Arghhh....Piratepad vs. Google Docs
To preface this post, I will admit prior to testing out piratepad I've been a huge fan of Google Docs and always use it when working on group projects. However, I tried to go into comparing the two without bias.
Piratepad
Piratepad is a free online writing tool that allows you to write collaboratively in real time. No account is necessary to use it and each edit a user makes is shown in a color associated with their name. To work with others, all you have to do is simply click on "invite other users" and they'll be sent the url.
PROS:
- it's free
- multiple users can edit in real time
- you can import/export your work
- you can turn your work into a read-only version
- you can save your work and come back to it later
- you can download you work as HTML, plain text, Word Doc, or PDF
- users can chat on a side bar
CONS:
- the color from all of the users could potentially be very distracting
- if you're not constantly saving your work and someone deletes something without prior approval, it's lost
- if you lose your Internet connection, you lose access to the program
Google Docs
Like Piratepad, Google Docs is a free online collaborative writing tool. Basically it's like microsoft office suite and it enables you to create and share your work online in real time.
PROS:
- free to use
- it's format is comparable to Microsoft Word
- Google offers a Drive app for Chrome and a Drive desktop program, which provides offline access to all Drive files (including files in Docs)
- all files you edit in Google Docs automatically save to Google Drive every time you make a change
- documents can be shared, opened, and edited by multiple users at the same time.
CONS:
- there are potential security risks with using Google Docs since your work is stored on the Google server
- Google Docs requires an initial sign up as well as a sign in process that must be done every time you want to use the service
Other online collaborative writing tools:
Piratepad is really useful when you want to do some quick collaborative work without sorting through what everyone's google username is. And I used it to co-author with someone who fears the google from an IP perspective.
ReplyDeleteI've seen p-pad used very effectively during a conference call to get people to brainstorm together -- was nice to see clearly where/from whom the different ideas came.