Spreadsheets aren't just for accountants and business folk, they're actually quite useful for everyone, and with the free, web-based Google Docs spreadsheet tool, they're easy to create too. In this short video, tech expert Dave Taylor will show you some of the basics of adding columns and rows, rearranging content and customizing the appearance of your spreadsheet, all without downloading a single file. It's easy!

Keywords: spreadsheets, microsoft excel, apple numbers, google docs, google spreadsheets

My bridge buddies and I constantly argue over whose turn it is to bring beer and snacks, so I want to create a simple spreadsheet that people can use to sign up for stuff, but I don't really want to have us email it around because we'll lose data. I'm a big fan of Google Docs so I'm thinking that a shared spreadsheet would be the way to go, but I don't want to have a password required. Just a secret URL that they can use instead: if you know the link, you can edit the spreadsheet. Doable?

How do I make a copy of a form or a document from Gmail email and then complete the form using the computer? I have tried and have achieved the level of "No Luck". So I wind up printing the form and completing the form manually. Then I scan it and send it to whomever. There has to be an easier way. I thought maybe using HTML might be the answer, but I can't seem to find out how to use it instead of the standard language of Gmail.

I've become a fan of Web-based office tools and am just about ready to jettison the old battleship of Microsoft Office in favor of Google Docs. Since I have been reading about how the next version of Office includes online document sharing, I am curious to try this feature with Google Docs - in particular a project spreadsheet with my colleagues - and am wondering if you can give me some tips on how to share my Google Docs spreadsheet easily?

Ever get a .doc (Microsoft Word) file as an email attachment on your Mac, only to find that you can't seem to open it or do anything to view the contents of the file?

My colleagues at the university send me PowerPoint presentations all the time, these pesky ".ppt" files, but since I don't have PowerPoint on my computer, I can never open them. Surely there's some sort of solution that doesn't involve me paying hundreds of dollars?