Safari is also the...
or later
Office Live Workspace is currently not supported on Office 2010. In May 2010, it was announced that Office Live Workspace customers would be moved to Microsoft's SkyDrive service, which offers 25GB of storage and the ability to view and edit documents through Office Web Apps
Office Web Apps
Microsoft Office Web Apps is a web-based version of the Microsoft Office productivity suite. It includes the web-based versions of Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Microsoft OneNote. The web applications allow users to access their documents directly from anywhere within a...
.
Office Live Small Business
Office Live Small Business was an Internet-based service designed to assist non-technical users with the creation of a professional-looking websiteWebsite
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
.
Features
- Web site design tools and hosting – Office Live Small Business provides access to free online web design tools and templates for non-technical users' websiteWebsiteA website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
development. Site Designer is a product feature used for customizing page layouts, colors, navigation, and other site elements. Users can also add modules such as PayPalPayPalPayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
buttons, Google CheckoutGoogle CheckoutGoogle Checkout is an online payment processing service provided by Google aimed at simplifying the process of paying for online purchases. Users store their credit or debit card and shipping information in their Google Account, so that they can purchase at participating stores by clicking an...
, maps, blogs, and calendarCalendarA calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
s to pages. Advanced web users can upload HTMLHTMLHyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
code to customize their web pages. Microsoft provides free website hosting and 500 megabytes (MB) of storage space for site files. Additional storage space can be purchased if a user's site exceeds this storage limit
- Domain name registration and business e-mail – Within Office Live Small Business, domain names may be selected and registered. Customers who already have a domain name with another provider can redirect it to Office Live Small Business. Users can create up to 100 domain-based e-mail accounts at no charge. Additional email accounts can be purchased. The price is $14.95 a year and includes private registration
- Contact Manager – The Contact Manager is designed to organize customer information, contact histories, and sales information in one place and make it accessible via the web to their entire organization
- Document Manager – This application is used as an online repository for documents in order to make them easily accessible to employees to facilitate collaboration
- Team Workspace – The Team Workspace application creates a project website for posting information to share with customers, employees, or business partners. It is meant to streamline the editing process, give users remote access to company data, and download large files as needed
- Resources and support – Microsoft offers 24-hour technical phone support at no charge for 30 days. Online, the Community site includes a blog, wiki, articles, how-to videos, and the opportunity for customers to ask and answer questions about using Office Live Small Business
Security
Office Live Small Business user data is stored on the Microsoft network where network firewall services help protect documents, email and other stored data. Built-in password-protection features are included for Business Applications such as Team Workspace and Document Manager.System requirements
Many of the features of Office Live (including sign-up) require Internet-connected computer running Windows XPWindows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
, Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...
, Windows Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
, or Mac OS X 10.2.x
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
and later with one of the following Web browsers installed:
- Internet Explorer 6.0Internet ExplorerWindows Internet Explorer is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year...
or later - Firefox 2.0Mozilla FirefoxMozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. , Firefox is the second most widely used browser, with approximately 25% of worldwide usage share of web browsers...
or later