There is a lot of talk about Google talking over the desktop these days.  To fully understand what's required to do so, its important to think about the history of PCs. 

What application put a PC on every desk in every business office in North America and Europe?  Visicalc. 

If you are saying, 'What's Visicalc?  I've never heard of that.'  Then stop whatever you are doing right now, get this book and read it.  Then you may continue.

Here is someone who already realized that it would be necessary to create a browser-based spreadsheet to really have a Microsoft free PC-world or for Linux to achieve any real success.  Spreadsheets changed the office environment. 

Previous to spreadsheets all accounting was done using a literal set of books.  In French referred to as 'Le Grand Livre", these books were maintained by a team of people.  A spreadsheet program meant that the book keeping entries could be entered, modified and calculations no longer had to be done by hand.  The vast amount of mathematical modeling and scenario analysis that was done with mainframes could now be done with a spreadsheet program as well.

Visicalc suddenly made office computers (PCs) seem like a worthwhile investment to accountants, controllers and bankers.  That's right the people who control the office finances.  Say what you like about the importance of technology, but if you can't convince a controller that its a worthwhile investment, likely to improve productivity and earn or save money, you will not get approval for a purchase.  Or you have an incompetent controller.

There are rumours of an impending announcement by Sun and Google about a browser based Office.  I suspect this is Sun 'Hey we invented platform independent stuff' Microsystems trying to get back in the game.  I'm sure the guys at Sun are a little frustrated that they are not reaping some of the Google-inspired love. 

If this Office does not include a spreadsheet then forget it.  Its meaningless.  Anyone can produce a browser-based Word-type of program.  My blog RTE editor already has 50% of the features I use in Word.

I thought that Google would steer clear of the Office market and let Microsoft control that.  There is more money in the consumer market and a faster rate of adoption by users than in the Office market.

Is the temptation to really take on Microsoft may be overwhelming the strategic vision of Google?