GREAT TABLES? OR NOT SO GREAT?

    I started to create a simple "Booklet" in +Google docs +Google Drive just to realize that one can't even change the "Presets" in page sizes or independently format table rows or columns or even table borders... 

    I needed to make a simple 50 page (Double sided) booklet to keep track of clients manually, for this task I decided to go to my dearly +Google Drive and create a new +Google docs to see if I could accomplish it.


    The first limitation I ran into was getting my paper size ready, as any new project you would have to go to "page setup" or "print setup" depending on the program/printer you use; mine required a size of 4.25 x 6.75 and +Google docs gave me like 10 different options besides 8.5 x 11.

    This wouldn't make my booklet fit into a standard size planner, but, I kept going with the smallest setting I could get from the existing presets. I wished for that "custom size" option but, it wasn't there... 

    The second limitation on my lil project was to get the tables to behave the way I needed, but, again to my dismay tables in +Google docs are back in the day where "options" weren't an option.

    Controlling borders is essential in any table or sets of tables, having the choice to choose what borders are needed, how thick the pens for outlining, double or triple lines for over and under lining, etc., the more control the more flexibility you get to be creative. Simple things like text wrapping, table splitting or having two tables next to each other.

    Yes, +Google Drive we need more control of tables and more options on +Google docs to print several instances of the work in one page.

    This is another major setback in Google Docs "Real Time Sharing and Collaboration" simply because they are unable to tackle custom paper sizes and more options on tables.

This was done using Tables on MS Word and a similar but not quite the same using OO and LO

    How do we work around these issues? It is unknown at the moment whether Google is looking into this.

In the mean time we have to return to MS Office or our Open Office suite.

GOOGLE DOCS LIMITATIONS

    Ever since I moved to +Google docs  (all versions - Free Gmail - Google Apps Standard (Discontinued) - Google Apps Premier) I have been wanting everyone I know to do the same thing, at least on the free +Gmail  versions.

    The more we use +Google Drive and +Google docs  for work I've realized that most docs we rely on for references, collaboration, commenting, real time sharing have encountered a dead end.

    Think about your team preparing a set of bidding instructions for a project, these documents tend to get very elaborated and large in size, perhaps like holding a small phone book

    No can't do in +Google docs , you have reached the size limit, now you have to continue your document in a "new" document (...well, say you could live with that for a moment just to complete your task).

Since you can't have it in a single document, you go ahead and print it to a .pdf file for proof reading and commenting... (or you could share it via +Google Drive ) (which won't work if your file is too large).

    Now you have the task of compiling several .pdf files into one, but, you don't have acrobat to do this...!

    Here is the second setback, you might want to take it to a print shop and have them print your book from the several .pdf files you have to get yourself a publish ready copy of your documents.

    Ok, you have +Adobe Acrobat  and you can easily compile your downloaded .pdf into one book, now what? You upload the document back to +Google docs  and try to open to view it... or not... Sorry...! This is what you see...

    Nope you can not open the file to view it, your only option is to download it back to your computer... :-(

    This is a major setback in +Google Drive  "Real Time Sharing and Collaboration" simply because they are unable to tackle medium size documents, not to mention larger versions.

    How do we work around these issues? It is unknown at the moment whether Google is looking into this.

In the mean time we have to return to +Microsoft Office or our +Apache OpenOffice  suite.