Article by P.A. Jacobo

With the continually expanding, ever engulfing appetite of the internet, cloud computing seemingly has few limits. With the recent growth of cloud computing and the demand for instant access those few limitations are becoming smaller and smaller.

Where traditional desktop computing leaves computer users at the mercy of Microsoft, the desktop publishing and word processing giant, Google offers its users basic versions for free with access from any computer that can access the internet – anywhere in the world.

Google Docs as a cloud computing alternative to traditional desktop programs. A wonderful aspect of Google docs is that they are much akin to the Microsoft suite of programs, perhaps THE most used set of word processing and general desktop publishing programs on the market today so the learning is greatly increased.

The dog ate my homework. You know that commercial where a businessman gets out of a cab only to realize he left his presentation in the back of the cab, which is now long gone? Do you ever fear something like that would one day happen to you? Well, with Google Presentations you can set that fear at ease. You have the functionality of creating a slideshow presentation without the excuse and embarrassment of “I forgot the presentation.” With Google Presentations you can still make that important business meeting, even if your laptop was lost or stolen, all you have to do is connect online and viola, your presentation is ready and waiting for you.

At the mercy of Google. Google Documents is your most basic word processor, similar to Microsoft Word. You have full control over the margins, spacing, tabbing and general formatting with the exception of fonts. You are at the mercy of Google and how seriously limited their font selection is. I counted and there are 17. Catchphrase here is ‘basic.’ That being said, most other basic functionalities are present and usable, including the ability of inserting tables, images, hyperlinks and more.

Basic functionality for the low, low price of FREE. There is an intentional recurring theme throughout this article: basic functionality. You get what you pay for and for free, you get only basic functionality. Of course this is all many users need, but for Microsoft users like me, we don’t mind paying the extra cost for the extra functionalities of earth-based programs. That does not mean one is limited to one or the other by any means.

For whatever your word processing and information sharing need is, there’s a program to fit that need for just the right price, be it free and limited or costly and functional. Over all, Google Docs is a useful tool, especially when collaborating and sharing files with others.