Cloud Computing is the new buzz of the Tech Industry. According to Wikipedia, Cloud computing is Internet-based computing, whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices on-demand, like electricity.
• Storage Options Prices/year: 5GB/FREE, 30GB/$50, 60GB/$100, 100GB/$150, 250GB/$250, 500GB/$400
• Max file size: 2GB when transferring between computers, unlimited if uploading directly to web
• Windows, Mac, Web, iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Symbian, Windows Mobile
3. Common Features
Sync your files online and across computers simultaneously.
Share folders with others working on the same files/projects.
Ability to share folders or keep them private.
Never have to worry about carrying a flash drive/portable storage device.
No need to worry/fear of losing/forgetting documents.
The ability to share my Google docs is important for my efficiency. My colleagues and I often share information to docs, collaboratively share tech tools, and send links of interesting articles to one another. Like most people, I want to make sure that I can share my documents with my teammates effortlessly and seamlessly.
So, how do you share documents on google docs?
Open the doc you want to share.
Click Share in the upper-right corner of the doc.
At the bottom of the Sharing settings window, under ‘Add people,’ type the email addresses of the people you want to share with.
To the right of the list of names, choose ‘Can view’ or ‘Can edit’ from the drop-down menu.
There are three different ways to share your google docs: private, anyone with the link, and public on the web.
The default setting for docs is private. Private is the best setting if you have personal or private documents, information you do not want to share with anyone.
A doc set to Anyone with the link means that anyone who has the URL/link/or your web address will be able to get access to the doc you posted. Think of it as a public Internet website. As long as the person has the link, he/she can open the doc. This is a great setting if you want to give access to a group of people.
You can also set to Public on the web if you want to make the link accessible to anyone. Public docs might be indexed by search engines such google and could show up as a search. The Public on the web setting is useful if you want to promote your docs. For example, you can create a flyer for a program, save it as a public doc and post a link to it on your website.
To change settings, click on the Share button:
Here you can change the visibility option – just click Change.
You can add editors or viewers by clicking the white space below and type any email address.
You can also remove editors and viewers the same way or transfer ownership of your doc to someone else.
Google + provides similar features as those of other social networking sites we might already use such as Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. Those features are circles, hangouts, instant upload, games, messenger, and search.
In Google, a “circle” is a group of people whether it be friends, colleagues, or students. From your “circles” page, you can drag and drop contacts into each of these groups, which make it easier to share what you want with certain groups.
A Google “hangout” is a video chat interface that allows you to collaborate, conduct meetings, and talk to your other friends, family, colleagues, and students. They are virtual rooms where you can video chat with people in your Google circles.
Getting Started
So, how do one go about getting Google +? First, you have to open a Gmail account. Then, you will see a toolbar on the top left corner of your screen with a + sign.
Google Plus & Education – How Does It Fit?
The Faculty Instructional Technologists (FITs) have been using Google + for over six months now to conduct our weekly meetings. So far, it has worked out really well and it’s also given me a few initial thoughts on how Google + might be worthwhile for educational purposes:
1. Privacy. The Circles feature allow faculty to make certain information available to one another without the fear of appearing “too public”. For many faculty, the Circles feature is a good way to teach students about social media, privacy, and protection.
2. Hangouts. Hangouts in Google + could be the new Online Face-to-Face Office Hours. Finding time to meet with students, especially adult learners who are overscheduled can be challenging. Google+ Hangouts allow faculty and student to video chat from the comfort of their home without worrying about scheduling conflict or incriminating weather condition. Plus, it also saves traveling time! I can also imagine a Faculty member facilitating a study group on Google + every other Wednesday from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Students could also do peer review or Hangout together on their own to work on group projects. Having tried video chats such as Skype and Elluminate, Google + is rather intuitive, the interface seems to work rather seamlessly, and what’s more, it does not require any downloads to the computer, which is another plus!
3. YouTube. Google Plus just recently integrated YouTube! Now you can share videos with colleagues, students, friends, and family in one place. This is another feature that sets Google Plus apart from other current tools. Now, your colleagues, students, friends, and family members’ video postings will show up on your YouTube home page as recommendations.
4. What’s Hot. The latest addition is the What’s Hot button on the left hand side. When you click on it, it will show you a list of the most popular posts on Google+. You can find what others are viewing, sharing, or talking about!
For more information on its usage:
Google + Hangouts: 6 Practical Uses for Online Education – in brief, if sharing, collaborating, hearing, and seeing with your online students can engage them more in the learning process, then Google + could be a great tool for you to use.
Jase Teoh, Ed.D 