We all know about Google Documents (in short Google Docs) which enables you to create, edit, convert and store office documents online through your Google Account. All you need is a web browser and an internet connection and you are ready to use Google Docs. But if you do not like to access Google Docs using a web browser, then you can try gExplore. It is a Windows application using which you can access and manage your Google Docs account.
gExplore provides an easy to use interface to access and manage your Google Docs from your Windows desktop. With gExplore you can upload and download files, organize with folders and labels, encrypt files prior to uploading, and more. However, it does not allow you to create or edit documents. For that, you have to open Google Docs in a web browser as usual.
Following are some of the main features of gExplore :
- Upload and download files with Google Docs.
- Encrypt files before uploading to Google Docs.
- Create, rename, delete, download, and organize collections.
- Share files and collections with other users.
- Store notes about files in the cloud.
- Run permission audits on collections to see full sharing details.
- Bring the power of Google Docs to your desktop PC.
You can download gExplore from the Mountain Fog website. The application has been designed using the Microsoft .NET 4.0 framework, so you need to install .NET 4.0 Redistributable on your system before you can use gExplore. After installing gExplore, you can start it from the Desktop shortcut. You have to enter your Google account credentials and then gExplore would open all the contents of your Google Docs. If you choose gExplore to remember the password, then it is stored using the AES 256 bit encryption.
You can quickly search documents by title and contents, export documents to different formats, and store document metadata to get even more out of Google Docs. gExplore also has a unique Cloud File Notes feature which lets you store notes about your files in the cloud. The Permissions Audit tool generates a report showing how all files in a collection are shared. The freeware edition of gExplore does not include advanced features such as file sharing support and the permission audit tool.
So if you want a free tool to access and manage Google Docs from your Windows Desktop, then you might want to try gExplore. You can download gExplore from its website at http://www.mtnfog.com/gexplore/.