Google Pack Just Keeps Getting Better

While inspecting an article entitled “Google kicks Microsoft where it hurts, again” and expecting to see something about search, or video, or another sound trouncing on the format wars, I instead see that what the article is about is the ever changing face of the Google Pack.

The applications get better, and there are more of them than before, and yes, all are still free.

Of course, there is Google Earth, Google Desktop, Google Toolbar for IE, Google Photos Screensaver, and Picasa - these are ‘native’ Google applications…but then there is Norton Security Scan, Spyware Doctor Starter Edition, Adobe Reader, Skype, Real Player, Firefox (with Google Toolbar, natch), and lo, and behold, Star Office 8 with Java - this is not a giveaway edition, not time limited, and not encumbered in any way (you don’t have to be connected to the internet to use it).

While some will say that OpenOffice is essentially the same thing, it can be a pain to update, or get some additional software pieces - these pains should be removed with the Google updater service. (Can you say point and click, boys and girls?)

One thing I notice is the lack of an email application for POP3 usage - is Google telling us that POP3 is going the way of the dinosaur? Time will tell - still something free and POP3 capable would be nice - Thunderbird or Pegasus are good choices here, as there seems to be no hope for a free version of Eudora now.

Oh, well, open source gives, and open source takes away - but mostly gives! With these, and an OS, there is not much more a computer really needs.

[tags] Google, GooglePack, Picasa, Star Office, Sun, open source software, Google Desktop, Google Search [/tags]