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Google Docs Basics

Sharing Your Google Doc

When you create a document in Google Drive, the default privacy settings make the document able to be viewed and edited by you alone; however, it is easy to share your document with others. This makes it an ideal tool for group projects!

To share your document, look for "Share" button in the top right corner of the page. A box will pop up allowing you to change the privacy setting.

 

If you want to share your document with someone, type their email address into the "Share with people and groups" box.

Once you type in someone's email address, you can choose whether that person can edit or view your document. If you do not want the person to be able to change anything you have done, just choose "Viewer."

If you want to share your document with multiple people, just keep adding their email addresses. Just make sure you set the viewing/editing settings for each person you add.

Once you have included everyone you want, make sure you check the box next to "Notify people."

Now, when you click "Share" all the people you chose to share your document with will get an email letting them know where they can access the document.

Group Work in Google Docs

After you have shared your document with a group of people, you can all work on the document at the same time, from different computers. You will actually be able to see the changes your group members are making, as they make them, even if you are on different sides of campus.

You will see a colored box at the top of the shared document if anyone is viewing the document at the same time as you are. If multiple group members are viewing the document at the same time, you can click on them to chat with them about the document. This feature will allow your group to talk about changes you want to make without actually having to have a face-to-face meeting.

You can also leave discussion comments about your document for your group members to see and comment on. To leave a comment, click on the "Comment" button in the top right corner of the screen.