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Google Outs Google Drive On Its French Blog: Here Are All The Details

56 points by jeffpalmer 14y ago

cleverjake 14y ago
it really feels like more of a rebranding of google docs, rather than a new service. People have been able to upload arbitrary files into docs for some time now, but I have met only a few who actually knew that. My question is that if this is in fact the case, and it is "the next step in google docs", will they advertise docs as a feature of drive, as two separate products, or is the average user supposed to know that you open up Drive to edit your spreadsheet.
- capo 14y ago
  As I understand it "Drive" will be the new name for the "Document List", the documents themselves (spreadsheets, presentations, etc) will still be referred to as Google Docs.
  - cleverjake 14y ago
    seems to be correct. docs.google.com is redirecting me to drive.google.com, and when an item is clicked on, goes back to docs.google.com
- jrockway 14y ago
  That's exactly what this is. The "document list" can now store arbitrary files instead of just documents. You also get syncing to your computer or mobile device.
  - cleverjake 14y ago
    'The "document list" can now store arbitrary files instead of just documents.' My comment was actually that this functionality has existed for quite some time, unless I misundersood you. I think that all that is new is the syncing and branding
    - jrockway 14y ago
      That could be true. I never used Google Docs before working for Google, and it's been called Drive internally as long as I've been here :)
- saturdaysaint 14y ago
  True, it builds on existing products, but Dropbox-style automatic uploading and syncing among different systems is an ambitious addition that deserves its own brand/launch. The "Docs" brand seems more focused on the suite of web productivity apps.
zby 14y ago
And I thought it would be about robotic cars :)
rkudeshi 14y ago
So the things Google Drive has that Dropbox doesn't: * 2-factor authentication! * Comments on files (unclear if it's only for Google Docs or all files) * OCR - like Evernote, you can search against text in images (e.g. newspaper article) * Image recognition - if you upload a pic of the Eiffel Tower, you can find it with the search term "eiffel tower" * Web-based file viewer - 30 file types including HD video, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc. The OCR and image recognition are going to be killer features for "normal" people. And I imagine it's something Dropbox can't easily duplicate (unlike the other features). Then again, as a more privacy-minded technical person, the image recognition feature scares the beejezus out of me. Tagging faces on Facebook is one thing, but being able to semantically identify all contents of my images is really stepping up the creepiness quotient. Should be interesting to see how Dropbox responds.
- tuananh 14y ago
  OCR is the reason I use Evernote.
- sureshv 14y ago
  Considering how bad the current google docs OCR is I don't think dropbox has anything to worry about. It seems to perform as well as the stock version of tesseract in tests that I've run.
- jrockway 14y ago
  Tagging faces on Facebook is one thing, but being able to semantically identify all contents of my images is really stepping up the creepiness quotient. Why? I find face tagging much creepier than tagging a picture of a cat with "cat". (You can already use Google Goggles to see what Google knows how to recognize.)
iandanforth 14y ago
I'm hoping that $4/m/20GB is wrong. I pay $20/YEAR for 80GB of storage in docs.
- jeffpalmer 14y ago
  I agree. I love their current pricing strategy for extra storage. I'm hoping that those prices are for Apps customers only (possibly as shared storage?) as the doc mentions administrators: "When a user reaches the limit, administrators can purchase the necessary space of 20GB for $ 4 per month to 16TB (Google Docs are not counted in the quota of storage space)."
- mladenkovacevic 14y ago
  time to buy some annual storage and be grandfathered in?
  - mladenkovacevic 14y ago
    So I think I was right. I just bought 80GB a few minutes before the new pricing page went up. When I go back to my Accounts page and click on Storage-More Details I see the new pricing, but under my 80GB at $20/year I see the following: "* Your current plan is no longer offered.Learn more" There is nothing yet under the Learn More link, but I can see that my next charge will occur next year. I hope that means old storage buyers are being grandfathered in. Thinking about it some more, I should've gotten 200GB for $50.
- itg 14y ago
  Which service is that one? I decided to try out Microsoft Skydrive which offers 7Gb free and has 20+7Gb for 10$/year
  - cleverjake 14y ago
    google storage - http://support.google.com/docs/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=39567 http://support.google.com/docs/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answe...
- 14y ago
rheide 14y ago
I think 5gb is fairly limited, and I fail to believe that this is the best Google can do. The way it is now all Dropbox has to do is up their default free space to 10gb and Google Drive loses.
- arkitaip 14y ago
  It will be more than enough for most people who just want to share something easily and quickly.
- ytNumbers 14y ago
  If space is your primary consideration, your other free choices are: Microsoft=25GB, Apple=5GB, and Dropbox=2GB.
  - tedmiston 14y ago
    But... Dropbox has numerous options for expanding this up to 4-8 GB (maybe higher) for free.
ropiku 14y ago
Google also uploaded videos on Youtube about Drive and Go Google: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SjRH3SImlM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SjRH3SImlM Update: Also Google Drive SDK http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ee3R3tfdd4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ee3R3tfdd4
- vibrunazo 14y ago
  And the start page from the video is already up. https://drive.google.com/start?authuser=0#home https://drive.google.com/start?authuser=0#home
aristidb 14y ago
So now I could activate Google Drive in my account, but ... Dropbox has a Linux app, Google Drive has not. I have more than one computer, and one of them runs Linux. I think I'll stick with Dropbox.
- cleverjake 14y ago
  Does anything prevent you from using the web interface of google drive with the drag to upload? Or did you just mean the folder integration part of the services?
  - aristidb 14y ago
    The web interface obviously works, sure. But the "sync app" does not.

56 points by jeffpalmer 14y ago

it really feels like more of a rebranding of google docs, rather than a new service. People have been able to upload arbitrary files into docs for some time now, but I have met only a few who actually knew that. My question is that if this is in fact the case, and it is "the next step in google docs", will they advertise docs as a feature of drive, as two separate products, or is the average user supposed to know that you open up Drive to edit your spreadsheet.

capo 14y ago
As I understand it "Drive" will be the new name for the "Document List", the documents themselves (spreadsheets, presentations, etc) will still be referred to as Google Docs.
- cleverjake 14y ago
  seems to be correct. docs.google.com is redirecting me to drive.google.com, and when an item is clicked on, goes back to docs.google.com
jrockway 14y ago
That's exactly what this is. The "document list" can now store arbitrary files instead of just documents. You also get syncing to your computer or mobile device.
- cleverjake 14y ago
  'The "document list" can now store arbitrary files instead of just documents.' My comment was actually that this functionality has existed for quite some time, unless I misundersood you. I think that all that is new is the syncing and branding
  - jrockway 14y ago
    That could be true. I never used Google Docs before working for Google, and it's been called Drive internally as long as I've been here :)
saturdaysaint 14y ago
True, it builds on existing products, but Dropbox-style automatic uploading and syncing among different systems is an ambitious addition that deserves its own brand/launch. The "Docs" brand seems more focused on the suite of web productivity apps.

zby 14y ago

And I thought it would be about robotic cars :)

rkudeshi 14y ago

So the things Google Drive has that Dropbox doesn't: * 2-factor authentication! * Comments on files (unclear if it's only for Google Docs or all files) * OCR - like Evernote, you can search against text in images (e.g. newspaper article) * Image recognition - if you upload a pic of the Eiffel Tower, you can find it with the search term "eiffel tower" * Web-based file viewer - 30 file types including HD video, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc. The OCR and image recognition are going to be killer features for "normal" people. And I imagine it's something Dropbox can't easily duplicate (unlike the other features). Then again, as a more privacy-minded technical person, the image recognition feature scares the beejezus out of me. Tagging faces on Facebook is one thing, but being able to semantically identify all contents of my images is really stepping up the creepiness quotient. Should be interesting to see how Dropbox responds.

tuananh 14y ago
OCR is the reason I use Evernote.
sureshv 14y ago
Considering how bad the current google docs OCR is I don't think dropbox has anything to worry about. It seems to perform as well as the stock version of tesseract in tests that I've run.
jrockway 14y ago
Tagging faces on Facebook is one thing, but being able to semantically identify all contents of my images is really stepping up the creepiness quotient. Why? I find face tagging much creepier than tagging a picture of a cat with "cat". (You can already use Google Goggles to see what Google knows how to recognize.)

iandanforth 14y ago

I'm hoping that $4/m/20GB is wrong. I pay $20/YEAR for 80GB of storage in docs.

jeffpalmer 14y ago
I agree. I love their current pricing strategy for extra storage. I'm hoping that those prices are for Apps customers only (possibly as shared storage?) as the doc mentions administrators: "When a user reaches the limit, administrators can purchase the necessary space of 20GB for $ 4 per month to 16TB (Google Docs are not counted in the quota of storage space)."
mladenkovacevic 14y ago
time to buy some annual storage and be grandfathered in?
- mladenkovacevic 14y ago
  So I think I was right. I just bought 80GB a few minutes before the new pricing page went up. When I go back to my Accounts page and click on Storage-More Details I see the new pricing, but under my 80GB at $20/year I see the following: "* Your current plan is no longer offered.Learn more" There is nothing yet under the Learn More link, but I can see that my next charge will occur next year. I hope that means old storage buyers are being grandfathered in. Thinking about it some more, I should've gotten 200GB for $50.
itg 14y ago
Which service is that one? I decided to try out Microsoft Skydrive which offers 7Gb free and has 20+7Gb for 10$/year
- cleverjake 14y ago
  google storage - http://support.google.com/docs/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=39567 http://support.google.com/docs/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answe...
14y ago

rheide 14y ago

I think 5gb is fairly limited, and I fail to believe that this is the best Google can do. The way it is now all Dropbox has to do is up their default free space to 10gb and Google Drive loses.

arkitaip 14y ago
It will be more than enough for most people who just want to share something easily and quickly.
ytNumbers 14y ago
If space is your primary consideration, your other free choices are: Microsoft=25GB, Apple=5GB, and Dropbox=2GB.
- tedmiston 14y ago
  But... Dropbox has numerous options for expanding this up to 4-8 GB (maybe higher) for free.

ropiku 14y ago

Google also uploaded videos on Youtube about Drive and Go Google: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SjRH3SImlM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SjRH3SImlM Update: Also Google Drive SDK http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ee3R3tfdd4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ee3R3tfdd4

vibrunazo 14y ago
And the start page from the video is already up. https://drive.google.com/start?authuser=0#home https://drive.google.com/start?authuser=0#home

aristidb 14y ago

So now I could activate Google Drive in my account, but ... Dropbox has a Linux app, Google Drive has not. I have more than one computer, and one of them runs Linux. I think I'll stick with Dropbox.

cleverjake 14y ago
Does anything prevent you from using the web interface of google drive with the drag to upload? Or did you just mean the folder integration part of the services?
- aristidb 14y ago
  The web interface obviously works, sure. But the "sync app" does not.