Google Docs is an online office suite that is widely used in education, among other things. Rightly so, because apart from the fact that there are no costs associated with the use – unless you opt for a business subscription or extra storage space – it offers many advantages. Collaboration is a breeze, for example. But thanks to apps for iOS/iPadOS and Android, you are also not tied to working online alone. The Chromebook also makes working offline possible.
Many people think of Microsoft Office when they think of tasks like word processing or setting up a spreadsheet. That is no longer entirely fair. There are more than enough alternatives, some of which are at least comparable in functionality to the Microsoft counterpart. The point is, however, that the versatility of the Microsoft Office suite is also a major drawback. Because the chance that you will ever use all available functions is nil. Add to that that MS Office costs money. As a one-time (rather expensive) purchase or as a subscription. The latter options are smarter these days, especially if you are a frequent user of the package.
But if you just want to type a letter or set up a nice spreadsheet, Google Docs is a much more practical choice. Free, always available and widely used. Collaborating on a document with another Google Docs user is no problem at all. This makes the system very suitable for working on, for example, school assignments, but business users are also discovering the whole more and more. Precisely because communication in particular is increasingly taking place via e-mail – with or without an attachment in PDF format – it doesn’t really matter what you use to make your letter, report or report. Saving and sharing in that PDF format ensures that anyone with a computer or mobile device can read it in the format you intended. So you can ask yourself whether it makes much sense to keep investing money in expensive solutions that you use very little below the line.
Parts and Storage
Google Docs is available via any browser, just log in to your Google account and click the button with the dotted grid. Scroll down a bit and click on one of the Google ‘Office’ items. In this article we also take a look at the specific mobile apps. Each part has its own app, there are: Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides. So you only need to install those parts that are of interest to you.
Arguably the most popular part is the Docs word processor. Once you’ve installed that app and started it for the first time, you’ll need to sign in with your Google user account. Make one if you don’t already have one; costs nothing. And yes: for example, the login details of your Gmail account also work for all parts of the Google office suite. However, you should keep in mind that if you get started with emailing and saving, sharing and editing office documents very seriously, your free storage space may turn out to be a bit too limited.
You will not run into limits very quickly, because you get 15 GB of free storage with every Google account. But if that fills up, you order for a modest – of your choice – monthly or annual subscription quickly (where you need to be signed in to your Google account). At the time of writing, the cheapest storage of 100GB will cost you around two tens per year(!). You can also opt for larger storage at – still fairly competitive rates. But – especially for novice Googlers – the basic 15 GB will certainly be more than enough for the first time.
Attention iOS/iPad users
Well, let’s just assume that you have at least the word processor Google Docs installed. Start the app and log in. After this action, it is important that iPad and iPhone users realize that from that moment on, search via Google will also take place via Google linked to that account. In other words: if you now visit google.nl you will see that you are logged in. If you do not want that, it is important to log out of Google in the browser. It seems that after logging out of the browser you stay logged out there as well. But it is something to keep an eye on every now and then. This ‘problem’ does not apply to users of an Android device or a Chromebook: their device is always logged in to Google. They also do not have to log in separately to the apps.
Usage
click or tap the plus in the bottom right corner of the screen. Choose from a bare new document or use one of the Templates for a quick start. If you choose a template, you will first see an example; to actually start editing, tap the pin at the bottom right of the screen. The well-arranged row of buttons in the button bar gives you quick access to the well-known formatting tools. You can fine-tune by pressing the button a to push. You then get extensive options for text and paragraph formatting.
Even more options
You can reach even more options via the button with the three dots. Use the switch at the back print layout to switch to an editing mode where your document will look exactly like it will print or as a PDF as well. Furthermore, for example, the option Share and Export of interest. Below you can not only export to the standard Microsoft Word file format but – more conveniently – also to the universal PDF. You can do the latter via the Send a copy option. Then choose PDF as the file format, after which you can share to, for example, your mail app or a PDF reader.
Presentations (better in the online environment)
The other apps from the Google Docs office suite are similar. Office tigers, students and schoolchildren can indulge themselves with the presentation module, for example. Incidentally, something special applies to Google Presentations: the online environment offers many more options than what is available in the app. We therefore advise you to use the online environment in particular to set up an extensive presentation, including animations and the like. Something to keep in mind! To ensure that all of this runs smoothly, it is important not to install the Google Slides app on your device. Otherwise, it will open again and again when you want to edit a presentation.
Spreadsheets
The same applies to Google Sheets as to Slides: the online version offers many more options for serious use. However, if you want to do some quick math on a mountain of numbers, the app is also useful. For serious math, the Spreadsheets online environment is significantly better (and that’s actually an understatement). In that respect, Chromebook owners have an advantage: Because Google Docs as a whole runs there as a PWA (Progressive Web App), they can take advantage of the extensive possibilities that all Google Docs components offer, both online and offline. Anyone who uses an Android/iPadOS tablet is – quite frankly – better off with the online environments of the whole. Which in itself is of course no disadvantage, except for the missing offline options. For smartphones, the more limited apps are fine, because you want to see as little ‘junk’ as possible on the small screen. The word processor in app form will prove to be enough for many on all platforms, although the online version also has more to offer.
