Why I Made the Change to Google Chrome

More than a few years ago, I stopped using Internet Explorer, and changed to using Mozilla Firefox.

I found it to be faster, more reliable, and all around more responsive. It was a good experience. I was happy, I even had my students using Firefox.

Now, for my personal use, I use Google Chrome. I'll admit, it was a tough change at first, but now that I've been using it for a few months, I'm very happy with how well it integrates into all of Google's services. Something else that I think is great is that when I installed Google Chrome onto my computer at school (my teacher computer), it looked exactly like it does at home, right down to my bookmarks and themes. 

There is a downside here. Google Chrome is a good option for personal use, but not as good for everyday student use, because of how personalized the experience is. Without logging into my Google account, I didn't like Chrome half as much.

SOOOO, I'm going to keep this short and sweet. My personal recommendation is for students to use Mozilla Firefox, but if you like the seamless integration of your personal computing experience everywhere you go (even on your tablet and cell phone), then use Chrome. I use the heck out of Google Drive, Gmail, and of course Blogger, so Chrome has been great in that respect. 

Google Drive: All the Storage You'll Ever Need

Over the course of my teaching career (seven years), I've gone from using blank cd's, jump drives, a laptop, my own email account, Dropbox and other cloud services, to Google Drive. I still use services like Dropbox on my phone to store photos and such, but for my work files, Google Drive is all I need.

From the start, Google Drive gives you 5 gigabytes of storage. Only stored files that are not in Google Doc format count against your 5 gigs. I have tons of files in pdf format, jpegs, docs, etc, and haven't even put a 1% dent in my 5 gigs. I love that I can use my Drive on my phone, I can drop files into it on my computer and they immediately sync, and I can control the sharing and search-ability of individual files.

Most files translate over to the Google Doc format without too much trouble. Occasionally I'll find a file that gets messed up a little in Google Docs, so those files I keep in their original format, and they count against my storage.

If you don't have a Google account, GET ONE! I use Google for my document storage and editing (when I'm away from home or work), I use Google + to store my photos (this doesn't count against my Drive), and Google offers so many services, not to mention how great Gmail is. I highly recommend Google Drive, the 5 GB for free is a great deal, and the deals on upgraded storage are awesome (25 GB for $2.50 a month is awesome).