Google Docs
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An example of a document in Google Docs
Google Docs is free, Web-based word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, form, and data storage service offered by Google. It allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating in real-time with other users. Google Docs combines the features of Writely and Spreadsheets with a presentation program incorporating technology designed by Tonic Systems. Data storage of any files up to 1GB each in size was introduced on January 13, 2010.
History
Writely's beta logo
Google Docs originated from two separate products, Writely and Google Spreadsheets. Writely was a web-based word processor created by the software company Upstartle and launched in August 2005. Spreadsheets, launched as Google Labs Spreadsheets on June 6, 2006,originated from the acquisition of the XL2Web product by 2Web Technologies. Writely's original features included a collaborative text editing suite and access controls. Menus, keyboard shortcuts, and dialog boxes are similar to what users may expect in a desktop word processor such as Microsoft Word or OpenOffice.org Writer.
On March 9, 2006, Google announced that it had acquired Upstartle. At the time of acquisition, Upstartle had four employees. Writely closed registration to its service until the move to Google servers was complete. In August 2006, Writely sent account invitations to everyone who had requested to be placed on a waiting list, and then became publicly available on August 23. Writely continued to maintain its own user system until September 19, 2006, when it was integrated with Google Accounts.
Meanwhile, Google developed Google Spreadsheets using the technology it had acquired from 2Web Technologies in 2005 and launched Google Labs Spreadsheets on June 6, 2006 as the first public component of what would eventually become Google Docs. It was initially made available to only a limited number of users, on a first-come, first-served basis. The limited test was later replaced with a beta version available to all Google Account holders, around the same time as a press release was issued.
In February 2007, Google Docs was made available to Google Apps users.
In June 2007, Google changed the front page to include folders instead of labels, organized in a side bar.
On September 17, 2007, Google released their presentation program product for Google Docs.
On July 6, 2009, Google announced on their official blog that Google Docs along with other Google Apps would be taken out of beta.
On January 13, 2010, Google announced on their official blog that Google Docs would allow any file type, including 1GB of free space and $0.25/GB for additional storage.
On March 5, 2010, DocVerse, an online document collaboration company, was acquired by Google. It allows multiple user online collaboration on Microsoft Office compatible document formats such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Improvements based on DocVerse were announced and deployed in April 2010.
In June 2010, it was reported that access to Google Docs had been blocked in Turkey. A Google employee confirmed the problem saying that it "appear[ed] to be linked to the ongoing ban on YouTube."
Features
Google Docs is Google's "software as a service" version of an office suite. Documents, spreadsheets, forms and presentations can be created within the application itself, imported through the web interface, or sent via email. They can also be saved to the user's computer in a variety of formats (ODF, HTML, PDF, RTF, Text, Microsoft Word). By default, they are saved to the Google servers. Opened documents are automatically saved to prevent data loss, and a revision history is automatically kept. Documents can be tagged and archived for organizational purposes. The service is officially supported on recent versions of the Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari and Chrome browsers running on Microsoft Windows, Apple OS X, and Linux operating systems.
There is a limit on how much a user can store on their account. Individual documents may not exceed 1GB as of 13 January 2010 (2010 -01-13)[update], embedded images must not exceed 2MB each, and spreadsheets are limited to 256 columns, 200,000 cells, and 99 sheets.In September 2009, an equation editor was added which allows rendering in LaTeX format.
Google Docs serves as a collaborative tool for editing amongst users and non-users in real time. Documents can be shared, opened, and edited by multiple users at the same time. In the case of spreadsheets, users can be notified of changes to any specified regions via e-mail. The application supports the ISO standard OpenDocument format. It also includes support for proprietary formats such as .doc and .xls[20] as well as support for .docx and .xlsx.
Google Docs is one of many cloud computing document-sharing services. The majority of document-sharing services require user fees, whereas Google Docs is free. Its popularity amongst businesses is growing due to enhanced sharing features and accessibility. In addition, Google Docs has enjoyed a rapid rise in popularity among students and educational institutions.
Google Docs also incorporates the ability to write code within documents in a similar way to VBA in Microsoft Office. Code can be written in two scripting languages, Java or Python, and either activated by user input or by a trigger in response to an event.
Beginning in April 2008, Google Docs permitted offline access to and editing of documents via Google Gears. However, in May 2010 this feature was temporarily removed. On December 7, 2010, in connection with the launch of the Chrome Web Store, the Google Docs Blog announced that offline access would be returning in early 2011 with the use of HTML5.
Data safety and privacy
On March 10, 2009, Google reported that a bug in Google Docs had allowed unintended access to some private documents. It was believed that 0.05% of documents stored via the service were affected by the bug, which Google claimed had been fixed.
Mobile access
Mobile Google Docs allows mobile phone users to browse their Google Docs documents in a mobile browser. Users can view and edit documents and spreadsheets. Neither presentations nor PDF files can be viewed, although websites other than Google can be used for this purpose. Versions of Google Docs for the iPhone and Android include functionality for editing spreadsheets and viewing presentations, along with an interface designed specifically for the device. However, open format database files cannot be viewed or edited.
