How to Use Google Docs Offline
Google announced at a recent event that people can now edit and use Google Docs even when they are not logged onto the internet. Google Drive allows you to access and work on your documents offline. This is a welcome addition and a useful feature for the users. You have the option of editing documents and Google Spreadsheet saved on Google Drive when you are not at home, travelling on a bus or in a train where you don’t have access to internet. It is even more impressive that when you access the edited document online, the changes you made offline are automatically updated when you connect to the internet.
Instructions
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How does this happen?
The documents are saved on your computer or laptop while you are offline. After that, when you log onto the internet, documents will be synchronized automatically without any command. Note that so far Google Docs offline is only functional in Google Chrome browser. If you have Chrome installed on your system already, you can access Google docs and press the gear icon from the top right side and choose “Set up Docs Offline.” On the other hand, this feature will not work on Mozilla Firefox browser or Internet explorer. -
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Install the Drive Web application
See the instructions on the pop up window that appears with a two step setup process. First of all, press on “Enable Offline Docs” and the other step is to download Google Drive app for chrome browser. Press on “Install from Chrome web store” and you will open the page of the Google Chrome internet store. There you can download the new feature. Know that this might take a couple of minutes to finish the installation process. Then click on Google Docs and you will notice that your Google Documents are being synchronized automatically. It will also contain details on how to open these docs when not connected to the internet. -
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Offline documents
Press on the gear icon to access “View offline Docs.” This will open a new tab of Google Docs which will be running at all times, regardless of the connectivity status. Enter Ctrl+D to bookmark the page. After finishing these steps you are ready to make use of the Google Docs for your office work or university assignments. This will allow you to use and edit documents and spreadsheets without internet. Remember that this feature is just for spreadsheets and documents.
