

Ask HN: Anyone within traditional corporate env. think that Office docs are going away? - chime
http://www.techcrunchit.com/2009/03/08/the-static-document-model-is-dying-rip-doc-xls-and-ppt/

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CWuestefeld
The author is completely dismissive of security concerns, but is incorrect in
this attitude. These problems are not primarily technological (we know how to
keep secrets, if only we could get users to follow the rules), so the barriers
can't just be broken down by smart people.

The problem is regulatory. HIPAA and Sarbanes-Oxley make online documents a
non-starter for significant sectors of the economy. As long as business can be
penalized to a degree that far outweighs any benefits for such decisions,
these shared online systems will not chase away the traditional "I run my
software and control my own data" model.

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JimmyL
No - and I'd also challenge the assertion that Dropbox and Slideshare are
mainstream anywhere outside of the tech/early adopter community.

These (and online docs) are products that people who like technology and new
things use as a way to get their work done. The vast majority of people - and
this is especially prevalent in enterprise contexts - don't care about a new
way to get their work done, since the old one seems to work fine.

Want to collaborate on a document? Either use Track Changes or press the
"Share on SharePoint" button in Office. Want to share a PowerPoint? Email it.
Want to version a document? Load it into the company's knowledge management
system. I work on a leading-edge team inside of a very progressive
(enterprise-size) company, and it's a battle to get people to use the wiki we
have set up.

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bkbagel
Personally, I think TechCrunch's sense of importance here is a bit inflated. I
think Office still has a long time left in its domination. Most companies are
not early adopters. And I think Google Docs, etc. still require "early
adopter" status in the corporate world.

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noodle
journalistic sensationalism pulls in the pageviews

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bkbagel
Good point. But it'd be great to have a little bit of perspective from
TechCrunch.

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noodle
no, or at least, not nearly as fast as techcrunch is reporting. perhaps
they're dying, but they're going to "die" like cobol is dying, most likely.

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Allocator2008
Yes. In fact I think we will soon go back to having a room of "computers"
instead of using an excel document. In other words, take your calculations up
to a roomful of gals who will do the calculations, double check them, and then
hand you the answer some time later. Since clearly spreadsheet software has no
practical use.

Or not.

:-)

