Google rules!

Here's a dodgy business plan: Give away your best services for free.

But the folks at Google (stock value $714 US) seem to be making a go of it.

Makes no difference to me, as long as they keep the free, online applications coming.

Of the long list of apps Google provides, the ones I use daily are Documents and Spreadsheets, Blogger and Calendar. And don't forget the granddaddy - Google Search.

All you need to use these apps is a Google account (free) and internet access.



Because these programs are online, you can access them from any computer with internet access. The files live on Google's server, which is probably about as safe as it gets. (If Google's servers crash, it's one of the signs of the Apocalypse.) Data security/confidentiality is another matter. I wouldn't be comfortable storing sensitive information or patient data online.

Documents and Spreadsheets

Documents is basic word-processor. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of Word, but you can export the text to Word if you need to do some fancy formatting. You can share documents online and invite collaborators to edit the document.

I usually start writing drafts on Google Docs so I can keep working on the document whether I'm at home, at the office or the hospital. I'll export to Word later, if I need some more advanced features.

And it's free.

Google Spreadsheets is handy for data entry. I'm keeping track of some data on referrals from family physicians as part of our Advanced Access project. I enter the data at the office, then access it at home if I want to add it to a blog post.

As with Documents, you can share information and collaborate online. Here's a demo. For an explanation of the data, see this Advanced Access post.

Again with the freeness.

Blogger

You're looking at it.

I chose to use Blogger for Plain Brown Wrapper because it was easy to get started and simple to make posts. And free. I don't want to mess around with HTML or setting up my own website, so Blogger fits the bill. It's not quite as flexible as some blog engines, but it's great for a beginner like me.

Calendar

We've been using Google Calendar at home for the last 2 months, since my wife got a laptop. It's terrific for keeping track of our family's busy and ever-changing schedule. We have 4 children and my wife and I both work.

Our old paper calendar was a mess of appointments, soccer games, school concerts, garbage pickup days, etc. Calendar keeps everything neat and lets me review the evening's schedule from the office during the day. There are multiple views (day, week month, 4 day agenda) and every person's activities are color-coded for easy reading. You can collapse everyone's activities onto one calendar, or just pick one person's schedule to view.

In the new year, I hope to implement this at our office to track physician's holidays. Our group has 9 urologists and we currently list our holidays on a paper calendar. If I want to add some holidays, I need to find that calendar to make sure there are not too many doctors away during the week I want off. The calendar usually lives in one doctor's office, but it might be with my office manager, our on-call scheduler, or with another doctor. It can be a nuisance to track it down.

With Google Calendar, everyone can access the holiday schedule simultaneously, from home, office or hospital.

And... Free!

Google Search

Seeing as Google has become synonymous with online searching, need I say more?