
So, Google did aquire their presentation software. - dawie
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/were-expecting.html
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vlad
I think that this purchase was about the server technology to create and edit
PowerPoint presentations as well to convert them to plaintext or PDF. Finally,
they have their own stand-alone PowerPoint viewer that works on Windows, Mac,
and Linux.

From their web site circa 2004 via archive.org \---- Tonic's unique and patent
pending PowerPoint® library provides an enterprise-ready API for you to
programatically work with PowerPoint® documents, taking slide presentations to
the next level of sophistication.

The library provides a 100% Java API to read, create and manipulate
PowerPoint® presentations. Use the library to generate new slides, populate
presentation templates or extract data from existing presentations. The
library supports the standard PowerPoint file format that is used by
PowerPoint 97, 98, 2000, XP, etc.

The library works directly with PowerPoint® files. This means you don't need
the PowerPoint® application to use the library, only to view generated
presentations.

Turn Slide Presentations into Powerful Business Tools Here are just some of
the ways to use Tonic's PowerPoint® library:

Convert PowerPoint® presentation into other formats e.g. PDF, HTML Extract
data from PowerPoint® templates Auto-generate entire presentations from
existing data sources e.g. a database or spreadsheet Manage collections of
presentations Extract slides or data from existing presentations to create new
ones For examples of what Tonic Systems' PowerPoint® library can do for your
business, see our Case Studies.

Availability and Pricing The library is currently shipping. A license to use
the library is priced at US $5000, where the envisaged usage is a single
instance running inside a web application, serving unlimited users. For other
usage models or inclusion in a product, we are happy to discuss different
pricing options. Site and global licenses are also available.

~~~
gibsonf1
Compatibility with MS Office is a big deal for business users - at least in
the beginning. But the staying power will come from how well the app works on
the web.

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danw
From what I understand the google presentation software has been in
development for quite some time and Tonic was aquired to help fill gaps in
their software.

------
dawie
I wonder why they didn't buy Slide or Zenter

~~~
bls
From what I've read about Tonic, they have a lot of tech for Powerpoint
compatibility--in particular, reading Powerpoint files, writing powerpoint
files, and converting them into file formats which do not require powerpoint.

Slide.com doesn't do anything with PowerPoint. If you go yo Slide.com, you can
see that they are not a presentation software company; they are a social
networking widget company. Slide.com is not about technology--in fact, their
tech looks downright trivial. They are all about branding. Slide.com has no
technology to buy; they only (maybe will sometime) have customers to buy.

~~~
sharpshoot
He means slideshare.com

~~~
JMiao
slideshare.net

~~~
sharpshoot
Thanks. Another reason why one should never go for the .net

