Sunday, October 31, 2010

Google Tools

Google seems to own the Internet. :) They do so many more things that just providing a search engine these days. I've been a fan of Google Reader for a while, and have created an iGoogle page that I sometimes use. In checking out the Google Products page, I realize that there are many more resources than I knew about previously. I looked at Google Knol, which is a content creation tool similar to a wiki it seems. People can create content on any topic they choose, and folks can comment on it and edit in. Interesting. I also checked out Google Books, something that I know there has been much talk about, but I never really spent much time with. I found it interesting, but a tad frustrating as well. Oh look, a crochet book that I'm interested in! Oh drat, the book preview stops after page 13. I decided to browse through some of the books in the Humor category, and was astonished to find out that The Time Machine was humorous, as well as Last Shot: A Final Four . I would really like to trust Google Health...I think it would be a great way to keep track of health information, but then do I really want Google to have my health info? Ummmm, no. I don't think so. One thing that I have found useful for my job is Google Alerts, to see when VAPLD is mentioned. And I think also that Google Realtime could be helpful.

I spent some time with Google Docs Presentation program. Wow! I had initially thought it was going to just be like Microsoft Powerpoint, but Google seems to do it so much better. I was able to incorporate videos and drawings if I wanted. How cool is that? Google documents also allows for the sharing of the content more easily than through Microsoft. I think I'll be trying to use it more!

And I checked out some of the newer features in Google Labs, particularly with the calendar, email and maps. With Google maps, I can now see things that are going on in a particular area, including real estate listings. Amazing.

In summary, I think I like Google Docs Presentation best of all, and I plan to use it again. I'm not sure yet if (or how) I will incorporate it into my daily work. Maybe it could be a way that I keep track of the procedures that I follow for certain aspects of my job.

Well, goodnight Google!

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the information. I think Google Docs has come a long way and also think it is a good tool for people who don't want to buy expensive software.

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