DocVerse is a plugin for Microsoft Office applications that turns these tools into collaborative web-enabled tools. DocVerse was acquired by Google in early 2010 and it is expected that DocVerse will eventually be fully integrated with Google Docs. DocVerse is an interesting alternative to the online Google Docs for those users who don't want to give up their favorite productivity tools.

The DocVerse panel in Office tools. It includes a URL to access the document online, a chat tab, and a history tab.

For the time being, any document saved with DocVerse is also available in the cloud for reading and for commenting but not yet for editing.

DocVerse includes an instant messaging tab that allows collaborators on a document to instantly share their comments. Each successive version of a document is incrementally stored in the cloud.

DocVerse currently handles documents from Word, Excel, and PowerPoint formats in the Office 2003 and 2007 editions.

A free, trial version is available on the DocVerse website.