Collaborative Tools Project

Recently I've been working on trying to create a Booking System using Google Spreadsheets, Apps Script and Google Calendars.  And today, a request for a system stunningly similar came in, except this time, instead of being for booking hot desks, the bookable items are tape measures, cameras, radars, computers and exotic mystery items such as a "FM36 B". Lots of them. The thing that strikes me about the similarity of the needs, is that already with the booking system, the relationship has more of the developer/client than I'd like. You could say I'm failing in managing expectations slightly. I'll get it back on track. Not that there's any problem, but there is this... At what point is something software and no longer just a cool spreadsheet? One of the really great things about spreadsheets is that they're almost agnostic about what you put in them. As soon as you start hanging interfaces off them, then the notion that perhaps you shouldn't b...

A funny thing happened to me on the way to the Collaborative Tools Project this week. Someone had dropped in for a chat and I was enthusing about the creative possibilities offered by both Google App Engine and Google App Script for people "doing it for themselves" and they asked... "But does anyone actually want to DO this?" He had a point. To be honest, I don't know. I can't know, but I'm pretty sure I think I know that they do. And then within the week I came across someone at the University using Android tablets for data entry into spreadsheets, where data get moved between sheets based on a workflow and is all presented using lovely looking visualisations. People not only wanted to be doing this stuff - they were already doing it. Google AppScript So. I said I'd let you know how I was getting on with Google AppScript ( long video here if you want to get started  yourself ). The short answer is quite well. Given that I have a deep se...