Google Docs

Google Docs

Create and collaborate on online documents in real-time and from any device.

DOCUMENT CREATOR

Pedagogical background

Google Docs allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating with other users in real time. Edits are tracked by the user making the edit, with a revision history presenting changes. An editor’s position is highlighted with an editor-specific color and cursor and a permissions system regulates what users can do.
Updates have introduced features using machine learning, including “Explore”, offering search results based on the contents of a document, and “Action items”, allowing users to assign tasks to other users.
Google Docs supports opening and saving documents in the standard OpenDocument format as well as in Rich text format, plain Unicode text, zipped HTML, and Microsoft Word. Exporting to PDF and EPUB formats are implemented.
This kind of tool can be effectively used in educational contexts:

• Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms content creation.
• Documents can be shared, opened, and edited by multiple users simultaneously.
• Users can see character-by-character changes as other collaborators make edits.
• A revision history is automatically kept so past edits may be viewed and reverted to.
• A sidebar chat functionality allows collaborators to discuss edits.
• Drive Secure cloud storage 15 GB per user.
• Gmail Secure email.
• Meet Video and voice conferencing to 100 participants.

Assessment
Edit together in real-time with easy sharing, and use comments, suggestions, and action items to keep things moving. Or use @-mentions to pull relevant people, files, and events into your online Docs for rich collaboration.
Assistive features like Smart Compose help you write faster with fewer errors, so you can focus on ideas. And save time with spelling and grammar suggestions, voice typing, and quick document translation.
Docs is thoughtfully connected to other Google apps you love, saving you time. Reply to comments directly from Gmail, embed charts from Google Sheets, and easily share via Google Meet. You can even search the web and Google Drive for relevant content and images, directly from Docs.
Easily edit Microsoft Word files online without converting them, and layer on Docs’ enhanced collaborative and assistive features like action items and Smart Compose. You can also import PDFs, making them instantly editable.

Use cases/examples of usage: (tutorial)

Strenght: It’s easy to use in classroom and in adult education conference.

Weakness: It is necessary to buy the license in the extended version.

People opinion about the tool: https://www.getapp.com/collaboration-software/a/google-docs/reviews/

Similar Tool: ClickUp; Microsoft Office Online; Zoho Docs; Dropbox Paper; Apache OpenOffice; Obsidian.

Technical and operational requirements: PC, Tablet.