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How to use Google DOCS?

The following example will give an overview about how to create a document, save, share, collaborate, and publish it. As time goes on, there will be lot of updates from Google DOCS. Please follow up with this link www.docs.google.com to get more updates. To access GOOGLE DOCS, all you need is a computer and internet access along with username/password.

Log in to Google Apps, with your username and password (usually username is your email id).
On Top of the page (Left), you can see Mail, Calendar, Documents, Sites, and Group, More (with a Drop Down List Box) etc. All are underlined (URL), which are web based applications. Drop Down Arrow means several values are available and you can select one as per your need. On Right, you can see your username, Settings, Help, and Sign Out. In the middle of the page, you can see Google Search. This alignment may be later changed by Google also.
CREATE A DOCUMENT: In this example let us assume that you would like to create a spreadsheet. Click Documents. A new page (web based application) will be opened, which will be the home page for 'Document' web based application. On top of the page, you can see Google Search for searching your documents. Below that, you can see Drop Down List Boxes for 'Documents', 'Videos', 'More Options' etc. On the left, you can see some folders.
- On Left Top, You can see 'Create new' and 'upload' Drop Down Arrow Box;
- For creating a new spreadsheet click that 'Create new' down arrow. You can see Document, Presentation, Spreadsheet, Form, Drawing, Collection, from template etc.
- Click spreadsheet and a new page (spreadsheet) will be opened. Type some values and click 'Save Now'. Immediately a small window will pop up. Enter 'TestDoc', which will be name of the document and click OK. Pop Up window will disappear and now you have created a spreadsheet 'TestDoc'. Close this spreadsheet.
- To see your 'TestDoc', go to home page of 'Documents'. You can see 'TestDoc' on top of the page.
- Highlight the cursor on 'TestDoc'. Right Click that document and you can see different options like Open, Share, Add Star, Do not show in home, Organize, Rename, Mark as unread, Download, and Move to Trash etc. Based on your needs, use them.
- SHARING: As we earlier mentioned, assume that your company has paid necessary subscription to Google Apps. Sharing can be done only with employees within your company. Highlight 'TestDoc' and right click. On the sub menu that appears, select Share/Sharing Settings. A new pop up window will appear and this is called as Visibility Option. By default, privileges are private and the creator of the document will have access to that document. If you want to share it with someone within your organization, please type their email id, allocate the necessary privilege (View or edit). Click 'Send email notifications', type some message (You can type some message related to document) and click share button and then close it. The person with whom you have shared will see your email and links to open 'TestDoc' document and necessary privileges to edit the document. If you want to provide access to many employees, please repeat what you have done earlier with some modification under visibility options.
- Collaboration: Assume that you and the person with whom you have shared 'TestDoc' have opened the document and working on it at the same time. When you type something in 'TestDoc', the other person can see it and vice versa. This provides the feasibility of several people working on the same document concurrently and Google Docs automatically saves this 'TestDoc' document. There may be some limitation on the number of users accessing the document concurrently set by Google.
- Email: Go to the home page of 'Document' Web Based Application. Highlight 'TestDoc'. Right click and from the sub menu and select share/email as attachment and you can send this document 'TestDoc' to any one outside of your organization. You can send the document as Excel Spreadsheet, PDF, Open Office Spreadsheet etc.
- Publish: Even though you have shared this document to only one person, while publishing all employees in your organization can view the document. To publish, Go to the home page of 'Document' Web Based Application. Highlight 'TestDoc'. Right click and from the sub menu and select open. Spreadsheet 'TestDoc' will be opened. On Right TOP, you can see SHARE List Box and select 'Publish as a web page' option. A new pop up window will open and click start publishing. Your document will be published.
UPLOAD: You can use drop down List box 'Upload' for uploading the documents.

Cloud Computing - Google Docs