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Google Docs gets an API for task automation

techcrunch.com

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Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#151

Post by therealx »

treis wrote: post #93
northwest65 wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I've always wondered why Google is so bad at keeping various services going I'm starting to believe that it might be simply because low quality software is hard to maintain. They have some very complex software, but nothing of great quality. They might hire a lot of smart people, but not very many that are actually good at developing quality software. It appears that being smart doesn't make you diligent in your wor…

To add to this, they can't even properly display screen saver photos on Chromecast from Google photos. My 4:3 photos get the top and bottom cut off instead of being letterboxed.

You act like anyone at Google has any 4:3 photos.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#152

Post by coldtea »

andybak wrote: post #136
coldtea wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They don't need to get permission to bring in a new logo - it's part of Office, they can just do it. And no one has to get dragged into it kicking and screaming - you want to work off of an Excel file? Fine! It's still there! Plus it wont be randomly cancelled when Google decides they got bored with it after several years of neglecting it first.

This is a cliche that gets wheeled out regularly but without much critical thought. Google cancels stuff. A lot? Maybe but they have a lot of products. But it's not without logic and it's much less likely to effect paid products and core services. How many parts of Docs/Drive have been cancelled? How many GCP components? Next time someone is about to post another "Google cancels everything!" comment I hope they might…

>This is a cliche that gets wheeled out regularly but without much critical thought. Google cancels stuff. A lot? Maybe but they have a lot of products.

As a consumer of several of those products, I could not give less ducks what their problem is. That's an excuse for a Google PM to say to themselves.

Google's cancelling of products hurts me, and presumably others, and I wont trust it with business critical tasks when there's Amazon and Microsoft that have a much better developer record.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#153

Post by jayd16 »

irrational wrote: post #60
coldtea wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They don't need to get permission to bring in a new logo - it's part of Office, they can just do it. And no one has to get dragged into it kicking and screaming - you want to work off of an Excel file? Fine! It's still there! Plus it wont be randomly cancelled when Google decides they got bored with it after several years of neglecting it first.

>they got bored with it I've always wondered why Google is so bad at keeping various services going. Your comment caused me to reflect that Google hires a lot of smart people. Smart people tend to get bored with working on the same thing and want to work on new shiny things. Could it be that the smart people at Google do a bang up job of creating new services, but then get bored and move on to something new, leaving…

If the problem is really that Google doesn't hire any phone polishers and is hyper focused on new products, does it make sense for Google to spin off projects into somewhat independent subsidiaries? I have no idea if this is feasible within Google but it seems like breaking out some of Google's products into units with relaxed and/or focused hiring policies might help project cohesion. Seems like such a system could let Google keep its core campus type culture and also allow for better long haul support of certain projects.

Then again, if its just a matter of cutting any project that won't make billions, the point is moot.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#154

Post by edelans »

lbatx wrote: post #128
jac_no_k wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

/me is one of the minions from team "Eye of Sauron". However I'm not stuck in this tower. I'm torn between two worlds. One side applauds the grass roots based solutions and the JFDI attitude. The other side is concerned that these solutions becomes widely used, de facto production, and problems upstream ends up breaking the output. On error, hopefully fails loudly but subtle problems could creep in. If the reports ar…

Until IT departments get infinite resources (that is, never) there will always be a need for these JFDI solutions. Some group will always go starved for attention and have to cobble together their own solutions. IT backlogs are always longer than the resources to do the work.

JFDI = Just Fucking do It

(in case other ppl wonder what it means... =) )

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#155

Post by afandian »

koheripbal wrote: post #107
afandian wrote: post #102

It terrifies me how entrenched the Google suite is becoming, and more 'open' APIs will surely further that position. It's the default for most community / cross org collaboration and note-taking in my line of work. A huge amount of stuff gets done in Google docs. And then Google ban your account for some random reason and you're suddenly barred from participating, your voice can no longer be heard, and who knows what…

As the CTO for a company that uses GSUITE fairly heavily, the main reason I refrain from adopting Google tech isn't so much the risk of being banned, it is the likelihood that Google will simply abandon core integration points, and will force us to re-build whatever we've implemented in Google.

That too. But there's a difference between slow deprecation and being instantaneously cut off.

Every time there's a sob story that "Google killed my business by banning my Android app" there's a strong "your fault for relying on Google". But it seems like a blind spot when it comes to e.g. email and collaboration tools. Like Google's too big to fail.

While failure at a grand scale is probably unlikely at this point, I can totally see localised failure, such as a missed credit card payment or suspicious activity on an associated account causing absolute mayhem for an organisation.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#156

Post by lstamour »

Godel_unicode wrote: post #134
treis wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To add to this, they can't even properly display screen saver photos on Chromecast from Google photos. My 4:3 photos get the top and bottom cut off instead of being letterboxed.

Who's to say that your idea is proper? Letterboxing causes burn-in on OLEDs, not exactly ideal for a screen saver.

(a) watching movies letterboxed has yet to cause burn in on my OLED and (b) you could make the backdrop a frosted glass version of the same photo...

Not to say that every point is spot-on, but it’s true that Google in general makes their software and UIs complicated enough that outside of perhaps search or betas, they don’t update or change them all that frequently, maybe every two years at best. Apple or Microsoft could by now show them a thing or two on how to iterate user interfaces annually to evolve UI instead of making drastic changes folks might not like or sticking with the status quo forever with rollouts via obscure settings panels.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#157

Post by oblio »

jacquesm wrote: post #73
avip wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One class, or volcano, of bugs is sacredly kept only for the poor souls whos ancestors believed writing from right to left was the greatest idea ever (possibly after Monotheism). Try to write in multiple columns format in an RTL lang, then come back speaking of bugs. Then try a mixed RTL/LTR in a bulletin list. One would have thought bidi would be a solved issue in 2019, yet it consistently breaks every text editor e…

That one should be #1 on that list of 'assumptions programmers make', with #2 being that a byte is 8 bits.

For all intents and purposes, a byte should be 8 bits. Standardization is good. All those ancient systems should just die, at this point.

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#158

Post by arsalanb »

This is interesting and kind of weird at the same time. I think Google has missed the point completely with this. While it is true that the future of documents is API driven and task automation will meet document editors, this is simply not the way forward.

It's like Henry Ford giving people who are looking for faster and more economical transportation an assembly line instead of a car. Here is why:

- Task automation, by definition is supposed to save time and money. By building a developer API, you still need developers (whose time costs more money!) to build and maintain your automations.

- The underlying document model itself cannot be accessed. So what they've made is some kind of HandleBarJS way of creating documents and filling them in.

I'm working on something in a similar space (https://afterclass.co) and we've had to build our own document model and automation handler to work around these two problems. Would be interesting to see how this pans out :)

Re: Google Docs gets an API for task automation

#160

Post by virtualized »

mav3rick wrote: post #139
northwest65 wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I've always wondered why Google is so bad at keeping various services going I'm starting to believe that it might be simply because low quality software is hard to maintain. They have some very complex software, but nothing of great quality. They might hire a lot of smart people, but not very many that are actually good at developing quality software. It appears that being smart doesn't make you diligent in your wor…

Lack of care ? I don't think you understand what it takes to keep Search and Maps and YouTube working seamlessly. Many big systems that companies use were invented at Google. Sure you can find UI bugs or issues butt conveniently ignore that Gmail changed the game with it's 1GB accounts in the era of MBs. Or the uptime of critical services. You have no idea how important design and code reviews are inside.

You just said "They are huge, but they are actually not very good" in a lot more words.
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