Sunday, April 10, 2016

Sorting Text and Tables in Google Docs

Google Docs is loaded with awesome features for creation, collaboration, and communication. However, one feature that is missing is the ability to sort lines of text or information in a table.

In the past the best “solution” we had to this was to copy the text or table from Google Docs, paste it into Google Sheets, use the sorting tools in Sheets to short the information, and then copy and paste it back into Docs.

Although that worked, it was not a very convenient or elegant solution. Well now we have another, better option with the Google Docs add-on called “Docs Tools”. See below for a short tutorial video and detailed directions on how to use this add-on to sort text and tables in Google Docs.

Video Tutorial (6 minutes)



Installation

To sort text and tables in Google Docs, first you need to install the “Docs Tools” add-on.
  • You can do this by clicking “Add-ons”, then “Get Add-ons”, then searching for “Doc Tools”.
  • Alternately you can go directly to the add-on using this link: Google Docs Add-on link 
  • Once you find the add-on, click “+ FREE” to install it.

Sorting Text

To sort a list of text:
  • Highlight all of the text you want to sort.
  • Launch the add-on by clicking “Add-ons”, then “Docs Tools”, then either “Sort the selection ascending” or “Sort the selection descending”.
  • The selected text will now be sorted.

Sorting Tables

To sort the columns of a table:
  • Click anywhere inside the table you want to sort.
  • Launch the add-on by clicking “Add-ons”, then “Docs Tools”, then either “Sort the selection ascending” or “Sort the selection descending”.
  • This will open a pop-up window with your sort options.
  • If you have headers that should not be sorted, click the box for “My table has header rows”.
  • Next select the column you want to use for the sort in the “Sort by” selection.
  • If you have additional columns to sort by (in case of ties) choose those in the “Then by” selections.
  • Finally click the “Sort” button to do the sort.


The Docs Tools add-on is still not as advanced as sorting in Sheets, such as the ability to sort one column ascending, and then the tie-breaker column descending. However, until Google adds sorting as a native feature in Docs, the Docs Tools add-on works as a great option.


Post by Eric Curts. Bring me to your school, organization, or conference with over 50 PD sessions to choose from. Connect with me on Twitter at twitter.com/ericcurts and on Google+ at plus.google.com/+EricCurts1

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