Having used Google Docs for years now, I succumbed to Google's promos urging me to switch to Google Drive. I've been using cloud storage long before the term was coined and it was Yahoo Briefcase pioneering the concept (Google hasn't always done everything first).
Well, I took Google Drive for a test drive yesterday and it crashed! I'm trying to get it towed off my computer and even that's failings, so I may be stuck with the wreck. (No more vehicular puns, I promise - although it is tempting to say I sufferred a Google Drive by shooting.)
There are other articles that outline the specific problems, Google Drive's Six Substantial Slip-ups or larger issues, Four Reasons Why Google Drive Will Not Kill Dropbox. I won't outline all the problems I experienced as they are well covered elsewhere.
My first deal-breaker issue I had is the Google Drive insists on a local copy of all the files. One of the reasons I want to store my files on the cloud is so that I don't have to keep them on my computer.
By insisting on a local copy of the files, it also makes editing files difficult. First of all, one needs to use the new "Google Drive" folder that is set-up on your computer after installing the software. This means that I have to move all my existing computer folder set-ups to have the sync work. What's worse, is that the files are then Google docs and then need to be either viewed online and editted as an online Google doc, not in a native, computer program (Microsoft Word, for example).
A huge problem, however, is that after working for a short period of time, Google Drive just went kaput. It does not allow me to sync my files in either direction any more.
Worse again, is that the software has no error message, status reports, or any customization features so that I can troubleshoot what's going on.
Google's final fatal mistake is that there online support is terrible. It's difficult to find any information on the specific problems and the support tips offerred is general and vague.
I tried to unistall Google Drive from my computer and it's firmly implanted - like a tireless wreck sitting on my front lawn. For the online software, I was able to "temporarily" go back to the Google Docs interface, but it seems once one switches it is impossible to fully go back.
I'll admit that considering that I expect these services for free, I'm quite demanding. But if companies are going to offer these services they might as well get it right.
Update May 18: According to a commenter below, Peter, some of my points are factually incorrect. I haven't been able to figure out to use the work-arounds Peter mentions (see my comments also below), but will update this post if these problems can be resolved.
2 comments:
A very interesting corner case, but there's a few things said that are incorrect.
"Google Drive insists on a local copy of all the files..."
That's not technically accurate. It depends on which options you have selected. One option in Google Drive is to sync only certain folders. In theory, you could deselect every single root folder. In this case, it will only sync files that do not exist in any folders or only exist at the root level. Also, when it syncs a Google Doc, it is technically only storing enough information on the hard drive to represent a "shortcut" to the original document, so it is not actually storing the full document on your computer in this case.
"By insisting on a local copy of the files, it also makes editing files difficult...What's worse, is that the files are then Google docs and then need to be either viewed online and editted as an online Google doc, not in a native, computer program (Microsoft Word, for example)."
This isn't true. If you put a Word Doc into your Google Drive folder (on your computer) it will sync with Google Drive (online) as the original Word Doc and will not store it as a native Google Doc hosted document. As a result, it will remain a Word Doc. You can continue to edit it using Word and it will continue to sync those changes to Google Drive (online) and back to any other machines you have Google Drive installed on. A better way to sync Office documents with Google Drive, however, is to install Google Cloud Connect which will allow this syncing to take place, the files can exist anywhere on your hard drive, and you can collaborate in real-time using this.
"For the online software, I was able to "temporarily" go back to the Google Docs interface, but it seems once one switches it is impossible to fully go back."
That's true. Google Drive is the new name of the Google Docs file list online. Of course, this doesn't mean you need to use the software. There are still many new features of Google Drive online (such as creating and organizing third-party files using Apps installed into Google Drive). None of this requires the software to be installed. The only reason you would install the software is if you want it to sync some (or all) of your files to your hard drive. However, it sounds like this isn't something you want, so it makes me wonder why you installed the software?
I hope you sort out your software woes. It doesn't sound like fun.
Hi Peter:
Thanks for the detailed comment. I really appreciate the help!
I wish Google's support info was this helpful (and I looked so if it's there it's too buried). I'll ammend my post, but I still am having problems with the features you mention.
Regarding customizing my local Google Drive folders so that only some folders sync, I could not figure out how to do that. I obviously missed something, but I looked for any such settings and couldn't find any way to do this. Again, Google's support material was awful in this regard.
As for Google Drive not supporting native formats (e.g., MS Word), I did have a problem with this. When I clicked to edit a MS Word file on my local Google Drive, it automatically opened Google Docs/Drive on my default browser. I have found going back and forth between Google Docs and MS Word has caused huge irreversiable file corruption problems - in one case costing me a day of work. If there was a setting to avoid this automatic coversion and editing in a browser I could not find it. Even if it is there, again it is too buried and again Google's support material was awful.
I'll admit that I downloaded the Google Drive software to my computer without putting much thought or research into it. I wanted a way to simplify uploading of files and to gain the extra storage space. Google, however, certainly didn't make it clear in the promos or download material what exactly was going to happen, so they can definitely improve there.
Your feedback leads me to believe that there are ways to address the problems I encountered. If I can figure out how to do the software customizations you suggest, I'm tempted to give it another try - and ammend my original post.
Thanks for the help!
Glen
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