eXpresso Takes Excel to the Web and Provides Collaboration Capabilities
by Bill Ives
Here is an application to take a desktop productivity tool to the web for increased access and to facilitate collaboration. eXpresso allows users of Microsoft Excel® to upload, distribute and collaborate in real-time on Excel files via the Internet. They have won awards from PCWorld and InforWorld. eXpresso users can not only access their Excel spreadsheets from any PC with an Internet Explorer Web browser, but also authorize others to view or edit the same spreadsheets as needed.
They now have an eXpresso Pro version that contains the following additional features on top of the regular free eXpresso. The free version will remain available for those who only need the current features. This Pro version has more enterprise friendly features is available on a subscription basis if you do not want ads.
Unlimited Spreadsheet Hosting: Users can maintain any number of spreadsheet files online (eXpresso Basic users are limited to five online spreadsheets).
Cell Tracking and Audits: Using the “Track Cells” feature, spreadsheet owners are notified when changes are made, who made the changes, when they were made, and what the pre- and post-change data values are. A complete, auditable history of changes is also maintained for compliance purposes.
Rollback to Previous Versions: Enables fast recovery or reference to prior iterations.
eXpresso Plug-in for Excel: Gives users offline access to their online spreadsheets from within Excel, including eXpresso’s collaborative and sharing benefits.
Real-time and Archived Chat: eXpresso’s chat feature allows users to chat in real time from within eXpresso, with all messages archived and associated to the spreadsheet.
Assign Editable Cell Regions: Spreadsheet owners can assign specific “rights” to designated users including “view only”, “edit”, “copy” and “download”, and change rights at any time.
I like the addition of collaboration features such as chat to the application. Here is a way to continue using your current tool and have some web and collaboration capabilities. It is an alternative to those enterprise 2.0 applications that offer spreadsheet capabilities or integrate with Excel.
