Google is doing something interesting with its Gadgets platform, making
gadgets a data source for spreadsheets as well as a data distribution method for
developers.
"If I'm collecting census data and putting it into a spreadsheet, I can also
make that data available to statisticians," through the Visualization API, says
Rochelle. "It doesn't have to be in a spreadsheet form" to distribute.
Spreadsheets is just the first data source that can be handled this way.
"We're making the spreadsheet almost a platform for simple development and
delivery," he says.
With the enhancements, Google is ratcheting up the competition its free
Web-hosted apps are giving Microsoft's desktop productivity suite, which
companies pay for.