Why I began using Google Docs

I began using Google Docs in December 2009.  I was previously aware that Google Docs existed for several months prior to that time, but I never took the time to use Google Docs or truly understand all of its capabilities.  For me, I simply thought Google Docs was a place to store documents that you open in Gmail.  I never thought to use it as my primary word processor or to use it to easily share my documents with others.

That all changed when I began studying for the Pennsylvania Bar Exam.  I studied in several different locations — at my home, at coffee shops, at the library, and at  a model home where I often worked throughout the week.  It started to become a hassle copying my notes on a thumb drive on one computer and having to copy and paste the file on my home computer.  A simple accident by pasting the wrong file could potentially delete a full day of notes.  I wanted a system where I could access and edit the latest version of my documents without any hassles and then I learned about Google Docs.

Google Docs is an extremely powerful tool that simply made my life easier and saved me a lot of time studying for the bar exam.  No more copying and pasting, no more thumb drives, no more worrying about pasting an old file over a new file.  Wherever I was studying, I had the latest version of my notes, securely hosted over the internet by Google.  This made me realize the power of cloud computing — a term used to describe a type of computing where your files are not stored on a local machine, but are accessed securely over the internet.  For those who demand a hard copy, no worries, you are able to download your files on your own computer if you desire.

This is not the only benefit of using Google Docs — I could share documents with my classmates, who I could either grant access to merely view the file or to edit the file.  With Google Docs, I was able to share outlines with former classmates so I could reference their notes and they could reference mine if further clarification on a particular topic was needed.

An even bigger benefit of using Google Docs was the ability to view my documents on my Blackberry and iTouch/iPhone.  If I was waiting in a doctor’s office, on a long car ride as a passenger, or simply sitting in the kitchen cooking dinner, I could open my outlines on my iTouch and get in a quick review.

Ever since the time I began using Google Docs, I have not looked back.  I no longer use Microsoft Office or Open Office. All of my word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations are created using Google Docs.  It is now my mission to help others harness the power of Google Docs to help their businesses increase their productivity and efficiency and that is why I created Zadling.