The following points answer commonly asked questions about the documents module of Live Documents. For any other questions on Live Documents, please drop us a line at info@instacoll.com

What is the documents module of Live Documents?

Live Documents Documents is a browser-based application that gives you the capabilities of document tools like Microsoft Word and Open Office Writer within a browser.

I already have Microsoft Word. Why should I use Live Documents?

With Live Documents, you can:

• Access your documents on the web using any common browser
• View and edit your documents from anywhere at any time in your browser in a rich user interface that provides the functionality and responsiveness that you expect in your familiar desktop applications.
• Easily share your documents with your colleagues and contacts
• Make documents from anywhere without having to worry about Word version compatibility
• Track changes made to your document at a slide level - no need to upload or download entire documents each time anyone makes a change.

Does Live Documents have all the features of Microsoft Word?

Live Documents has most, if not, all of the capabilities of Microsoft Word. .

Does Live Documents compete with Microsoft Word?

Live Documents extends and embraces Microsoft Word - it extends the power of these productivity applications to the browser and if you choose to, embeds collaborative capabilities into your existing desktop applications. But unlike Microsoft Word, Live Documents gives you the choice and flexibility of working with and sharing your documents without having to worry about operating systems, document formats or version compatibility.

Can I upload my existing documents to Live Documents? What file formats do you support?

Yes, you can upload your existing documents into Live Documents. Live Documents supports a variety of file formats - doc, odf& sxi. Support for doc will be available shortly. Please note that unsupported shapes and objects such as word art are converted into images. You might also observe some fidelity loss if your document graphics/objects contain gradient or transparency effects.

Are there any upload limits?

Each document you upload (import) into Live Documents should be less than 1 MB. This limit will be raised further in future. There is no limit in the number of documents that you can import but the total storage for your documents is 50 MB for the technology preview.

Can I create a document from scratch in Live Documents?

Yes, you can create a new document from scratch. Click on the "Create New Document" button on the dashboard or from the documents list at any point of time and get started.

Can an existing document be edited?

Live Documents offers the full range of editing capabilities. All of your documents can be edited.

Can everyone access my Live Documents documents?

The documents you create (or import into) Live Documents are all by default private. They will be accessible only to you and are protected by your Live Documents ID / password authentication. You can optionally share your document to other users by entering their e-mail addresses in the "Share" tab in the document listing at any point of time. You can specify what each person can do with the document.

Can I save or export a document made in Live Documents as a Word document?

Sure - only thing is that you do not have to explicitly export a document. By default, all documents have a desktop version automatically created - you can download this document version by clicking on the "Download" tab in the document listing screen or from the download button on the toolbar seen on top of the document application.

Do I have to download a document version each time the document is updated?

Nope, your desktop version of the document is always up-to-date. Just open any copy of a document in Word and the Live Documents plugin will merge all intermittent changes into the document.

Do I have to upload a document version each time the document is updated on the desktop?

Nope, all changes made to your document in Microsoft Word are automatically propagated to the browser version.

Do I need to be online to access my documents?

You can access the document on your desktop at any point of time without requiring to be online - all changes that you make to your documents are recorded locally and automatically sent to the server the next time you go online.

I'm going to present at a meeting hall where there is no or limited net connectivity. Can I use Live Documents there?

Yes, you can.You can access the desktop version of your document even when there is no internet connectivity.

Can I delete my documents?

Yes, you can. You can delete a document from the document list by enabling the delete checkbox and clicking on delete. Please note that once you delete your document, the desktop versions of the document are rendered inaccessible as well.

Can I embed a Live Documents document in my blog or website?

Yes, you can. Live Documents provides you with a HTML code snippet which while embedded in your website or blog will display the document.

Can I share a document with my friends/colleagues? Can they edit my document?

Yes, you can share your document with others. And they can edit document as well (provide you have given them edit permission).

Can I print my Live Documents document?

Yes - click on the "Print" button to see how your document will look on paper - you can then print this version.

What formatting text options does Live Documents offer?

Live Documents offers many text formatting options. You can bold, italize, change font type, increase/decrease letter size, indent etc. Text boxes can be moved around by easy drag-and-drop too.

Can I embed images from my desktop into a Live Documents document?

Yes, you can. Click on the "Insert Image" icon from the Live Documents toolbar to select an image from your desktop. Once the image is uploaded, you can move and resize it as per your requirements.

Can I include bulleted/numbered lists?

Yes. Live Documents supports bulleted and numbered lists.

Does Live Documents offer readymade themes from which I can choose from?

The themes feature is currently in development and will be available shortly.

Does Live Documents support embedding, video and sound?

Support for embedding video and sound is in our short-term roadmap and will be available shortly.

Does Live Documents support inserting header, footers and table of contents?

These features are currently in development and will be available shortly.

Can I embed URLs, YouTube clips in my Live Documents document? Can I embed charts (from Live Documents Sheet)?

This feature is currently in development and will be available shortly.

Can I embed charts and tables in my Live Documents documents?

Tables are supported but not charts - support for this feature is in development and will be available shortly. In the interim, charts within uploaded documents are converted into images in the browser.

Is Live Documents available in other languages?

Currently, it's available in English only. We plan to add more languages in the future.

What is a 'technology preview'?

The term ‘technology preview' means this is the first version of the service that we release to invited members of the public. If you would like to be invited to the technology preview, please sign up using the "Get Invited" link at the top. We know that we still have a lot of work to do and we are working hard to refine and improve the service to ensure it meets your real-world needs. We expect to have a production-strength release before the first quarter of 2008.

What are the limitations of the technology preview?

Apart from the size restrictions, the technology preview round-trips only content between Word and Live Documents - features/aspects such as word art are not presevered/propagated.