Jorge Lepervanche, MBA 2009 candidate, Hult International Business School

Google Docs has helped me and my MBA study group prepare our weekly assignments and schedules. After a couple of weeks of forgetting assignments and readings, the study group decided to establish a schedule system to stay on track.

Enter Google Docs. We created a spreadsheet in which we share deadlines and assignment details (for example, whether it's a group or an individual task; if it requires write-ups, presentations, or just preparation).

Every team member updates the spreadsheet. We meet on Fridays to review the assignments for the next week and arrange meetings. The spreadsheet is available to all of us all the time and any updates are done in one place.

Any other solutions we initially tried required us to buy software, upload and download files, or send emails back and forth (impractical and annoying!). Google Docs turned out to be the perfect solution. I even saw that another group replicated the idea. Thank you Google, for a smart and great product!

Example group schedule

Andrew Spittle, student blogger at Whitman College

I'm a student entering my freshman year of college at Whitman College and use Google Docs for nearly everything. I use it to post to my blog, do writing assignments, type notes for reading assignments and many other things.

I love it even more than I used to because if I'm somewhere without my MacBook and I need to take some notes on a computer I can easily do it... Thanks for all the work you do to keep Google products great.

Colette Cassinelli, high school computer teacher in Beaverton, Oregon (Google Certified Teacher)

In my attempt to avoid sitting through days and days of PowerPoint presentations in my high school computer classes (and boring the students in the process), I decided to upload each of my students Online Safety PowerPoint's to a Google account and the class joined the presentation. One student talked aloud while everyone listened and chatted about the presentation. The students asked questions in the chat, added their own information and followed along in the presentation.

For the first time I can EVER remember as a teacher - 100% of the students were engaged in the presentation and participated in the chat. The students were enthusiastic and offered insightful and appropriate comments. The students liked being able to add their input without interrupting the presentation. I will definitely use Google shared presentations again.

Blog post on using presentations

Carol LaRow, language arts teacher in Niskayuna, New York (Google Certified Teacher, Apple Distinguished Educator, and Smithsonian Laureate)

I am a language arts teacher in Niskayuna, New York and have done interdisciplinary projects with my students for several years. I began a website called Google Historical Voyages and Events which invites schools all over the World to submit projects done by teachers and students. The site is dedicated to famous explorers, historical events that shaped the World, and local histories.The goal of the site is to post projects that use clusters of Google tools, encourage peer-to-peer learning, foster global awareness, and have students "meet" other students from around the World.

I'm using a Google Docs form to collect information from schools that want to join the project. The web form asks for basic information such as project title, contact information, and school name and location. Forms allows teachers to join the project without having to email me. They fill out the online form and click "Submit." Forms alerts me when someone has submitted information and summarizes all the information in a spreadsheet that I can view on my computer. I can also make the results available to other teachers.

Example form

Lesley Cutts, Marketing Manager of GoodnessDirect

We run an online shop with 5,000 products. Every couple of months we have around 200 new lines which need photos taking, details drafting and proof reading and then mounting onto the website, onto blogs and into our newsletter.

We always get in such a muddle with photographers and copy writers covering different products. In fact communication can be so confusing some lines never emerge. Google Docs has been a revolution to us.

We can write copy on a Google document and get several people to proof it together, saving us hours. The buyers can produce a Google spreadsheet with a list of new lines to go onto the website which all departments can work from real time. So the photographers and content writers can see what needs doing and what each other have done. It is terrific. We are now all singing from the same song sheet!

Anand, Business Development Director for Silicon Oyster Technologies in Chennai, India

I have been using Google Docs for few weeks now and it has been very useful for our hiring team. Being an Offshore Software Development Company and having our managers at different locations, working at different time zones organizing the interview for the candidates is a difficult job for us.

Now, we are using Google Docs with all the details of the candidate along with interview schedule, and the managers fill in their convenient timing for interview. Thereby we are able to respond to the candidates quickly and the whole team is updated.

Though there are many Applicant Tracking Systems available, Google Docs is best and it comes free. Keep up the great work.

Andreas Nylandsted Benediktson, political sciences student from Denmark

My girlfriend and I use a Google spreadsheet to plan our meals and grocery shopping. Once a week, usually Fridays, we plan all of our meals for the following seven days. We have a shared meal plan template, and we make a new copy of that each week.

We cook by the seasons and decide our menu by what is available at the time of year. Other than that we seek inspiration in cook books, newspapers, and the like. When we have decided what we want to eat, we put together a shopping list. We do most of our shopping on Saturdays, and a lot of that is at the local farmers market.

Planning our meals and shopping with Google Docs has helped us get organized throughout the week. It's a lot easier to cook when the menu is decided and the shopping is done. It's also a great way for us to save money because we never buy anything we don't need, and we almost never throw out food. It's all in the plan.

Example meal plan

Frank, ardent member of Red Sox Nation

I am a Red Sox season ticket holder who moved to St. Louis. Although I can't make it to Fenway more than a few times per year any more, I've kept my season tickets and let my family and friends buy them.

Historically I created an Excel spreadsheet and e-mailed it to one person at a time, but it was always a hassle waiting for someone to pick their games before being able to send it on to the next person. I'd get calls from people demanding the spreadsheet, and I'd have to say "you're third in line, be patient". Or people would be miffed that they didn't get the spreadsheet earlier (where are all the Yankee games? Why are all the Saturday games taken? How come you sent it to him before me?).

With Google Docs the logistics are far simpler, now I can just e-mail everyone and let them pick whatever games are available. And instead of the process dragging out for months, I wouldn't be surprised if this year it takes a week.

Debbie, Mary Anne, Jerri, Rita and their fellow neighborhood volunteers in New Orleans

We are using Google Docs to share info with other volunteers in our neighborhood association in New Orleans. We have "Block Captains" who each compile data on infrastructure issues related to Hurricane Katrina so that we can accelerate rebuilding our homes and our lives.

One person uploads the data into Google Docs regarding the issues we find (like leaks and broken catch basins, missing street signs and stop signs). The spreadsheets are then shared with other members of the association, the Water board and the City so they can view the issues and address them.

Google Docs makes it easy for us to enter & is the ONLY way for us to share the up-to-date data.