Google currently has a disjointed, awkward, barely functional approach to online storage with Gmail and Picasa. Microsoft is attempting to get into online storage with its Live SkyDrive beta. SkyDrive is slow, offers limited capacity, and requires so many of Microsoft's well-known hoops to jump through that it's just not worth it yet, at least in beta form.

Which leads us to Box.net, a two-and-a-half year old startup that sets a high bar in online storage. Aaron Levie, Box.net's CEO, got the idea when he was in college and grew tired of sneakernet: dragging files all over campus with him in addition to books and all his other stuff. So he created an online mechanism to store and access files over the web, and Box.net was born.

Don't think Box.net is Web-based Nirvana. It's not. As Fahmida Rashid points out, the service offers many nifty features but there are some quirks and other hiccups that have to be worked out. But last week, Box.net unveiled its killer solution for online storage: OpenBox Services. It's a suite of online applications including AutoDesk Freewheel (which lets you view 2D and 3D CAD files in your web browser), Echosign (which lets you apply digital signatures to documents online), and Thinkfree (which lets you create, edit, and view documents, spreadsheets and presentations.)

In fact, there are so many useful ways to deploy OpenBox applications - with, Levie says, more to come - that it could make one think: How long before Microsoft or Google starts trying to buy it?

Box.net offers a few different options. There's a "Lite," version that provides 1 GB of storage for free; an "Individual" offering for $7.95 a month that offers 5 GB of storage; a "Business" offering that's $19.95 per month with up to 15 GB and an "Enterprise" version that is negotiated on a case-by-case basis, depending on the user's needs.

What's in it for the solution provider, the trusted local advisor? For clients, especially small or mid-size businesses or workgroups that need to get an easily accessible, online-based collaboration environment up and running, it's a quick way to deploy a solution without a lot of headaches. In addition, there remains the ability to add Box.net to a total solution that includes services and software. Levie says other applications for Box.net will be added as his company certifies them all, and that the company is in the very early stages of developing a program for channel partners.