Chromebook Guide for Instructors
Manhattan College
Getting Started with Your Acer Chromebook 14
What is a Chromebook?
Chromebooks are easy-to-use, fast, secure laptops that harness the power of the Web. The Web has changed; you can not only do simple tasks like send email or write up a document.
What is Chrome OS?
Why Chromebooks?
There are several perks of using a computer that runs Chrome OS. Having a light operating system means that updates are quick to install, battery life is great, approximately 14 hours and the computer starts within 8 seconds. It also means that the computer is secure from viruses and other forms of malware. Updates also occur in the background which means it will not interrupt the user when using Chromebook. It’s easy to share devices as you sync with your Google account and all your information comes with you on your drive. This means instructors don’t need to worry about software being installed on the computer, or which Chromebook a student is using.
Also, Chromebooks are the perfect devices to get the most out of your G Suite for Education accounts. The web versions of Gmail, Drive, Docs, Calendar, Sites, and Classroom allow you to have all the functionality you need for a digitally-rich classroom.
Important Features
Chromebooks do not run Windows Programs
Reminder:
Organization with Chromebooks
Chromebooks utilize the cloud with Google Drive. When using Drive, it is very helpful to use organization to make it easier to navigate so you never lose track of a document.
1. Folder Structure
The first way you can be organized in Google Drive is to use folders.The best starting point is creating a clean universal folder structure. An easy way to do this is to create a folder for each category of document and then make subfolders for each aspect of that category. An “uncategorized” folder can house all the documents that don’t fit into any of the other folders yet. Scan through the “uncategorized” folder regularly and sort its contents into the appropriate labeled folders if possible.Within each subfolder, it is a good practice to create folders that are dated by week to keep track of the dates each document is created. That way no folder becomes too full and difficult to sort through.
To create a folder, click the red NEW button and then select the option for folder.
2. Color Coding
Google Drive has an awesome feature that allows you to color code your folders. This can be done in such a way that makes sifting through your drive much faster.
In the example below, we made each folder in our Drive a different color and then each subfolder a different shade of that same color. The dated weekly folders within each subfolder are the same shade as the subfolder it is contained within. This way, if you’re looking at a folder titled “April 6-12,” you can instantly tell what types of documents are contained in it simply by glancing at its hue.
To change the color of a folder, click the arrow to the right of the folder name on the top bar, and then select the change color option.
3. Standardizing Naming Conventions
Date created is a mysteriously absent field in Google Drive. Instead, you can only view when a document was last updated. Finding a document by its creation date is sometimes useful and more intuitive, which should be considered when designing your naming convention.
We think it’s best to name every document in the following way: “[DateCreated] DocumentName” and then let the folder structure and color coding do the rest. For example, a student loan payment receipt created on the 19th of April would be titled “[4.19] Student Loan Payment Receipt.” This will be easy to find whether you are searching for the date or the title of the document. For more tips on how to name your Google Drive documents, click here.
To rename a document, highlight the documents name in Drive and then click the three vertical dots on the right side of the top bar. Then select rename.
4. Shared with You, Organized by You
To add a document that is shared with you to “My Drive,” highlight the document in the Shared with Me folder and then click the three vertical dots on the right side of the top bar and select Add to My Drive from the dropdown menu.