Zoho Gears Up For Offline

File this under "continuous improvement" for web-based productivity tools:

TechCrunch

Online office suite Zoho will launch offline functionality for Zoho Writer this morning, and other applications in their suite will follow shortly.

The offline functionality was built on Google Gears, an open source project launched by Google in May 2007. Users will need to install a browser plugin to take advantage of the functionality. After that, an option will appear in the navigation bar to “Go Offline.” The feature works with Internet Explorer v.6 and higher, and with Firefox (including Mac) v1.5 and higher.

For now they are offering read-only functionality offline. Read-write functionality will appear in 3-4 weeks, the company says. Zoho will also begin to roll out offline functionality for their spreadsheet, presentation and other applications in the coming weeks.

Zoho Goes Offline (in a good way)

Mashable

The video below shows how to use the offline features - visit the screencast direct for a less fuzzy version.

Zoho Writer Goes Offline with Google Gears