How to Use Google Docs

Posted on 08. Dec, 2009 by Mary Lutz in Efficient Web Tools, WAHM Biz Tips

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One of my favorite online tools is Google docs. I use it for lots of various reasons, but the main thing I like about it is, it makes sharing documents with others super easy and efficient. Plus, it’s free.

Most word processing software programs don’t come cheaply. Even the most commonly used, MS Word comes at a hefty price tag if it wasn’t preinstalled on your computer. If you’re looking for a top-notch word processing software that is absolutely free, don’t look any further than Google Docs.

Google Docs is Google’s answer to a web based documents system. To use the software all you have to do is have a Gmail account or go to docs.Google.com and register for a Google account. It’s free. In addition to word processing, you can create spreadsheets, forms, and presentations.

Once you’re at the Google Docs website the rest is easy.

Step #1 Click on the new document tab in the upper left hand corner.

Step #2 Choose the type of document you want to create. If you’re familiar with Excel, MS Word, and PowerPoint, these document types will look and feel familiar.

Step #3 Once you’ve made your document choice a new document will open. If you’ve, for example, chosen to create a text document you’ll see the same type of toolbar at the top of the page. You can format your content the same way you would a Word document. You can choose your font type, size, and formatting. You can justify the page right or left, highlight, list items, and include text links.

Step #4 The final step is to save your document and here’s one of the ways where utilizing Google
documents really pays off. You’ll save your document as a Google document. It won’t really ask you how you want to save your document. And it will store the document in a main folder or you can create sub folders, label them and organize them how you see fit. Whenever you sign into your Google or Gmail account you’ll have access to your Google documents.

Step #5 If you want to export the document and store it on your desktop or hard drive all you have to do is click on the file menu and choose “download as” from the pop up list. There you’ll see you have the option to download the document as HTML, Open Office, Text, Word, RTF or PDF. That means if you’re sending the document to someone who uses MS Word, you can download it as a word doc and send it to them quick and easy.

Step #6 Here’s the final reason Google documents is a great resource, you can share your documents by simply clicking the word “Share” in the upper right hand of the document toolbar. There you’ll see you have a number of options including sending a link to the document to a person, emailing the documents to a person or persons, inviting people to view the document or publishing as a web page. This makes collaboration really easy.

Google documents is one of those resources that makes creating, editing and sharing documents quick and easy and perhaps best of all, it’s extremely user friendly and it’s free.

photo credit: helenmoverland