Sharing so it can be read but not changed
Send a document that others can read without them altering it.
When you share a document, you are deciding two things. Who can reach it, and what they may do once they are there.
Who can reach it means specific people you name, or anyone holding the link. What they may do means view, comment, or edit.
The common mistake is granting edit access because it was the setting already sitting there. Then a relative types over a paragraph and you cannot tell when.
For anything final, choose Viewer. People can read it and print it. They cannot change the words in your copy.
Sending a PDF attachment does something similar. It is far more trouble to change, though it is not truly locked.
Key points
- Sharing asks who, and asks what they may do.
- Viewer reads, Commenter suggests, Editor rewrites.
- Never leave the default sitting there.
- A PDF attachment is harder to alter.
- Nothing shared is ever fully locked.
What to remember
- The access level is a separate choice from the link itself. Set it every time.
- The bigger the group, the more reason to send Viewer access.
- Comments give you help without giving up control of the document.
Try this
Open a document you have already shared, find the sharing settings, and read what access the people on the list currently have. Lower anything that says editor down to viewer where it does not need to be.
Practice: Sharing so it can be read but not changed. Your first lesson is free, with no account or card; the rest are part of a Lantern plan. Interactive lessons require JavaScript.