WPS
Encyclopedia
Kingsoft Office, commonly known as KSO or KSOffice, developed by Zhuhai-based Chinese
software developer Kingsoft
, is an office suite
for Microsoft Windows
and Android OS. KSOffice include Kingsoft Writer, Kingsoft Presentation and Kingsoft Spreadsheet.
Kingsoft Office Suite Free is a trial version for free personal use for a period of 365 days. A charged Pro version is also available. The current version is Kingsoft Office 2012.
The product has had a long history of development in China, where it is still sold as WPS Office. "Kingsoft Office" is the company's attempt to crack, primarily, the Western and Japanese markets. Since Kingsoft Office 2005, the user interface
bears resemblance to the Microsoft Office
products, and the suite reads and writes the files generated by Office in addition to its native documents.
WPS (Word Processing System). WPS is also used as a promotional acronym for "Writer, Presentation, and Spreadsheets" which are the components of Kingsoft Office. WPS started as a word processor under DOS
in 1988. WPS maintained an enormous user base throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s.
When Microsoft Office 95
and Windows 95
were introduced into the Chinese market, the influence and sales of WPS went into steep decline. Faced with stiff foreign competition and high level of domestic piracy, Kingsoft was nearly bankrupt by the end of 1995. Kingsoft chief software architect Pak Kwan Kau (求伯君), in an attempt to revive the company, injected 4 million Yuan (approx. US$500,000 in 2003) into the company by selling off his private assets, and began the development of WPS 97 for Microsoft Windows
. When WPS 97 was released in 1997, it struggled to compete with Microsoft Office 97
. There were number of reasons for that:
In May 2001, Kingsoft launched WPS Office, which included a word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation software. Again it struggled to compete with the more powerful Microsoft Office 2000.
When China joined
the WTO, the Chinese government looked to rid piracy within the government offices. In 2003, the Chinese government made KingSoft office the standard for various government branches.
Kingsoft won big contracts and licensed thousands of copies of WPS Office to many local Chinese governments including the governments of Beijing
and Guangdong
. However, Shanghai
was unmoved by the low cost of WPS Office and still opted for the more expensive Microsoft Office.
The 2004 incarnation of the office suite, WPS Office Storm, was released in late 2004 to limited fanfare. In its increased effort to converge with Microsoft Office, WPS Office Storm claims to offer perfect compatibility
with the Microsoft Office document formats.
In a bid to differentiate itself from other office suites, Kingsoft collaborated with Intel and IBM
to integrate their text-to-text and text-to-speech technology into WPS Office Storm. Its new technical capabilities became the focal point in an advertising campaign.
There are two versions of WPS for Linux
, WPS Office Storm (cloned from OpenOffice.org
) and WPS 2005.
In late 2005, WPS Office Personal Edition was released as a free download, in hope of introducing the product to more users. This edition is only offered in Simplified Chinese, and can only be used by home users. Kingsoft is constantly updating this personal edition which indicates the company may intend to support and improve the free version as a long term commitment.
In 2007, another edition was released, Kingsoft Office 2007, which is available in Chinese, English, and Japanese interface. The personal edition is available for 30-day trial (with the license key available for free by request), the next version will be available in 100-day trial and free version.
In 2009, Kingsoft Office 2009 was released which has increased compatibility with Microsoft Office including support for the 2007 version file formats.Kingsoft Office 2010 was released in 2010.
In 2011, Kingsoft Office granted funding from the Chinese government and received further orders from central ministries in China.
Kingsoft Office Suite Free 2012 was released in 2011, which is a trial version for a period of 365 days. A charged 2012 Pro version will also be available.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
software developer Kingsoft
Kingsoft
Kingsoft is a software company located in China. Its products include Kingsoft Office, PowerWord, Kingsoft Internet Security, Kingsoft free antivirus and the Kingsoft FastAIT Chinese-English-Japanese translation software....
, is an office suite
Office suite
In computing, an office suite, sometimes called an office software suite or productivity suite is a collection of programs intended to be used by knowledge workers...
for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and Android OS. KSOffice include Kingsoft Writer, Kingsoft Presentation and Kingsoft Spreadsheet.
Kingsoft Office Suite Free is a trial version for free personal use for a period of 365 days. A charged Pro version is also available. The current version is Kingsoft Office 2012.
The product has had a long history of development in China, where it is still sold as WPS Office. "Kingsoft Office" is the company's attempt to crack, primarily, the Western and Japanese markets. Since Kingsoft Office 2005, the user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
bears resemblance to the Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office is a non-free commercial office suite of inter-related desktop applications, servers and services for the Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, introduced by Microsoft in August 1, 1989. Initially a marketing term for a bundled set of applications, the first version of...
products, and the suite reads and writes the files generated by Office in addition to its native documents.
Early dominance and fall
The Chinese version is marketed as WPS Office named after the early Kingsoft word processorWord processor
A word processor is a computer application used for the production of any sort of printable material....
WPS (Word Processing System). WPS is also used as a promotional acronym for "Writer, Presentation, and Spreadsheets" which are the components of Kingsoft Office. WPS started as a word processor under DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
in 1988. WPS maintained an enormous user base throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s.
When Microsoft Office 95
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office is a non-free commercial office suite of inter-related desktop applications, servers and services for the Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, introduced by Microsoft in August 1, 1989. Initially a marketing term for a bundled set of applications, the first version of...
and Windows 95
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
were introduced into the Chinese market, the influence and sales of WPS went into steep decline. Faced with stiff foreign competition and high level of domestic piracy, Kingsoft was nearly bankrupt by the end of 1995. Kingsoft chief software architect Pak Kwan Kau (求伯君), in an attempt to revive the company, injected 4 million Yuan (approx. US$500,000 in 2003) into the company by selling off his private assets, and began the development of WPS 97 for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. When WPS 97 was released in 1997, it struggled to compete with Microsoft Office 97
Microsoft Office 97
Microsoft Office 97 was a major milestone release of Microsoft Office, which included hundreds of new features and improvements, introduced "Command Bars", a paradigm in which menus and toolbars were made more similar in capability and visual design featured natural language systems and...
. There were number of reasons for that:
- Office 97 was in widespread use and users were reluctant to switch
- Office 97 offered more features than WPS 97
- WPS was still just a word processor with no spreadsheet or presentation application
In May 2001, Kingsoft launched WPS Office, which included a word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation software. Again it struggled to compete with the more powerful Microsoft Office 2000.
Revival
In 2002, WPS Office 2002 surfaced as the next version of WPS Office and added to its bundle an email client. In a move hailed by many, WPS Office 2002 cloned Microsoft Office's user interface to the very last detail and as a result dramatically reduced the amount of retraining required to migrate from Microsoft Office. However, critics labeled the strategic move as "the death of software innovation".When China joined
WTO accession and membership
All World Trade Organization members have joined the organization as a result of negotiation, and membership consists of a balance of rights and obligations. The process of becoming a World Trade Organization member is unique to each applicant country, and the terms of accession are dependent upon...
the WTO, the Chinese government looked to rid piracy within the government offices. In 2003, the Chinese government made KingSoft office the standard for various government branches.
Kingsoft won big contracts and licensed thousands of copies of WPS Office to many local Chinese governments including the governments of Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
and Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
. However, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
was unmoved by the low cost of WPS Office and still opted for the more expensive Microsoft Office.
The 2004 incarnation of the office suite, WPS Office Storm, was released in late 2004 to limited fanfare. In its increased effort to converge with Microsoft Office, WPS Office Storm claims to offer perfect compatibility
Backward compatibility
In the context of telecommunications and computing, a device or technology is said to be backward or downward compatible if it can work with input generated by an older device...
with the Microsoft Office document formats.
In a bid to differentiate itself from other office suites, Kingsoft collaborated with Intel and IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
to integrate their text-to-text and text-to-speech technology into WPS Office Storm. Its new technical capabilities became the focal point in an advertising campaign.
There are two versions of WPS for Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
, WPS Office Storm (cloned from OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...
) and WPS 2005.
In late 2005, WPS Office Personal Edition was released as a free download, in hope of introducing the product to more users. This edition is only offered in Simplified Chinese, and can only be used by home users. Kingsoft is constantly updating this personal edition which indicates the company may intend to support and improve the free version as a long term commitment.
In 2007, another edition was released, Kingsoft Office 2007, which is available in Chinese, English, and Japanese interface. The personal edition is available for 30-day trial (with the license key available for free by request), the next version will be available in 100-day trial and free version.
In 2009, Kingsoft Office 2009 was released which has increased compatibility with Microsoft Office including support for the 2007 version file formats.Kingsoft Office 2010 was released in 2010.
In 2011, Kingsoft Office granted funding from the Chinese government and received further orders from central ministries in China.
Kingsoft Office Suite Free 2012 was released in 2011, which is a trial version for a period of 365 days. A charged 2012 Pro version will also be available.
See also
- List of office suites
- Comparison of office suites
- Web operating systemWeb operating systemIn metacomputing, WebOS and Web operating system are terms that describe network services for Internet scale distributed computing, as in the WebOS Project at UC Berkeley, and the WOS Project...
- Web desktopWeb desktopA web desktop or webtop is a desktop environment embedded in a web browser or similar client application. A webtop integrates web applications, web services, client–server applications, application servers, and applications on the local client into a desktop environment using the desktop metaphor...
- Office Open XML softwareOffice Open XML softwareThis is an overview of software support for the Office Open XML format, a Microsoft document file format for saving and exchanging editable office documents.The list here is not exhaustive.-ECMA-376 1st edition implementations:...
- OpenDocument softwareOpenDocument softwareThis is an overview of software support for the OpenDocument format, an open document file format for saving and exchanging editable office documents.-Current support:...
External links
- Kingsoft store - latest trial version
- Kingsoft
- Kingsoft Authorized Distributor in Indonesia