Читать книгу Teach Yourself VISUALLY Google Workspace - Guy Hart-Davis - Страница 7
ОглавлениеCHAPTER 2
Managing Files and Folders in Google Drive
Your Google Account includes space on Google Drive, Google’s online storage service. In this chapter, you first explore Google Drive, create folders, upload existing files and folders, and enable Offline Mode. You then learn essential operations, from opening, moving, and renaming files and folders to putting them in the Trash — and recovering them if necessary. You also learn how to work with Microsoft Office documents and streamline your work with workspaces.
Upload a Folder to Google Drive
Enable and Use Google Drive’s Offline Mode
Create a Shortcut to a File or Folder
View Info and Activity on a File or Folder
Work with Microsoft Office Documents
Streamline Your Work with Workspaces
Open and Explore Google Drive
Google Drive is Google’s online storage service used for personal accounts and Google Workspace accounts. Your Google Account includes an amount of storage provided using Google Drive; the amount varies depending on your service plan.
You can access your Google Drive storage through your web browser on your PC, Mac, or Chromebook; Chrome OS devices also have direct access to Google Drive through the Files app. On Android and iOS, the Google Workspace mobile apps can work directly with your Google Drive files — meaning you do not need to use a browser; you can also install the Google Drive app on your device.
Open and Explore Google Drive
After signing in to your Google Workspace account, click Google apps ().
The Google Apps panel opens.
Click Drive ().
Note: If you open the Google Apps panel and click Drive () in a new tab, Google Drive opens in the same tab. But if you open the panel and click Drive () in a tab containing a Google app, Google Drive opens in a new tab.
Google Drive opens.
The My Drive category () is selected at first.
The Quick Access section provides links to files you have used recently.
Click Priority ().
The Priority category appears.
The Priority section shows documents you can open.
The Workspaces section shows different workspaces available to you.
You can click Create to create a new workspace.
Google Drive may suggest a workspace based on files you edit often. Click Save, which appears at the bottom of the Suggested Workspace box, if you want to save the workspace.
Note: See the section “Streamline Your Work with Workspaces,” later in this chapter, for details on using workspaces.
Click Shared drives ().
The Shared Drives category appears.
The Shared Drives list shows the shared drives available to you.
You can click Hidden shared drives to display the Hidden Shared Drives list.
Click Expand ().
Note: You can double-click Shared drives () to display the Shared Drives category and expand its contents to the level at which they were previously displayed.
TIP
What uses my Google Drive storage space?
Any files you upload to Google Drive will use an amount of storage proportional to their size.
Files you have sent or received as attachments in Gmail also occupy Google Drive storage, even though you cannot access these files directly from Google Drive.
Documents stored in Google apps formats, such as documents in Google Docs format or presentations in Google Slides format, do not count against your storage usage. But if you export such a document to a non-Google format and save the exported document in Google Drive, it will count against your storage.
Any media files you store in Google Photos on the Original Quality setting will also use Google Drive storage.
The Google Workspace apps are built on the Google Drive platform and automatically use Google Drive for storing files. Google Drive is the backbone for sharing and collaborating on Google Workspace documents with people both inside and outside your Google Workspace organization.
If you need to work with files on Google Drive as if they were on your Windows PC or Mac, you can use Google Drive for Desktop to integrate Google Drive into File Explorer on Windows or the Finder on macOS. See the section “Using Google Drive for Desktop” in Chapter 6, “Share and Collaborate on Files,” for information on Google Drive for Desktop.
The shared drives appear.
Click Expand ().
Note: You can also double-click the shared drive () to expand its contents.
The top-level folders in the shared drive appear.
Click the appropriate folder.
The folder’s contents appear.
Click Shared with me ().
The Shared with Me category appears, showing folders and documents that others have shared with you.
The Quick Access box gives quick access to files that have been shared with you recently and shared files that have been edited recently.
You can right-click a file to display the contextual menu, which includes other actions you can take with the file — for example, renaming the file or downloading it.
You can click Add to Starred () to add the file to the Starred category — for example, because the file is important.
Click Recent ().
The Recent category appears, showing files that have been saved recently.
The list of files is sorted by reverse data, starting with the Today section.
Click Starred ().
The Starred category appears, showing the files you have marked as Starred.
Double-click the file you want to open.
The file opens in the default app for that file type. For example, if you double-click a Google Docs document, it opens in the Google Docs app.
TIP
What does the Storage category on Google Drive do?
Click Storage () to display the Storage category, which shows you a list of all the files you have stored on Google Drive and the amount of space each file is taking up. The list is sorted in descending order by default, so the largest files appear at the top, helping you see what is occupying most space.
Create a Folder and Add Files
To organize your files on Google Drive, you will likely want to create various folders and subfolders. For example, you might choose to create a folder for each major project and, inside that folder, a subfolder for each of the project’s components. If needed, you could then create subfolders inside those subfolders.
Once you have created the folders you need, you can copy or move existing files into the folders or create new files in them.
Create a Folder and Add Files
In Google Drive, navigate to the category in which you want to create a folder.
Note: If you do not currently have Google Drive open, click Google apps () in a browser tab, and then click Drive () on the Google Apps panel.
For example, you might double-click My Drive () to display the My Drive category and the folders it contains.
If you want to create the new folder inside an existing folder, click that folder.
The folder’s contents appear.
Click New ().
The New pop-up menu opens.
Click Folder ().
The New Folder dialog box opens.
Type the name for the new folder.
Click Create.
The New Folder dialog box closes.
The Working… pop-up message appears briefly in the lower-left corner of the window while Google Drive creates the folder.
The new folder appears.
Double-click the new folder.
The folder opens.
At first, the new folder has no contents and displays a prompt to drop files in it.
You can now add files or folders to the new folder.
For example, click a folder that contains files you want to move into the new folder.
This example uses the Reference folder.
The contents of the folder appear.
Select the files you want to move to the new folder.
Drag the files to the folder.
Google Drive moves the files to the folder.
TIP
How many levels of subfolders can I create on Google Drive?
Exactly how many levels of subfolders you can create depends on which part of Google Drive you are using. For example, on a shared drive you can create up to 20 levels of subfolders. Generally speaking, using only a handful of levels of subfolders will produce a more navigable folder structure.
Upload a File to Google Drive
If you have files on your computer that you want to use in the Google Workspace apps, upload those files to Google Drive. Google Drive makes the uploading process easy by providing the File Upload command.
You can also upload an existing folder and its contents to Google Drive. See the next section, “Upload a Folder to Google Drive,” for instructions.
Upload a File to Google Drive
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder in which you want to store the file you upload.
Note: If you do not currently have Google Drive open, click Google apps () in a browser tab, and then click Drive () on the Google Apps panel.
Click New ().
The New pop-up menu opens.
Click File upload ().
A dialog box opens for selecting files.
For example, on Chrome OS, the Select One or More Files dialog box opens.
Navigate to the folder that contains the file or files.
Select the file or files.
Click Open.
The dialog box closes.
Google Drive uploads the file or files, displaying a progress readout while it does so.
Upload a Folder to Google Drive
As well as enabling you to upload individual files, Google Drive lets you upload one or more folders, and the documents they contain, in a single operation. Uploading folders is usually a quicker way of getting your files into Google Drive and is convenient as long as you want to upload all the files in the folder.
Upload a Folder to Google Drive
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder in which you want to store the file you upload.
Note: If you do not currently have Google Drive open, click Google apps () in a browser tab, and then click Drive () on the Google Apps panel.
Right-click open space in the folder.
The contextual menu opens.
Click Upload folder ().
A dialog box opens for selecting the folder you want to upload.
For example, on Chrome OS, the Select a Folder to Upload dialog box opens.
Click the folder you want to upload.
Click Upload.
The Upload Files to This Site? dialog box opens.
Read the warning.
Click Upload if you want to proceed.
The Upload Files to This Site? dialog box closes.
Google Drive uploads the folder, displaying a progress readout as it does so.
When the upload finishes, the Upload Complete message appears.
You can move the cursor over Upload complete () to display Show File Location ( replaces ). Click Show file location () to display the location that contains the uploaded folder.
Enable and Use Google Drive’s Offline Mode
As an online storage site, Google Drive requires an Internet connection. But if you will need to work on your Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides files when you do not have an Internet connection, you can enable Google Drive’s Offline Mode, which makes local copies of files. To use Offline Mode, you must use Google’s Chrome browser app rather than any other browser.
With Offline Mode active, you can work on the files when your computer is offline. Once your computer connects to the Internet again, Google Drive synchronizes the local files with the online files.
Enable and Use Google Drive’s Offline Mode
Enable Google Drive’s Offline Mode
In Google Drive, click Settings ().
The Settings panel opens.
Click Settings.
The Settings screen for Google Drive appears.
The General category of settings appears at first.
In the Offline area, select Create, open and edit your recent Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files on this device while offline ().
Click Done.
The Settings screen for Google Drive closes.
A pop-up message in the lower-left corner of the screen shows the readout Setting up offline while Chrome configures Offline Mode and downloads the files needed for it. The readout Offline setup complete appears when it finishes.
Make a File Available Offline
In Google Drive, right-click the file you want to make available offline.
The contextual menu appears.
Click Available offline ( changes to ).
A confirmation message, such as Making 1 file available offline, appears briefly.
TIP
How do I make a Google Drive file available offline while I am editing it?
When you have a Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides file open for editing, you can make it available offline by clicking File to open the File menu and then clicking Make available offline. A readout such as Document now available offline appears in the lower-left corner of the window to confirm the change.
If you click File again, you will see the File menu displays a check mark next to the Make Available Offline command.
Open a File
To work with a file in an app, you open the file from the folder or location in which it is stored. You can open the file either from Google Drive or by using the Open command on the app’s File menu.
Each file type has a default app associated with it. For example, the Google Sheets app is the default for the Google Sheets file type, as you would expect. When you double-click a file in Google Drive, the default app opens the file. To use a different app than the default, you can use the Open With command.
Open a File
Open a File from Google Drive
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file you want to open.
Double-click the file you want to open.
This example uses a Google Sheets spreadsheet file.
The file opens in the associated app.
In this example, the spreadsheet file opens in the Google Sheets app.
Open a File from Within an App
In the app, click File.
The File menu opens.
Click Open.
The Open a File dialog box appears.
On the tab bar, click the appropriate tab.
You can click Upload to upload a file from your computer.
You can click My Drive to display the My Drive category.
You can click Shared drives to display shared drives to which you have access.
You can click Shared with Me to display files that others have shared with you.
You can click Starred to display files you have marked with a star.
You can click Previously selected to display files you have previously selected.
You can click Recent to display files you have saved recently.
Click the file you want to open.
Click Open.
The file opens in the app.
TIP
How do I open a file in a different app from the default app?
In a Google Drive tab, navigate to the folder that contains the file you want to open. Right-click the file, click or highlight Open with on the contextual menu, and then click the app you want to use.
Move a File or Folder
Google Drive enables you to move a file or a folder from one location to another. Moving is useful for keeping your files and folders logically organized and for giving others access to the files and folders they need.
You can move a file or folder either by clicking and dragging or by using the Move To command and the pop-up windows it produces. You can move a single file or folder at a time or move multiple items together, as needed.
Move a File or Folder
Move a File or Folder Using the Move To Command
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file or folder you want to move.
Select the item or items you want to move.
Click More actions ().
The menu opens.
Click Move to ().
A pop-up window for navigating to the destination folder appears.
The title bar shows the name of the location or folder at the top of the hierarchy shown.
Double-click the location or folder you want to open.
In this example, you would double-click Shared drives.
The pop-up window shows the hierarchy for the folder or location you double-clicked.
The title bar shows the name of the folder or location you double-clicked.
Navigate further, as needed.
In this example, you would double-click Financials.
When you reach the destination folder, click the folder to select it.
You can click New folder () to create a new folder in the current folder.
Click Move.
If you are moving the item or items to a shared drive, the Change Ownership to a Shared Drive? dialog box opens to make sure you understand the result of the move.
Click Move.
Google Drive moves the files.
A pop-up message appears for a few seconds, confirming the details of the move.
You can click Undo to undo the move.
Move a File or Folder Using Drag and Drop
In the sidebar, expand the destination location until you can see the destination folder.
For example, you might expand the Shared Drives location and a folder it contains.
Navigate to the location or folder that contains the file or folder you want to move.
Drag the file or folder to the destination folder.
A pop-up message appears for a few seconds, summarizing the Move operation.
You can click Undo to undo the move.
TIP
Is there another way to perform a Move operation?
Yes — you can start a Move operation from the contextual menu. Right-click the file or folder you want to move, or right-click the files or folders you have already selected, and then click Move to () on the contextual menu.
When you do this, the Move To pop-up window at first shows the folder that currently contains the item or items rather than showing Google Drive as a whole. So if you want to move the item or items to a nearby folder, starting from the contextual menu may be more convenient than starting from the More Actions menu.
Copy a File
Most file managers make it easy to copy a file or a folder from one location to another, which is useful when you need to share a file or folder with other people or keep a copy of the file or folder safe from harm. By contrast, Google Drive discourages you from copying files within Google Drive itself, although it does enable you to duplicate a file or to download a file or folder. You can also create a shortcut to a file or folder, as explained in the following section.
Duplicate a File
When you need to duplicate a file, use the Make a Copy command. Right-click the file, and then click Make a copy () on the contextual menu; you can also select the file, click More actions (), and then click Make a copy (). Google Drive creates a copy of the file in the same folder, assigning it the name Copy of and the original name. For example, the copy of a file named Business Process Manual receives the name Copy of Business Process Manual.
Once you have created the duplicate, you can move it to another folder, as explained in the previous section. You can also rename the duplicate file. Keep in mind that if you want the copy to have the same name as the original file, as would happen with a standard copy operation to a different location, you must first move the copy: You cannot give the copy the original file’s name while both are in the same folder.
Download a File or Folder
Another way of copying a file is to download it to your computer. Downloading works for folders as well, so it can be a handy way to keep spare copies of files or folders.
To download a file or folder, navigate to the location or folder that contains it, and then click to select the file or folder. You can also select multiple files or folders. Click More actions () to open the More Actions menu, and then click Download (); you can also right-click a file or folder, or right-click selected files or folders, and then click Download () on the contextual menu.
Your browser places the downloaded item or items in the Downloads folder specified in its settings. You can then move the item or items to a different location, as needed.
Create a Shortcut to a File or Folder
Google Drive enables you to create shortcuts to files or folders. Creating shortcuts provides a quick way to access files and folders that you need to use frequently or ones that are deeply buried within subfolders.
The formal way to create a shortcut is to use the Add Shortcut to Drive command, which you can find on the More Actions menu and the contextual menu. The informal way is to hold down while you drag a file to the folder in which you want to create the shortcut. On the Mac, hold down while you drag.
Create a Shortcut to a File or Folder
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file or folder to which you want to create a shortcut.
Select the item for which you want to create the shortcut.
Click More actions ().
The More Actions menu opens.
Click Add shortcut to Drive ().
A pop-up window for specifying the location for the shortcut appears.
Navigate to the folder that contains the folder in which you want to place the shortcut.
In this example, you would double-click My Drive () to display the folders it contains.
Click the destination folder.
Click ADD SHORTCUT.
Google Drive creates the shortcut.
Rename a File or Folder
Google Drive enables you to rename any file or folder you have created. It is often helpful to rename files and folders to keep your Google Drive storage logically organized and to make it easy to find the files and folders you need.
You can begin the process of renaming a file or folder from either the More Actions menu or the contextual menu for a file or folder.
Rename a File or Folder
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file or folder you want to rename.
Click the file or folder to select it.
Click More actions ().
The More Actions menu opens.
Click Rename ().
The Rename dialog box opens.
Type the new name, or edit the existing name, as appropriate.
Click OK.
The Rename dialog box closes.
The file or folder’s new name appears.
View Info and Activity on a File or Folder
Google Drive stores a large amount of information about each file and the actions that users have taken with it. You can view this information by using the View Details command from either the More Actions menu or the contextual menu.
Using the View Details command opens a pane on the right side of the Google Drive window. The pane contains two tabs: the Details tab and the Activity tab. The Details tab includes the file type, size, location, creation and modification dates, and a preview. The Activity tab shows a summary of the actions taken with the file.
View Info and Activity on a File or Folder
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file for which you want to view info and activity.
Click the file or folder to select it.
Click More actions ().
The More Actions menu opens.
Click View details ().
The Information pane appears, showing the Details tab first.
You can see whether or not the file is shared.
You can see the file’s type, such as Google Sheets.
You can see the file’s owner.
You can see when the file was created, last opened, and last modified.
Optionally, you can add a description.
Click Activity.
The Activity tab appears.
You can see actions taken with the file, such as editing it.
Click Close ().
The Information pane closes.
Search for a File or Folder
To locate a file or folder on Google Drive, you can search using the Search in Drive feature, which enables you to perform either simple or complex searches.
For a simple search, you type one or more search terms, and optionally choose the file type or location. For a complex search, you expand the Search in Drive box and specify further details of what you want to find. When the file or folder you want appears in the search results, you can click it to open it.
Search for a File or Folder
Perform a Simple Search
In Google Drive, click Search in Drive.
The Search in Drive box becomes active.
The Search in Drive panel opens.
Optionally, click Folders (), Documents (), Spreadsheets (), Presentations (), PDFs (), Images (), or In trash () to restrict the search.
Start typing your first search term.
Search results appear.
Note: If needed, type other search terms to refine the search.
Click the item you want to open.
Perform a Complex Search
In Google Drive, click Search in Drive ().
The Search in Drive dialog box opens.
To specify the item type, click Type (), and then click Photos & images (), PDFs (), Documents (), Spreadsheets (), Presentations (), Forms (), Audio (), Videos (), Archive (zip) (), Drawings (), Shortcuts (), Folders (), or Sites (), as needed. The default type is Any.
The Search in Drive box shows the search parameters you have entered so far. In this example, type:document represents selecting Documents in the Type pop-up menu.
To specify the item’s owner, click Owner (), and then click Owned by me, Not owned by me, or Specific person. If you click Specific person, type the person’s name or email address. The default owner is Anyone.
To specify the location, click the Location button, which shows ANYWHERE by default; click the location, and then click Select.
To restrict the search by time, click Date modified (), and then click Today, Yesterday, Last 7 days, Last 30 days, Last 90 days; or click Custom and specify start and end dates. The default is Any Time.
To search by file name, click Item name and type a term.
To search by contents, click Has the words and type a term.
To search by users with whom the item is shared, click Shared with and type a name or email address.
Click Search.
The Search in Drive dialog box closes.
Search results appear.
TIP
What do the In Trash setting and the Starred setting do?
You can select In trash () to restrict the search to only items in the Trash. Similarly, you can select Starred () to restrict the search to only items you have marked as starred.
Delete a File or Folder
When you no longer need a file or folder, you can delete it. To help you avoid getting rid of items accidentally, deleting an item moves it to the Trash rather than actually erasing it immediately. The item remains in the Trash for 30 days, during which time you can retrieve it if necessary; see the following section for instructions. After 30 days, Google Drive permanently deletes the item, and you can no longer retrieve it.
Delete a File or Folder
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the file or folder you want to delete.
Click the file or folder to select it.
Click Remove ().
The Move to Trash? dialog box opens.
Click MOVE TO TRASH.
A pop-up message appears for a few seconds, summarizing the operation performed, such as Folder moved to trash.
You can click UNDO to retrieve the item from the Trash immediately.
Recover a File from the Trash
When you select a file or folder and give the Remove command, Google Drive does not delete the item immediately but instead moves it to the Trash folder. Google Drive keeps the item in the Trash for 30 days before deleting it permanently. During this time, you can recover the item from the Trash if you need to.
You may sometimes want to get rid of items permanently without letting them fester in the Trash for 30 days. You can achieve this either by emptying the Trash or by issuing the Delete Forever command for an item in it.
Recover a File from the Trash
In Google Drive, click Trash ().
The Trash category appears.
By default, the Trash sorts files in reverse order by Last Modified by Me, so items you deleted recently appear at the top of the list.
You can click Descending sort ( changes to ) or Ascending sort ( changes to ) to reverse the sort direction.
Click the item or items you want to recover.
Right-click in the selection.
The contextual menu opens.
Click Restore ().
You can click Delete forever () to delete the item forever.
A pop-up message appears for a few seconds with the readout Restored and the item name.
For a file, you can click SHOW FILE LOCATION to display the file’s location — for example, so you can open the file.
You can click UNDO to put the item back in the Trash immediately.
You can click Empty trash to get rid of all the files in the Trash permanently.
Work with Microsoft Office Documents
Google Workspace enables you to work with Microsoft Office documents. Google Docs can open, save, and convert Microsoft Word documents; Google Sheets can open, save, and convert Microsoft Excel workbooks; and Google Slides can open, save, and convert Microsoft PowerPoint presentations.
You can upload Microsoft Office documents to Google Drive, keeping the documents’ file formats, using the method explained in the section “Upload a File to Google Drive,” earlier in this chapter. You can then convert the documents to Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides format, as needed.
Work with Microsoft Office Documents
Open a Microsoft Office Document in a Google Workspace App
In Google Drive, navigate to the folder that contains the document.
The Word icon () indicates a Microsoft Word document.
Right-click the document.
The contextual menu opens.
Click or highlight Open with ().
The Open With submenu appears.
Click the appropriate Google Workspace app.
In this example, you would click Google Docs ().
The document opens in the app you specified.
The .DOCX file extension indicates that the document is in Microsoft Word format, which uses this file extension. See the tip for information on other Microsoft Office file extensions.
You can now edit the document.
The Google Workspace app — in this case, Google Docs — automatically saves changes you make, keeping the document in its Microsoft Office format.
Save a Microsoft Office Document in a Google Workspace Format
With a Microsoft Office document open in a Google Workspace app, click File.
The File menu opens.
Click Save as Google Docs, Save as Google Sheets, or Save as Google Slides, depending on the app.
The app saves the document in the Google app’s format in the same folder.
The new document appears in a new tab.
The original document is still open in its tab.
To avoid confusion, you may want to click Close () to close the original document at this point.
You can now work with the new document in its Google Workspace format.
TIP
Which Microsoft Office file types can the Google apps save?
The Google apps can save the most widely used Microsoft Office formats. For Microsoft Word, these are the Word Document format, which uses the .docx file extension, and the older Word 97–2003/2004 Document format, which uses the .doc file extension. For Microsoft Excel, these are the Excel Workbook format, which uses the .xlsx file extension, and the older Excel 97–2003/2004 Workbook format, which uses the .xls file extension. For Microsoft PowerPoint, these are the PowerPoint Presentation format, which uses the .pptx format, and the older PowerPoint 97–2003/2004 Presentation format, which uses the .ppt file extension. Google Drive automatically converts all other Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files to the equivalent Google Workspace apps formats.
Keeping a Microsoft Office document in its original format can be helpful when you or colleagues need to work on the document in Microsoft Office. But if you will be using only Google Workspace apps to work on the document from now on, converting the document to the corresponding Google Workspace format is usually a good idea.
Google Workspace also enables you to upload and convert a Microsoft Office document in a single move. For example, you can upload an Excel workbook, converting it so that it arrives in Google Drive as a Google Sheets spreadsheet.
Upload and Convert a Microsoft Office Document
Open the Google Workspace app that can handle the format to which you want to convert the file. For example, in Google Drive, click New () to display the New pop-up menu, and then click Google Sheets () to open the Google Sheets app and create a new spreadsheet.
Following this example, the new spreadsheet opens in a new browser tab.
Click File.
The File menu opens.
Click Open.
The Open a File dialog box opens.
Click Upload.
The Upload tab appears.
Specify the file you want to upload:
Either drag a file from a file-management window to the open area with the Drag a file here prompt.
Or click Select a file from your device, use the Select a File to Open dialog box to select the file, and then click Open.
The app uploads the file and converts it to the Google Workspace app’s format.
The Open a File dialog box closes.
The file opens in the Google Workspace app you were using.
You can now work with the file as normal.
TIP
Can I create Microsoft Office documents from Google Workspace documents?
Yes — you can create Microsoft Word documents from Google Docs, Microsoft Excel workbooks from Google Sheets, and Microsoft PowerPoint presentations from Google Slides.
Open the Google Workspace document in its app — for example, open a Google Docs document in Google Docs. Click File to open the File menu, click or highlight Download to display the Download submenu, and then click Microsoft Word (.docx). In Google Sheets, click File, click or highlight Download, and then click Microsoft Excel (.xlsx). In Google Slides, click File, click or highlight Download, and then click Microsoft PowerPoint (.pptx).
Streamline Your Work with Workspaces
Google Drive’s Workspaces feature enables you to create groups of files called workspaces. Each workspace can contain up to 25 files, which can be located in any part of Google Drive to which you have access. After adding files to a workspace, you can display the screen for the workspace and quickly open or manage the files it contains.
You access your workspaces through the Priority category in Google Drive. From here, you can create new workspaces and manage existing workspaces.
Streamline Your Work with Workspaces
Create a Workspace and Add Files to It
In Google Drive, click Priority ().
The Priority category appears.
Google Drive may display Suggested Workspace () based on files you open frequently. You can click Save to accept the suggestion and save the workspace or click Dismiss to dismiss the suggestion.
Click Create.
The New Workspace dialog box opens.
Type the name for the new workspace.
Click Create.
The New Workspace dialog box closes.
The screen for the workspace appears.
A pop-up message saying Workspace created appears for a few seconds.
Click Add files.
The screen for the workspace shrinks somewhat and moves to the left.
The Add to Workspace pane appears on the right.
On the tab bar at the top of the Add to Workspace pane, select the location that contains the files you want to add. In this example, you would click RECENT.
You can click Next () to scroll along the bar. Click Previous () to scroll back.
Click to select each file you want to add.
Click INSERT.
The Add to Workspace pane closes.
The files appear on the screen for the workspace.
You can click Add files to add other files.
When you finish adding files to the workspace, click Done.
The workspace appears in the Workspaces section of the Priority category.
TIP
What other way can I start creating a workspace?
You can start creating a workspace by selecting one or more files you want to put in that workspace. Right-click in the selection, highlight or click Add to workspace (), and then click Create new workspace. The New Workspace dialog box opens. Type the name for the workspace and click Create. Google Drive creates the workspace and adds the files to it.
You can update a workspace by adding files to it — up to the maximum of 25 files — and removing files from it, as needed.
If you create many workspaces, you may have to scroll the Priority category in Google Drive to find the workspaces you need. To reduce clutter, you can hide any workspace, moving it out of sight until you need it again — at which point you can unhide it. When you no longer need a workspace, you can get rid of it by removing it.
Work with a Workspace
In Google Drive, click Priority ().
The Priority category appears.
In the Workspaces section, click View workspace on the workspace you want to open.
Note: You can also click the workspace’s name to open the workspace.
The screen for the workspace appears.
You can take other actions with a file by clicking it, clicking More actions (), and then clicking the appropriate menu item. For example, you can click Show file location () to display the file’s location, or you can click Remove from workspace () to remove the file from the workspace.
Double-click the file you want to open.
The file opens in a new tab in the default Google Workspace app.
For example, a Google Docs document opens in the Google Docs app.
You can then work with the file as normal.
When you finish working with the file, click Close ().
The file’s tab closes.
The tab containing the screen for the workspace appears again.
You can open another file, if needed.
When you finish working with the workspace, click Done.
The screen for the workspace closes.
TIP
How — and why — do I hide a workspace?
If you create many workspaces, you may want to hide the ones you do not currently need so that you can focus on the other workspaces. To hide a workspace, go to the Priority category, click More actions () in the workspace’s box, and then click Hide workspace. Google Drive moves the workspace to the Hidden Workspaces section of the Priority category. To show the workspace again, click Hidden workspaces ( changes to ), displaying the list of hidden workspaces. Click the workspace to display its screen, and then click Unhide.
