Google Docs, the free online office suite from the world's biggest search engine, was made available to users on the move this week with the release of Google Docs Mobile.When using Google Docs Mobile what you are presented with is a search box with recent documents all listed below. Users can either select a recent document in order to view it or search through their library of documents to find the one they are looking for. The folder structure in the application is stripped down but can also be navigated in much the same way as in the full version of Google Docs. At the moment, however, editing files is not possible and it is not known if Google will implement this feature.
Another drawback of the new application is that some file types that are much touted features of the full version of Google Docs do not work with Google Docs Mobile. One of these file types is the Microsoft Powerpoint file extension .ppt. Spreadsheet functionality is also extremely limited.
When a spreadsheet file is viewed through Google Docs Mobile, one column is displayed at a time and the user can cycle through the columns by using navigation links built into the application. If the user wishes to view a row this can also be done one at a time but is displayed in a vertical list. Users can also be taken directly to the cell of their choice by inputting the cell's co-ordinates.
When viewing word processed documents, however, there are no such problems. The files are displayed correctly and can be viewed with ease.
Google are known for actively updating their applications so better implementation of spreadsheets and presentations may be just around the corner. In future, editing documents while on the move may also be an option for this exciting new application.
