Google Drive just made a big stride towards becoming the only file storage solution you will ever need. While you used to only be able to open files using Google’s native file types (Docs, Sheets etc.) or connected 3rd party Apps, the recent update allows you to open files using desktop applications.

What this means is that you can open a pdf using Adobe Photoshop, or a video using Quicktime. Before, if you wanted to open Drive files with these desktop applications you would have to download the file first. This update makes it much more convenient to store all file types on the cloud without worrying about what format you are going to open them in.

To use this feature,

1. Download the Drive app to your computer
2. Sync your Drive app with your Google Drive (this should kick off automatically)
3. In Chrome go into your Google Drive and open a file in preview mode by double clicking on it
4. Go to “Open” at the top and select the appropriate application with which to open your file