Online Word Processor: A Closer Look at Adobe’s Buzzword

Ever since Google shook up the status quo by introducing Google Docs, the number of online word processors seems to be on the rise. Google’s nearest competitor seems to be, from where I’m sitting, Zoho Writer, who announced recently that they were introducing an offline version using, ironically enough, Google Gears.

But Adobe has also entered the bustling online word-processing market by bringing out Buzzword. What makes this different though from all the rest is that :

• It’s Flash-based.
• It’s a simple eye-pleasing design (and it is remarkably easy to use).
• Buzzword is not tied to one particular operating system. So you can use this on both Windows PC’s and Macs.
• Nothing to install. All you need is Adobe Flash Player (which is normally installed on computers anyway).

After registering for an account, you are taken to the main screen extremely quickly. After choosing a new document, you can start to write something.

What I particularly like are the menus. Being flash-based, they open very quickly and smoothly.

Now when you look at Buzzword for the first time, you’ll think that there are hardly any features. But this is where Adobe has come one up on the others the features are there but they are tucked away in the flash menus!

Just click on one of the buttons and it will slide across the top of the screen, showing you the features inside :

Here are some of the other features that in my opinion are really great :

Automatic word count - as you type, there is a constantly updating word count going on in the bottom right hand corner. Good for writers who have to keep to a certain word count.

Zoom in and out - using a slider, you can zoom in and out of the document, making things bigger or smaller.

Special characters - you can insert lots of special characters into your document such as the German umlaut.

Uploading images and comments - you can insert images and comments into a document.

Document sharing - you can make the document private or you can share it with others.

You can find more in-depth information on Buzzword by going to the Buzzword Help page.

My only negative comment about Buzzword is that they have only seven fonts. So if you wanted to make a really nice document, you are limited by the number of fonts you can use. But if you are looking for a simple straight-forward online word processor then Buzzword is an excellent option.

Filed Under: Cool Websites
Tags: adobe, documents, file sharing, office, office worker, word