Thing 13 - Google Docs, Wikis and Dropbox

For years, I have stored some documents with my web-based email provider if I thought I might need quick access to them. The new breed of cloud services is an extension of this, and the sharing options allow obvious advantages. The university my college is part of positively promotes the use of Google Docs/Drive for online storage and collaboration. Within the library we use a shared Google account to share resources such as poster templates since we lost our shared drive. I've also filled in a lot of registration forms/questionnaires which have been powered by a Google form.

I have Dropbox installed on my home and work computers and iPad. I don't use it routinely, but have found it useful for sharing photos between devices, and it does work. I don't like that others have to have an account to share some things though.

Of course the problem with these services is reliance on the Internet, and I can't always guarantee getting a connection when needed. If I go to meetings with my iPad, I'll make sure I've got the documents I need before I go, rather than assuming I can sync/download them when there. With the number of lost memory sticks we have at work - and the upset students who've lost them- I'm all for using online services as an extra backup, but I'd never (yet) rely on such a service constantly.

My only real experience of wikis is Wikipedia and various sites for computer games :-). I think I've spent so much time warning students about the downside of Wikipedia having anyone contribute, that I've lost sight of how they can be useful! Whilst I can't see any obvious reason to use one at work, I might pay a bit more attention to how others use them.