Google Drive

Posted by : Unknown Friday 2 August 2013

Google Drive

Google Drive is a great service, no doubt, but simply installing the application, and synchronizing
your files is just the first step. These tips will help you take maximum advantage of
Google Drive, on the desktop as well as the internet – whether it is synchronizing files between
different computers or using facilities provided exclusively on the online service.

Move User Folders

You can move your user data folders (Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos and Downloads)

by right-clicking the folder and changing the destination path

Change the location of the user folder

to the Google Drive folder

under the ‘Location’ tab in the Properties menu. (Windows 7 users need to go to the Explorer

Save the Google Drive folder as the default location for easy accessibility

panel to the left, Expand the collapsible Library folder, and right-click the “My Documents”

or similar folder to get the Properties menu.) Change the location of one of these folders to your Google

drive folder to synchronize it between computers. Do this on each computer you use and

you’ll have the same files in your Documents, Downloads, and all other folders on all your computers.

NOTE: If the amount of data you have exceeds the storage capacity of Google Drive (that is, if the data is more than 5 GB in size), then the above-mentioned function will fail to completely transfer all files. Once the storage limit of Google Drive is reached, you will be unable to add any more folders/files to

it, and in this case, to your user data folders as well.

Customize Windows Libraries

To utilize this function, you’ll need to have the offline version of Google Drive downloaded

and installed (the option for downloading is available on the home page of your online Google Drive at the bottom of the sidebar). Once you do that, you will get a Google Drive folder in your list of user data folders,

which is also accessible via the sidebar of Windows Explorer (it is in your Favorites menu).

Once you have the Google Drive folder, you don’t necessarily have to move files and

folders to share them – use the Windows libraries folders instead. In any library folder,

click the Location link near the top of the window.

Here, click Add..., browse to the Google Drive folderyou wish to add to the library,

and select OK. You can add asmany folders as you want from the Google Drive folder to your

library and even set it as your default save location. On doing so, later when you open the

library in Windows Explorer, you’ll see files from all included folders, and when you move or

save a file to it, Windows will place it in the default save folder.

Empty the Trash

Files in the Trash (as well as previous versions of files) take up storage space. After deleting

files from the drive, you’ll have to empty the online drive Trash

to completely reclaim your storage space. The Trash folder can only be emptied from the online

version of Google Drive. Select the More link in the sidebar, to

reveal the option for the Trash folder. Note: Once you delete files from the Trash folder.

Don’t forget to empty Google Drive’s online. Trash folder to maximize available space they are permanently removed. There is no way to retrieve those files after that, so be very

careful before removing files from the Trash folder.

Restore
previous file versions

Google Drive saves previous versions of files you’ve recently changed for up to 30 days, or 100

revisions – whichever comes earlier. These can’t be accessed from the desktop folder though.

You’ll need to visit the website (drive.google.com), right-click

a file and select “Manage revisions...” Alternatively, you can select a file, click on the More

link in the sidebar, and then select “Manage revisions...” from the dropdown menu.

Previous revisions take up space in your online drive, similar to Trash. You can remove previous revisions from this menu if they’re taking up too much space.

Install Apps

Google Drive isn’t just another sharing service that lets you synchronize data across folders – it can also function as a web-based hard drive for web apps. The Chrome Web Store contains a category specifically

for Google Drive apps. They can be selected under Collections Google Drive on the sidebar menu.

You can launch files in these apps directly from Google Drive. Conversely, the app can also

save files directly into your drive. This service provides great relief in the form of a location

where you can store your files, instead of scattering them across multiple web apps.

For example, Aviary for Google Drive is a very easy-touse and handy photo editor. The

Manage (and delete) previous versions of files saved in Google Drive