Google Docs Viewer for PDF, PPT, and TIFF Files

You can now view and embed online documents in your browser without downloading and using an application.

Google Docs Viewer allows you to view certain files online. Enter the URL of a PDF, Powerpoint or TIFF document in the Viewer and we'll display it directly in the browser with no download required.

Get the details here.

Getting Docs Out of Google Docs ... and More

When considering cloud computing, one of the questions we often here is "How can I get my data out if I decide to change services?".

Over the past few months, Google has confirmed its commitment to ensuring data portability. This week, they delivered on this promise with export capabilities that let you export multiple files into a zip file.

As part of the release, the documents screen will identify new documents and indicate those that have been updated by collaborators since your last view/edit session.

Learn more here.

More Consistency Across Google Docs

One of the legitimate criticisms of Google Docs has been that the menu options and user interfaces differ between Documents, Spreadsheets, and Presentations.

Just released, Google has updated Google Docs to minimize the differences between the apps.

Learn more and see the updated menu bars here.

Improved Sharing and Publishing Controls for Google Docs

Users of the Premier and Education Editions now have improved controls over access controls and publishing for Google Docs. Administrators can now determine if users are allowed to publish documents, spreadsheets, and presentations to the Internet.

Get the details on how to manage the settings here.

Flowchart Shapes and Text Formatting in Google Charts

If you work with drawings in Google Docs, you will be pleased to learn that you now have more flowchart shapes and the ability to format multi-line text boxes. While not revolutionary, these incremental changes improve usability.

Learn more here.

Translate Google Docs -- 42 languages

Collaboration across languages and cultures is easier when you speak the language. Google Docs now supports translation across 42 languages.

Learn more here

Share with Groups!

In a recent enhancement to sharing in Google Apps, you can now share documents for viewing or editing by Group. This feature makes sharing with project teams, customer teams, or large numbers of individuals faster and easier.

Group sharing is works with:

• Docs (documents, spreadsheets, and presentations)
• Sites
• Video

To learn how, Click Here.

To learn more about how to improvide sharing and collaboration, Click Here.

Can I find the document you shared with me?

As organizations improve collaboration, document sharing replaces endless chains of email attachments. One adaptation for users, however, is the ability to find documents that others have shared.

By adding "Shared With ..." to search options in Google Docs, users have an easier way of finding documents that have been shared.

Snap to Grid is Snappy Feature

One of my biggest frustrations with Google Presentations has been the inability to easily align text and images.

With the addition of "snap to grid", this problem is solved. You can now use the Alt, Ctrl, and Shift keys to fine tune object and text placement.

[ALT] while dragging turns off the grid and gives you smooth drag (use [OPTION] on a mac)
[SHIFT] while dragging enables vertical and horizontal dragging guides
[SHIFT] while moving an object with arrow keys enables 1 pixel nudge
[SHIFT] while resizing preserves the aspect ratio of the object
[CTRL] while moving leaves the original object and drops a duplicate in the new location

Click here to learn more ...

Domain-Level Templates in Google Apps

Last fall, Google released a public template gallery for Google Apps. Last week, Google released template galleries for domains using Google Apps Premier and Education Editions.

Now, any user in the domain can submit a template to be shared with all other domain users. Templates exist for Docs, Spreadsheets, Forms, and Presentations.

This feature should improve your ability to standardize the look and feel of corporate documents.

Click Here to learn more ...

Mixing Google Docs and MS Office 2007

Our position regarding Google Docs -- including docs, spreadsheets, presentation, and forms -- is as follows:

• Google Docs offer great collaboration capabilities but are not mature enough to replace MS Office or Open Open office for most users
• The formatting and controls in Google Docs are not yet mature enough compared to MS Office features used by intermediate and advanced users

That said, the integration between MS Office and Google Docs is elegant and effective. When uploading MS Office documents, Google docs generally read and maintain formatting and document features, even if you could not create those features directly within Google Docs. Once uploaded, the real-time collaboration -- particularly in docs and spreadsheets -- is effective and efficient.

Recently, Google added support for docx and xlsx formats. MS Office 2007 documents now import easily into docs and spreadsheets.

Click here to learn more.

5 Things to Know about Google Wave (from PC Mag)

With the industry buzzing about Google Wave (and Facebook and Twitter likely rethinking strategy), PC Magazine provides a good overview of things you should know about Google Wave as it approaches release.

Read the Article Here.

Manage Permissions by Sheet in Google Spreadsheets

Google has enhanced Google Spreadsheets, allowing you to manage who may edit sheets within a workbook.

Learn More ...

Google Acquisition Improves the Image of Google Docs

In 2007, Google purchased a startup called Tonic Systems. The technology from this startup provides the basis image features in Google Docs.

The Insert Drawing feature lets you add drawings, using lines, curves, freehand squiggles, and shapes, directly into your Google Docs.

Click here to learn more about this cool feature.

From the Continuous Improvement Files ...

Over the past several weeks, Google has made a set of minor (but very helpful) changes to Google Apps:

• Arial and Times New Roman fonts are now available in the text editor in Google Docs for users who have these fonts locally installed on their computers
  
  
• In Gmail, you can now view .ppt and .tiff files online, directly in your browser, without a Flash plugin. The viewer can also zoom in and out, select text to copy and paste, and 'print' the presentation to a PDF document
  
  
• Speaker notes are included when uploading a PowerPoint presentation into Google Docs

Google Docs Gets New Drawing Feature

All editions of Google Docs include a new feature that lets you create and insert drawings into documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. The Insert Drawing menu option provides the ability to add, color, rotate, and adjust lines, shapes, text labels, and free-hand scribbles.

Learn more ....

Google Docs gets better "Find and Replace"

Google has released an improved "Find and Replace" toolbar in Google Docs. Available in all editions, you can more easily search and replace text. The toolbar adds more options for controlling your search, such as case-sensitive matching and regular expressions.

Learn more ...

Recent Updates to Google Apps

The following features have been added to Google Apps (multiple editions) over the past week or so.

In Gmail:

• Mark as Unread Update:
  If you're reading a conversation that had unread messages when you opened it, when you mark it as unread, Gmail will only mark as unread the messages in that conversation that were unread when you first opened the message.
  
• Analytics for Gmail:
  Premier and Education administrators can now view statistics about how their organizations are using Gmail (like users' locations, languages, length of visit, etc.) in Google Analytics. This extends the Analytics statistics currently available for the control panel, Google Docs and Google Sites
  
• Name Format Options:
  Google Apps Administrators can now choose how users' names will be displayed in Gmail. Administrators can select whether to display names either as: First Last (example: John Smith) or Last, First (example: Smith, John).
  Administrators can also choose whether to allow users to customize this setting.

In Google Docs (Forms):

• Form Summary Page: Provides current information about completed responses to a Google Form (attached to a Google Spreadsheet)
  
• Collect username in Google Docs: You can now automatically collect a respondent's username when they submit a form in Google Docs.

New Google Site Features - Premier Edition Only!

Google has announced three new features in Google Sites that will make gadgets more useful for Google Apps Premier Edition customers:

Start Page Template

• As a site owner, you can let users personalize areas of a site, such as an internal sales portal. This lets users select gadgets and other information for their start page that is most useful to them.

Private Gadgets

• IT admins can upload Gadgets that only members of your domain can see and add to their Google Sites.

Encryption

• If a Google Site is encrypted, then your gadget data will be encrypted from the source code to the browser.

Public Service or Extortion?

Earlier this week, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) petitioned the FTC to force Google to shut down operations of Gmail, Google Docs, and other services (PCMag coverage here). Their justification was the resent security issue with Google Docs that impacted fewer than 0.05% of Google Doc users.

Sounds like EPIC is very concerned about the public's information privacy. UNTIL you read the full petition. In addition to asking the FTC to halt Google's business until government employees determine it is 100% safe, EPIC is asking that Google pay millions of dollars of fines into a fund that may be tapped by EPIC and other privacy groups' operations.

Seems to me that EPIC is attempting a good ole' fashion shakedown.