How to Share Office Files Online With Docs.com
Sign In and Navigate
The first step to using Docs.com is to sign in. You can create an account using an email address or phone number. Alternatively, you can sign in with your Facebook, Microsoft, or applicable work or school account.
Once you have signed in, you will land on your Home page with sections for Journal, Documents, and Collections.
Journal is a spot where you can post your thoughts, ideas, and stories. This is similar to a blog concept. Collections is an area for gathering content that you find on the web as well as uploaded documents. For sharing your office files quickly and easily, the Documents section is where we will head first.
Documents Basics
Documents provides an area where you will upload your files. This is perfect for sharing documents with coworkers or team members. Select the Documents tab and then click the Publish box. Or click the Add New button and pick Document from the drop-down box.
You can drag documents onto the page, enter a URL, or import a file from your computer, OneDrive, OneNote, Office Mix, or Sway. Once you have uploaded your file, you can configure the various properties which include details, visibility, and user activity options.
File Details
For sharing your files, you should fill in the Title, Author, and Description sections. This will help your users identify documents.
Visibility
The Visibility options for most users include Public, which means the file is searchable on the Web, and Limited, which means only those with a direct link can view it. For applicable work and school accounts, an Organization option will also appear.
Here are a few examples of files to share using the visibility options:
- Public — Policy and standards documents, questionnaires, product demos, and instructions.
- Limited — Private files, company documents, group projects, and personal files.
- Organization — Files pertaining to the work or school account.
If you set the Visibility to Public and change it later, there is one important thing to keep in mind. It may take several days for the item to be removed from search engine listings. So depending on your intent to share your documents, be sure to make your choice carefully.
Viewer Activities
This section of the properties lets you decide what is allowed by others for your document. You can check or uncheck the boxes for allowing comments (via Disqus) and downloads as well as requiring a sign-in for downloads.
Save Your Document
The final area includes a Creative Commons attribution, tags, and language selection, which are each optional. When you are finished, be sure to click the Save button.
Share Your Document
Now that your file is all set up, the sharing begins. You can do this in a few different ways.
Once you have saved your document, you will instantly see a sharing link at the top of the refreshed page.
From your Home page, hover your mouse over the document and select Share. A pop-up box will appear providing a direct link along with options to share it via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, or email.
If you need to edit your file, you can obtain a link on that page as well. On your Home page, hover your mouse over the document and select Edit. You’ll spot the link at the top, next to Find your content here.
You can then share your link with coworkers, fellow students, or others to view your file. Depending on your property settings (explained above), users may or may not have to sign in to access the file, download it, or add comments
Collections Basics
As mentioned above, the Collections section allows you to gather and share web content in addition to uploaded documents. This area is ideal for situations when you want to share a group of related items.
Select the Collections tab and then click the Create a collection box. Or, click the Add New button and pick Collection from the drop-down box. To add items to your created Collection, just use the red buttons inside the Collection.
Here are just a few examples of when Collections can come in handy.
For Business
Businesses can use Collections for research and development, marketing, or sales. Since including links and content found on the web is a big part of this feature, it can be quite helpful to keep it all together. For instance, you can upload a product specifications file, a requirements document, and then add links to sites for market research or related data.
For Creatives
For creators such as writers, artists, and authors, Collections provides a terrific way to showcase your work. Writers can easily include samples of articles and a resume along with sites where work has been published.
Artists can take advantage of sharing their presentations or personal stories with Sway, plus include links to galleries displaying their work. Authors can upload excerpts from their novel, a biography file, and then include links to shopping sites to buy their book.
For Students
A group project where research is involved is a great example of when to use Collections. You can upload a file from your instructor, an outline document or project notes, and then include links for resources. This keeps everything related to the project in one spot for your group to access easily.
Share Your Collection
To obtain a sharing link for your collection, make sure that you are on the Collections tab. Then, hover your mouse over the collection and select Share. A pop-up box will appear with a direct link along with additional sharing options.
