Organizing Your Digital Life
IMPtime Lesson
Spring Cleaning
- Using some of the help tips below, take time today to organize your Google Drive.
- When you are finished, there are some Google Doodles to view after the help tips.
- It is also a good time to clean up the files and folders on your laptop (especially the tons of screenshots)
GOOGLE DRIVE - Organize Files and Folders
Create a Folder
- Go to drive.google.com.
- On the left, click New Folder.
- Enter a name for the folder.
- Click Create.
Consider how you would like to organize the stuff you have accumulated on your laptop.
IDEAS:
- Create one folder for this school year
- If you have stuff from previous school years, create folders to hold the stuff you want to save.
- Create folders for your favorite documents, slides, pictures, etc.
Take time now to organize your Google Drive. Move your items wherever they belong.
Upload to Google Drive
You can upload, view, share, and edit files with Google Drive. When you upload a file to Google Drive, it will take up space in your Drive, even if you upload to a folder owned by someone else.
Types of files
- Documents
- Images
- Audio
- Video
If you upload a PAGES, NUMBERS or KEYNOTE file, you can only view these items by downloading again from your Google Drive. It is best to CONVERT these files to be used in your Google Drive.
Convert Documents to Google Format
If you want to upload files like Pages, Numbers or Keynote, you can change a setting to convert files.
First, you must convert documents: PAGES export to WORD, NUMBERS export to EXCEL, KEYNOTE export to POWERPOINT. Do this using File > Export As on your Macbook.
After converting, to WORD, EXCEL or POWERPOINT, fix the setting in your Google Drive:
- Go to drive.google.com/drive/settings.
- Next to "Convert Uploads," check the box.
Now you can upload the converted documents to your Google Drive and those documents will convert to DOCS, SHEETS or SLIDES.
Sort Your Files
There are two ways to view files and folders in Google Drive.
If you're viewing your files in a list
- On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
- Click the column that you want to use to sort.
- To reverse the order, click the up arrow or down arrow .
If you're viewing your files in a grid
- On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
- In the top right, click the title of the current sort, like "Name" or "Last modified."
- Click on the type of sorting you want.
- To reverse the order, click the up arrow or down arrow .
Find recently edited files
See the files that were most recently edited.
- On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
- In the top right, click Information .
- Click Activity.
Move a File or Folder
You can move an item from anywhere in Google Drive: the main window, the left panel, or search results.
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Right-click the item you want to move.
- Click Move to…
- Choose or create a folder, then click Move.
Drag to a folder
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Click and hold the item you want to move.
- Move the item over the folder and release it.
Tip: Use the left panel to move items into any folder in Google Drive.
Save an item to multiple folders
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Click the item you want to move.
- On your keyboard, press Shift + z.
- Choose the folder you want.
- Click Add here.
Make a Copy of a File
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Right-click a file.
- Click Make a copy .
Note: You can’t copy folders, only files.
Delete a File or Folder
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Right-click the file or folder you want to delete.
- Click Remove.
If you accidentally put an item in the trash, you can restore your item.
Move a File or Folder to TRASH:
To remove a file from your Drive, put it in your trash. The file will stay there until you empty your trash. When you put a file in the trash:
- If you own the file, people you’ve shared it with can make a copy.
- If you don’t own the file, removing the file from your Drive only removes it for you.
Recover a File or Folder from TRASH:
If there’s a file in your trash you want to keep, put it back in "My Drive." If you’re not the owner of the file and want to use it:
- Make a copy of the file.
- Contact the owner to have them restore it.
Change the Color of a Folder
- Go to drive.google.com.
- Right-click the folder you want to edit.
- Hover over Change Color...
- Pick the color you want to make the folder.