Using Google Docs with LL4Schools

NOTE: You must have a Google Docs account to do what follows. If you want to use it to collaborate with others - i.e. invite specific people to see and/or edit it - they must also have an email address.

So, you have a Google Docs account and want to create a document and let others in LL4Schools see it. You may also want others to be able to work on it with you: to make corrections, add stuff, divide it up and each do some.

First you must log in to your account and create an initial document. I've already done that here - its called This is just a simple text document... and is in a folder called LL4S in my Google Docs account. I do not intend to show you how to do this - if you have an account you already know. If you need to get an account then there is plenty of help material on the site to start you off. It's very easy!

If I just click on the title it opens and allows me to edit it. To start with I'll just publish it. This means that it will be available online to anyone who knows the URL to read - no-one can edit it but they can read it. In fact you have just published a web-page! To do this you must click on the Publish tab on the far right. This opens up this window:

Click on the "Publish document" button. Now it's published and you have the URL. In this particular case it is http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dqqrwf2_9fvs4gr. As you can see this link can be used in your blog or wiki to take you to your documents. So now you can create word-processed documents, spreadsheets and presentations in Google Docs to make them accessible in your blog.

Suppose that instead of publishing your work you want to work on it with some other people. They may be members of LL4Schools but don't have to be: as long as they have an email address you can collaborate with them on a document that you have created. Look at at the screenshot below which is reached by clicking on the Share tab.

The two important options here are as collaborators and as viewers. If you just want to share it with a few friends then choose as viewers: this is like publishing but to just a few people rather than to everybody. If you want to let these friends edit your document then choose as collaborators.

Now enter the email address(es) of who you want to work with in the box below. You can enter as many as you like with each one separated by a comma (see the next screenshot).

To keep you work under your control uncheck the two Advanced permissions boxes then when you are ready click on Invite collaborators. This bring up the following window:

This is the email that will go to those you want to share with: put a message in the text box explaining what the document is and what you want them to do. When you have done that click on the Send button. Once the mail has been sent you will go back to this screen which now shows that the document is being shared. If you want to you can change the permissions and invite more collaborators.

Now you have shared and/or published a document you can work on collaboratively. Perhaps you have already created a LL4Schools community and want to share to development of project documentation. You could create you documents in Google Docs, share then with the other members of the community, put links to them in the community wiki, blog or bookmarks, and finally publish to everyone else. Just like I've done with this one.

News, 30-Mar-2008 14:49 (GMT)