Google further mixed up the lines involving online and offline with a neat little web browser extension that lets you automatically open documents from your Google Drive website within your installed desktop software. You can, one example is, open any Word documents from the desktop version of Word instead of working on them within your browser.
Getting the new feature to work seriously isn’t quite as basic as installing the browser extension, however—though it is close. Here’s how to arrange it.
First install The Google Drive
Before we reach the browser file format, you first need the modern version of the Google Drive desktop app. This will be Google Drive’s Dropbox identical copy, which puts a neighborhood Drive folder from the Windows File Explorer and also syncs the folder’s data files with Google Travel.
I’m guessing that a lot of Google fans already have the Drive software installed. But if you can’t, after installation await Google Drive to sync together with your desktop before continuing.
Get the extension and switch to the new Google drive
Now it’s time to install Google’s Application Launcher for Drive from your Chrome Web Store.
Once that’s completed, open Google Travel in Chrome and ensure you are using the new, revamped version from the web app. Should you be not. there should be a possibility to switch to it towards the top of your Google Travel dashboard. Otherwise, follow the instructions within the Google Drive help pages to have the new version.
Subsequent, right-click on just about any file that’s within a non-Google Drive data format, such as a good Excel spreadsheet, Expression document, or photo and select Open with from your contextual menu. You should see a summary of compatible desktop software.
If you don’t see many desktop apps, system Chrome and try out again.
Remember that option only in concert with document formats identified by your desktop software. You cannot employ this feature to open documents in The search engines Drive’s proprietary platforms.
Not perfect, But handy for the Google Drive types
Within my tests, Google Drive wasn’t competent to correctly identify and suggest each one of my desktop software. The open source GIMP photo editor, for example, didn’t can be purchased in the menu for JPG and also other image types.
But mainstream programs much like the Microsoft Office package, as well while Thunderbird, Sublime Wording 2, and possibly HipChat (for images) had been all there.
Opening files from Drive on your desktop takes a couple of seconds longer than you’ll expect, but it can work. Changes you make for a documents are saved to Google Drive, but you may need to give Google a couple of minutes before you’ll view the changes reflected on the net.
Why would you choose this?
Google’s fresh set-up is tidy, but it really does beg the question you could start to just open the files locally instead of messing with the net app? After just about all, you have to setup Google Drive first and pull down all of your documents to the desktop anyway.
I guess it comes down to convenience. If you’re more acquainted with living in the browser, right-clicking inside web app is really a simpler workflow than re-navigating towards you to the document in File Explorer or perhaps an Office software.
Plus, it’s kinda tidy and who doesn’t love to have another strategy to open apps?
Google’s fresh feature works on Mac and Home windows.
