Perhaps the most significant collaboration tool in Office System is the Extensible Markup Language (XML), which has been available in Corel WordPerfect Office 11.0 since the beginning of this year. XML uses standard tags within files to index, search, combine, and reuse text, often in conjunction with a shared data server. For example, a Web site might use XML sales data from an Excel file to display the most current information. But while large enterprises will want and use XML, XML doesn't do much for most home users, small businesses, and many midsize companies.

Other collaboration tools include Document Workspaces, a virtual meeting place where Word, Excel, and PowerPoint users share documents in real time. Document Workspaces requires the use of a Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services site.

The SharePoint technology is a crucial part of Microsoft's strategy to drive new Office sales and upgrades. Windows SharePoint Services, which comes as part of Windows Server 2003, lets Office users collaborate more effectively on group documents from within the suite's applications. Small businesses, less likely to indulge in SharePoint on their own, can still get onboard through Microsoft's bCentral or third-party hosting services that run SharePoint for them. Home users, however, will have no use for this collaboration technology.