iThought: Google Docs—A New Wave of Free Web-based Office Software

         Have you ever been overwhelmed with all of the features from your Microsoft Office? Got frustrated because you forgot to save your latest work and lost it? Having difficulties in file transferring for collaborative work?

          Those are some problems we usually encounter upon using office software, creating enormous word processing, presentations, spreadsheets, and other documents present.

         Google had created and programmed a free, convenient, time-efficient, and collaborative office software called Google Docs. In this software, you will be able to create & edit a variety of file types, and even work together with your peers online. This includes online word documents, presentations, spreadsheets, forms, and drawings. Google also incorporated its cloud storage application, Google Drive, to gather all the files that will be created and access it anytime and anywhere.

        In line with this, here are some Advantages that Google Docs will let you experience:

1. Available for Many File Types

         Google Docs gives more file format compatibility (Ciccarelli, 2018). You can turn or save your Docs file into a Word Document (.docx) and many other formats or file extensions like ODT, PDF, RTF, HTML, TXT, EPUB. Further, Google Docs is not only limited to word processing function, it also includes other functions such as presentations, spreadsheets, Drawings, Forms, and etc.

2. Open for Collaboration

          Google Docs comes now with a completely beneficial feature of real-time collaboration by sharing the file to other person/people where you can both/all remotely access the same file, seeing all the changes made through the color indicated to the collaborator. According to Alghini (2012), a Google Cloud consultant, it gives ease for corporate communication wherein the lag time The lag time consumed when emailing documents to other employees is eliminated as communication is real-time and access to documents is available worldwide. Moreover, the same way in the school, as with my own experience, I can consider this feature as a very helpful one for especially in group tasks, we can all type, edit, and input/insert necessary media simultaneously. It makes the work faster and more time-efficient.

3. Free, Accessible, & Convenient

          Microsoft Office will usually cost you almost or even over a hundred dollar just to have the complete software package. Google Docs, on the other hand, is free anytime & anywhere, and promotes basic and user-friendly layout and interface (Ciccarelli, 2018). It also comes with an automatic saving feature for which I really benefit from because I usually forget to save my works. Moreover, it continuously save the file as you edit or made changes on the document and it is automatically linked and stored in your Google cloud storage or the Google Drive. However, being free also comes with several limitations like it can only be accessed online when not saved offline or in a mobile device and it only includes limited features unlike Microsoft office.

You can access Google Docs through the following links:

• www.drive.google.com

• www.docs.google.com