Acrobat.com Introduces Tables, a Web-Based Spreadsheet Editor

Adobe has introduced a new product for cloud-based software suite Acrobat.com, which has just moved out of beta, and has announced two new subscription services. The new software is a spreadsheet product called Tables and is currently available in beta at Acrobat.com Labs. Tables will supplement the company's current online office offerings, the word processor Buzzword and the recently launched Presentations software, which is also in beta at Acrobat.com Labs.

Tables has a very self-explaining name, in keeping with the rest of the office suite's naming scheme. The new product isn't a full-fledged spreadsheet editor but aims to handle the usual uses for spreadsheets and also comes with some collaboration features like all of the other Acrobat.com offerings.

“Tables tackles the most common use of spreadsheet - working with and sharing information such as project management task lists, budget planning, sales lead pipelines, contact lists and more. Tables has the familiar look and feel of a spreadsheet. It's optimized for the functions people do using table features in spreadsheets or in simple databases. In a nutshell, shared tables for shared data,” wrote Lisa Underkoffler on an Adobe blog.

The main focus is on online collaboration and Adobe developers have created a number of tools and features to facilitate it. In contrast with other online collaborative software, the data in Tables can be added simultaneously, ensuring that all is up-to-date for every user, but the app also lets everyone know who is currently editing the spreadsheet. However, Tables allows for single user editing and viewing by having the option to switch between private and common views. The spreadsheet editor also has powerful filtering and sorting options to allow users to concentrate on the data they are interested in. Tables is just in beta now and other features will be added in the future, like the possibility to export, print and better analyze the data.