How to Share Files — Part 3: Collaboration Tools
You need to share files. Whether it’s with friends, clients, partners, or coworkers, there’s some file you need them to see, and vice-versa.
My last two posts drew a distinction between whether you’re file-sharing for publication or for collaboration (How to Share Files — Part 1: Overview), and then explored some options for the publication-based options (How to Share Files — Part 2: Publication Tools).
Now we’ll look at the buzzing, blooming, interactive face of file-sharing: collaboration.
In Publication-based file-sharing, you create a file and then put it out there for people to use and admire. Collaboration-based file-sharing is different: rather than creating the document in advance, you’re creating it right along with other people—at least with their review and input, and very likely also with them co-creating the document.
Collaboration Refresher
What Are Collaboration Tools?
The goal. You want to create documents along with other people. Maybe several people are collaborating on a particular document, or maybe several people are creating their own documents in a shared place that they and others can access. You want to see others’ changes, comment on them, make changes to others’ documents, etc.
The means. An application that creates and stores documents online. You don’t install software on your computer, you just open your browser and start editing the document, which is stored somewhere on the Internet.
An example problem.You and a colleague need to work on a presentation to show at an upcoming meeting.
Some possible solutions. Google Docs. Zoho Show. ThinkFree’s Show. Once it’s available for everyone, Microsoft’s Docs for Facebook.
What You Lose
No question, there are downsides.
Types of documents
ThinkFree’s Supported Document Types
With a collaborative service, you use the service provider’s online tools to create documents. If you want to collaborate on a word processing document, just about any service can help you. If you want to make a spreadsheet or a presentation (think PowerPoint), you’re still in pretty good shape. But do you want to collaborate on a page layout document (like Adobe InDesign or Microsoft Publisher)? A structured graphical document (like Adobe Illustrator or GIMP)? Not on this Internet.
Editor features
Google Docs’ Editor Features
Though the features of web-based document editors are constantly improving, and are darned impressive compared with what was possible even a few years ago, you won’t find a web-based editor that can remotely compete, feature-for-feature, with conventional desktop– (or laptop-) based software that’s installed directly on your computer.
Now, most people never go beyond using the basic features of a desktop-based application, so you might not even miss those extra features. But if you want to do something fancy in a collaborative mode, you might be out of luck.
File size and total space.
Uploading files to Google Docs
Every collaborative tool imposes some limit on the total space you have available—at least for the free version of their product. The free plan for Google Docs, for example, limits you to 1GB of space and 500K per file.
Not that I’m complaining: that’s awesome for free. You can buy more storage cheap, for example, $5/year for another 20GB, but nothing will get around the 500K limit on individual documents. Other vendors have similar policies.
Account required.
Zoho’s Login Page
All the online collaborative services that I know of require the collaborators to have their own accounts. That’s not the end of the world, of course, but perhaps you’ve joined me as a sufferer of Account Fatigue Syndrome. I swear, if I have to create another account for another service, I’ll… well, I’ll suffer.
Fortunately, it’s getting increasingly common for websites to let you sign in with credentials from other sites: Yahoo, Facebook, Google, and the like. (Granted, there are a few specialized collaboration tools, for example sites that help you schedule meetings, that don’t require everyone to have accounts. But that’ll have to be another post.)
[online collaboration] minus [online] = [sad you]
Nearly all of these services require an active internet connection for you to see, edit, and collaborate on the document. Internet down? Away from a wireless hotspot? Ow. Google is dropping support for offline editing, though it plans to reintroduce it eventually.
What You Gain
Despite the downsides, the upsides are sweet.
Collaboration.
Chiropractors love it when we collaborate.
That’s the whole point, right? We want to create something with a friend or colleague. There’s just no other practical way to do that.
Even if (perish the thought) you actually sat next to your collaborator and possibly even spoke with them using your mouth and voice while working on the document, both of you couldn’t really edit the document at the same time. Of course there are other huge collaborative benefits to sitting with your colleague as you work on the same document. But you know what? You can sit next to each other with laptops and edit that Google Doc simultaneously while you talk about it.
Toys and gadgets.
Adobe Buzzword’s Document History Display
Beyond the basic ability for two people to edit a document, most sites let both people edit it at the same time, and some let them see each others’ changes in real time. Which, let me tell you, is a little spooky but very cool. In fact, Google Docs recently announced that it’ll let 50 people edit the same document at once.
Besides working on the document itself, most services give you a way to leave comments about specific parts of the document. Most services also let you see a history of document revisions, and many let you revert the document to an earlier version. Adobe Buzzword has an especially attractive and intuitive timeline metaphor for reviewing and, if needed, rolling back changes.
No agreement needed.
Ebony and Ivory
Ever tried collaborating on a document when one person has a PC and another has a Mac? Sure it’s possible, and yes it even mostly works if everyone is using the same software, typically Microsoft Office. But that’s “mostly works” with emphasis on “mostly”, and if everyone doesn’t have the same software package you’re out of luck.
Since online collaboration tools include web-based editing software, everybody’s automatically using the same software. File compatibility problems? Poof! An unhappy memory.
Anything anytime anywhere.
The flip side of the “sad you” equation is that storing your documents on the Internet with web-based editors means you can see and edit them almost anyplace you can find a connected web browser. That’s a lot of places.
Best of both.
You know that whole “publication vs. collaboration” distinction I’ve been drawing? While it’s a real distinction, some services support both models. Google Docs, for example, not only allows collaborative editing, but will also let you upload Office documents, for example, keeping them in their native form. While you can’t collaboratively edit those documents (unless you let Google convert them into Docs format), you can share them as you would with a file-sharing service.
Specific Tools
- Google Docs. It’s the 500 pound gorilla of online collaborative file sharing, though not the best at everything. Still, given the generous free space allotment, the ability to buy more cheaply, and the huge user and support community, it’d be a mistake if you didn’t at least consider this option.
- Zoho. A strong competitor to Google Docs, it actually offers a much wider collection of services than Google does. For example, Zoho offers wiki and database tools, where you’ll find nothing similar at Google Docs.
- Acrobat.com. Somewhat more modest in its offerings than other collaboration suites, but also… well… slicker. As in salivating, finger-twitching, want-it-now slicker. Buzzword really has three tools: Buzzword (word processing), Tables (spreadsheet), and Presentations (PowerPoint), plus Adobe Connect, an excellent web conferencing package. That’s meager compared with Zoho’s 22-and-counting applications, but what Adobe lacks in depth it makes up in splash. Using its Adobe Air development platform, Adobe offers some drop-dead gorgeous and really pretty intuitive applications.
- HyperOffice Another application suite that hopes to replace in-house office and collaboration software for organizations of all sizes.
- ThinkFree And another. ThinkFree’s special twist is that it lets you upload Microsoft Office documents (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) in their native format, and then edit them directly on the web without converting them to a non-Microsoft format.
Other Resources
If you think online collaboration tools are right for you, don’t take my word for all of this. Below are a few other resources that might help you in deciding whether and how to share end edit documents collaboratively online.
The first two are nonprofit-focused. The others are for a general audience.
