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Jul 21
Love1

Google Docs and publishing to the Web

By Blog

This option is something you won’t find in Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, or other desktop word processors. Google Docs lets you publish a live copy of the document to a Google URL. The Web copy looks similar to the view that you see in Google Docs, but it can’t be edited. It lets you share documents on your social networks (personal or professional) or post something to a blog for readers to see.

While Web publishing is not currently supported on the Google Docs app for Android and iOS, it’s easy to publish a document to the Web using the browser and chromebook versions of Google Docs. Here’s how:

  1. Open the document.
  2. Go to File > Publish to Web.
  3. Link is selected by default, but if you want HTML code to display the document on a blog or another Web page, choose Embed.
  4. Use the optional Published content & settings to restrict the viewership or disable republishing when changes are made.
  5. Click the Publish button.
  6. Copy the link or embed code, and/or choose one of the options to share the document via Gmail, Facebook, or Twitter.

The Web copy will be updated if you or a collaborator update the original in Google Drive. Note that page numbers, line spacing, and other formatting may be changed or stripped out. Nevertheless, publishing to the Web is a great way to share content on Google Docs with a wider audience.

Note: publishing to the Web makes the document available to anyone who has a copy of the URL, so this option should not be used for sensitive documents.

Google docs publish to web

This is an excerpt from Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes (2nd Edition): The unofficial guide to the new Google Drive, Docs, Sheets & Slides. To download the ebook or purchase the paperback edition, please refer to the links on this page.

Jun 23
Love2

Google’s Office Compatibility Mode: Pros and Cons

By Blog

Users can edit Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides using Google’s Office Compatibility Mode. This is a great feature that may save you the hassle of converting between Microsoft formats and the equivalent Google program — for instance, it may no longer be necessary to convert a Microsoft Word .docx file to Google Docs, make edits, and then convert the Google Docs file back to .docx.

Office Compatibility Mode comes built into Chromebooks and the mobile apps for Android and iOS, and can be activated on the Chrome browser on PCs and Macs (go to Window > Extensions, search for Office Editing for Docs, Sheets & Slides and install).

However, there are some limitations:

  • Office Compatibility Mode will not work with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, or other browsers.
  • Files with the .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .ppt, and .pptx extensions can be edited if they were created in Microsoft Office 2007 or newer versions of Microsoft Office. Older files (created in Microsoft Office 2003 and earlier) are not supported unless they are resaved with a more recent version of Microsoft Office.
  • It may not be possible to edit large documents, especially large Excel spreadsheets.

Converting Microsoft formats for collaboration

Collaborative editing (described in Chapter 6 of Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes) is not possible when Microsoft Office files are opened for editing. However, it is possible to convert Office files to the equivalent Google formats for collaborative editing (see screenshot, below). Conversion can take place automatically during the upload process. Alternately, you can select the uploaded file in Drive and use one of the following methods to convert it:

  • Right-click over the selected file and choose Open with.
  • Click the More Actions icon (which looks like three vertical dots) at the top of the screen and select the option to open it in Google Docs/Sheets/Slides.
  • Preview the file, then select the Open with option

Google Drive Office Compatibility mode vs. collaborative editing

Apr 12
Love1

Google Sheets: How to make a pie chart

By Blog, Video

In the following quick video, learn how to make a pie chart in Google Sheets, using the new interface released in 2015. This covers the basics of creating a pie chart, but the instructions apply to bar charts, line charts, etc. It assumes the data used to create the chart is valid — for instance, if it’s a pie chart the values should add up to 100.

The video is just two minutes long, and starts below:

For more tips about Google Sheets, including conversion between Microsoft Excel and CSV formats, and how to use the Sheets app for iOS and Android devices, check out Chapter 3 of Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes.

Mar 17
Love0

How to format cells in Google Sheets

By Uncategorized

The following video covers formatting basics in Google Sheets, using the Google Sheets toolbar. Bold, text color, fill color, and other options are demonstrated. The instructions apply to the new version of Google Sheets on a PC, Mac, or Chromebook:

Note that formatting options are far more limited on the Google Sheets app for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices.

For more tips and tricks about Sheets, check out the latest edition of my guide, Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes.

Feb 25
Love0

How to permanently delete a file in Google Drive or Docs

By Blog

How to permanently delete a file or folder in Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, or Google Drive, using the new Google Drive interface released in 2015. While most people think that clicking the trash can icon for a selected file or folder in Google Drive will remove it for good, that’s not the case — it still exists in a sort of holding pen. The following two-minute video explains how to permanently delete a file or folder in Google Drive:

For more tips and tricks on how to get the most out of Google Drive, check out Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes, 2nd Edition.

Feb 13
Love0

Google Docs: How to add an image from the Internet

By Blog

This three-minute video shows how to add an image from the Internet to a Google Docs file, using a URL of an image from the World Wide Web. This is useful if you see an image on the Web that you want to include in a report, letter, or other document you are writing in Google Docs. Of course, only use the image if you have permission, or it’s marked with the appropriate Creative Commons or Public Domain license.

Without further ado, the video:

For more tips and tricks that can show you how to get the most out of Google Docs, check out my book, Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes.

Feb 02
Love0

How to convert a text file to a PDF using Google Docs

By Blog

This short video explains how to convert a text file (.txt) to a PDF using Google Docs. It’s quick, and the conversion process adds a few extra benefits that aren’t found in other text-to-PDF converters. The three minute video explains how:

Why would you want to convert a text file to a PDF? Perhaps it’s because you want someone else to see it, but you don’t want them to edit it. Or maybe you want to post it to the Web, Scribd, or some other online service.

For more tips about Google Docs, check out the latest edition of my guide, Google Drive & Docs In 30 Minutes, 2nd Edition.