Here’s the problem. When you attach a document to an email, copies are created. Consider this, if you send an email attachment to three people, the same document would exist in four different places. That’s a problem.

 

There’s a better way. And it means saying goodbye to messy email attachments. This new kind of home isn't on your computer, it’s on the Internet. And that makes sharing and collaborating on documents much easier, and gives you full control of who can see and access your documents.

 

Here’s the basic idea. Instead of attaching a document to an email, let's switch it around and look at how we can attach an email address to a document.

 

Meet Sam. Sam is the editor of a neighborhood newsletter called The Oak Tree View. She works with local writers who’d like to publish articles in the newsletter. Sam loves her job but often feels frustrated when time is wasted managing all the articles.

 

It’s a familiar problem. Each month writers send her draft articles as email attachments. She reviews them and sends them back with comments. One article might create six different versions of the same file. Not to mention countless emails. Sam often feels buried by all the email attachments. She finds it hard to keep track of all the versions being sent to her from the writers. As the deadline looms, frustration rises. Something has to give.

 

Sam decides to try something new: Google Docs. Here’s what happens. First, she visits the Google Docs page and creates a free Google account. She logs in, and because some articles are already written, she uploads the current drafts right from her computer. With a snap, Google Docs turns the offline articles into online versions. Now all she needs to do is invite the writers to collaborate on the documents.

 

Here’s how. She clicks “Share” and searches email addresses and clicks “Invite collaborators”. Google Docs sends the writers an email with a secure link directly to her document. One click and they can edit and save the document online. This means that when Julie edits the document, Sam sees the changes immediately. Since there is only one document, there is never confusion about updates or versions. It's all saved, along with the past versions on the website. For the first time, the articles all have a home. A single place for organizing and editing that is accessible from any computer with Internet access. Problem solved.

 

What’s really cool is this problem isn't just solved for documents, but also spreadsheets and presentations. All three can now have a secure home on the web that works exactly like Sam's documents.

 

Sam is relieved. Without having to deal with attachments, multiple versions and all that clutter, she can be an editor instead of a document master. And for the next newsletter, not a single email attachment is sent and Sam beats the deadline by a week. Sharing documents made simple. And all for free.

 

Google Docs, rocks.