#5 Google Documents

I tried to use Google Docs again and this time I signed in under a different email login and was successful. I watched the introductory video twice and read many of the help pages. I learnt that by using Google Docs you avoid having to have people send you email attachments and instead can attach an email address to a document, click to share and insert other peoples' email addresses to view and edit the file. Google Docs means your documents are saved onto the internet and can be accessed from anywhere you have internet access. Past versions can be viewed and you can adjust the settings so that someone can only view or can view and edit. You can also create spreadsheets, presentations, diagrams, etc.

I created a Google Doc called Web 2 Evaluation Questions and inserted three email addresses to share this document.

Google Docs would be great for students when working on a collaborative task. It will avoid the problems of students leaving work at home, lost USBs, a student being away and having all of the work, etc. By creating a Google Doc they can all share the document and add to it at anytime.

#5 Google Documents Attempt

I use Google Docs in my workplace all the time. However, everytime I have gone to create a new one for this course, I just keep getting up my school's Google Docs. Any ideas?

#7 Google Books

I had a mixed success with Google Books, but overall was very impressed.
I initially searched for "August" by Bernard Beckett. There were only three reviews of this book and there was no link to finding it in a library. Interestingly, although I found the book quite disturbing, other people had really enjoyed its message.

I then went on to do a search for "Dash and Lily's Book of Dares" by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. I had great success with this book and Google Read showed full text of the first 20 pages and it was available at five libraries in Melbourne (which was a great feature).

I then searched for a book which is from America and not readily available in Australia. This was when Google Read really excelled. For the first time, I was able to read from the book, read mixed reviews of it and if I had chosen buy it from Amazon for $17, as opposed to $50 from Dymocks. As I have never seen the book in person, this was brilliant because I could more effectively evaluate it against my selection criteria.

I would definitely use Google Read at both work and home. It would be great when a student asks me to buy a book and we don't have it. By searching on Google Read, I could show him the book cover, synopsis, reviews, perhaps even read some of it and find out whether it is available at a nearby library. The student could then publish their own review of the book.

At home, it could be used when I see a review in The Age of a book and I want to cross compare it with another source. I could then go and purchase it online.

#6 Google Maps

I enjoyed using Google Maps and I searched for my home, workplace, nearby shopping centre and the venue of a forthcoming volleyball match.

I added a comment to my workplace and searched for directions from my workplace to home. I discovered that one route was about 5km shorter than the one that I take. However, the freeway enables me to complete the journey in a quicker time.

I noted that one of the directions was not accurate and this would make me a little cautious of soley relying on Google Maps for directions.

Google Maps is an excellent resource for locating places and finding out some brief information about them. They also enable you to compare the location of similar places such as a cafe or doctor.