Adobe to Offer Word Processing

 

Adobe Systems (NASDAQ:ADBE) has announced the acquisition of Virtual Ubiquity and its popular suite of online productivity tools, Buzzword, in order to compete with such Web-based word processors as Google Docs and the recently launched Microsoft Office Live Workspace.

Separately, Adobe has also added a new file sharing service, codenamed "Share," to its current online document services.

Built with Adobe Flex software, Buzzword runs in the Adobe Flash Player, allowing users to create high quality documents, with enhanced typography, page layout controls, and support for integrated graphics. The application will also run on Adobe AIR, to give users a hybrid online/offline option, enabling them to work with both hosted and local documents. Buzzword lets multiple authors edit and comment on documents remotely, avoiding version control problems with pre-set permissions.

Share, available free of charge, enables users to select the documents they wish to share, send a message to recipients, and set the level of access to each file. Complementing Buzzword's capabilities, it offers high-quality online previews and easy uploading.

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