Google Docs Collaboration

2. Create OAuth2 Credentials:

# In Google Cloud Console:
# APIs & Services > Credentials > Create Credentials > OAuth client ID
# Application type: Desktop app
# Download credentials as credentials.json

3. Install Dependencies:

pip install google-auth google-auth-oauthlib google-auth-httplib2 google-api-python-client --break-system-packages

4. Initial Authentication:

python scripts/authenticate.py
# Opens browser for Google sign-in
# Saves token.json for future use

See reference/setup-guide.md for detailed setup.

Google Docs Operations

Create Documents

Create blank Doc:

# New document
python scripts/create_doc.py --title "Project Proposal"

# With initial content
python scripts/create_doc.py \
  --title "Meeting Notes" \
  --content-file template.txt

Create from template:

# Copy template and customize
python scripts/create_from_template.py \
  --template-id TEMPLATE_DOC_ID \
  --title "Q4 Report" \
  --replacements "{{date}}:2025-01-20,{{author}}:John Smith"

Read Documents

Get document content:

# Read as text
python scripts/read_doc.py --doc-id DOC_ID

# Get structured content
python scripts/get_doc_structure.py --doc-id DOC_ID --output doc.json

# Export as different format
python scripts/export_doc.py --doc-id DOC_ID --format pdf --output report.pdf
python scripts/export_doc.py --doc-id DOC_ID --format docx --output report.docx

Extract specific elements:

# Get headings only
python scripts/extract_headings.py --doc-id DOC_ID

# Get tables
python scripts/extract_tables.py --doc-id DOC_ID

# Get images
python scripts/extract_images.py --doc-id DOC_ID --output ./images/

Edit Documents

Append content:

# Add text to end
python scripts/append_doc.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --text "New paragraph content"

# Add formatted content
python scripts/append_doc.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --content-file content.json

Insert content:

# Insert at specific position
python scripts/insert_text.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --index 100 \
  --text "Inserted text"

# Insert before/after heading
python scripts/insert_after_heading.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --heading "Introduction" \
  --text "New content"

Replace content:

# Find and replace
python scripts/replace_text.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --find "old text" \
  --replace "new text"

# Replace with regex
python scripts/replace_text.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --pattern "\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}" \
  --replace "2025-01-20"

Delete content:

# Delete range
python scripts/delete_range.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --start-index 100 \
  --end-index 200

Format Documents

Apply text formatting:

# Bold text
python scripts/format_text.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --range 10:50 \
  --bold

# Multiple formats
python scripts/format_text.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --range 10:50 \
  --bold --italic --underline \
  --font-size 14 \
  --font-family "Arial"

Apply paragraph formatting:

# Set heading style
python scripts/set_paragraph_style.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --range 0:20 \
  --style "HEADING_1"

# Adjust alignment and spacing
python scripts/format_paragraph.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --range 50:100 \
  --alignment "CENTER" \
  --line-spacing 1.5

Insert elements:

# Insert image
python scripts/insert_image.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --index 100 \
  --image-url "https://example.com/image.jpg"

# Insert table
python scripts/insert_table.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --index 100 \
  --rows 3 \
  --columns 4

# Insert page break
python scripts/insert_page_break.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --index 500

Google Sheets Operations

Create Sheets

Create blank Sheet:

# New spreadsheet
python scripts/create_sheet.py --title "Budget 2025"

# With initial data
python scripts/create_sheet.py \
  --title "Sales Data" \
  --data data.csv

Create with structure:

# Multiple sheets with headers
python scripts/create_sheet.py \
  --title "Project Tracker" \
  --sheets "Tasks,Timeline,Budget" \
  --headers "Task,Owner,Status,Due Date"

Read Sheets

Get data:

# Read range
python scripts/read_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "Sheet1!A1:D10"

# Read entire sheet
python scripts/read_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --sheet "Sheet1"

# Export as CSV
python scripts/export_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --format csv \
  --output data.csv

Get sheet properties:

# Get sheet metadata
python scripts/get_sheet_info.py --sheet-id SHEET_ID

# List all sheets
python scripts/list_sheets.py --sheet-id SHEET_ID

Edit Sheets

Update cells:

# Update single cell
python scripts/update_cell.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --cell "A1" \
  --value "New Value"

# Update range
python scripts/update_range.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "A1:B10" \
  --values data.csv

# Append rows
python scripts/append_rows.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --sheet "Sheet1" \
  --values new_data.csv

Formulas:

# Add formula
python scripts/set_formula.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --cell "D2" \
  --formula "=SUM(A2:C2)"

# Copy formula down column
python scripts/fill_formula.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "D2:D100" \
  --formula "=SUM(A2:C2)"

Formatting:

# Format cells
python scripts/format_cells.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "A1:D1" \
  --bold \
  --background-color "blue" \
  --text-color "white"

# Number format
python scripts/set_number_format.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "B2:B100" \
  --format "CURRENCY"

Sheet structure:

# Add sheet
python scripts/add_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --title "New Sheet"

# Delete sheet
python scripts/delete_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --sheet-name "Old Sheet"

# Rename sheet
python scripts/rename_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --old-name "Sheet1" \
  --new-name "Data"

Sort and filter:

# Sort range
python scripts/sort_range.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "A1:D100" \
  --sort-by-column 1 \
  --ascending

# Create filter
python scripts/create_filter.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --range "A1:D100"

Google Slides Operations

Create Presentations

Create blank presentation:

# New presentation
python scripts/create_slides.py --title "Q4 Review"

# From template
python scripts/create_from_template.py \
  --template-id TEMPLATE_ID \
  --title "Sales Presentation"

Read Presentations

Get presentation content:

# Read all slides
python scripts/read_slides.py --presentation-id PRES_ID

# Get specific slide
python scripts/get_slide.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --slide-index 0

# Export as PDF
python scripts/export_slides.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --format pdf \
  --output presentation.pdf

Edit Presentations

Add slides:

# Add blank slide
python scripts/add_slide.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --layout "TITLE_AND_BODY" \
  --index 1

# Add slide with content
python scripts/add_slide.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --layout "TITLE_AND_BODY" \
  --title "Key Points" \
  --body "Point 1\nPoint 2\nPoint 3"

Update slides:

# Update text
python scripts/update_slide_text.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --slide-index 0 \
  --find "{{title}}" \
  --replace "Q4 Results"

# Replace image
python scripts/replace_image.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --slide-index 1 \
  --image-url "https://example.com/chart.png"

Delete slides:

# Delete slide
python scripts/delete_slide.py \
  --presentation-id PRES_ID \
  --slide-index 2

Batch Operations

Batch Requests

Multiple operations in one API call:

# Example: Create doc with multiple sections
requests = [
    {'insertText': {'location': {'index': 1}, 'text': 'Title\n'}},
    {'updateParagraphStyle': {'range': {'startIndex': 1, 'endIndex': 6}, 
     'paragraphStyle': {'namedStyleType': 'HEADING_1'}}},
    {'insertText': {'location': {'index': 7}, 'text': 'Content here\n'}}
]

python scripts/batch_update_doc.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --requests requests.json

Common Workflows

Workflow 1: Report Generation

Scenario: Generate monthly report from data

# 1. Create doc from template
python scripts/create_from_template.py \
  --template-id TEMPLATE_ID \
  --title "Monthly Report - Jan 2025"

# 2. Fetch data from Sheet
python scripts/read_sheet.py \
  --sheet-id DATA_SHEET_ID \
  --range "Summary!A1:B10" \
  --output data.json

# 3. Insert data into doc
python scripts/populate_doc.py \
  --doc-id NEW_DOC_ID \
  --data data.json \
  --template-mapping mappings.json

# 4. Export as PDF
python scripts/export_doc.py \
  --doc-id NEW_DOC_ID \
  --format pdf \
  --output "Report-Jan-2025.pdf"

Workflow 2: Data Collection to Sheets

Scenario: Append form responses to Sheet

# Append new row with timestamp
python scripts/append_with_timestamp.py \
  --sheet-id SHEET_ID \
  --values "name,email,response" \
  --add-timestamp

Workflow 3: Presentation Automation

Scenario: Generate presentation from data

# Create presentation with data-driven slides
python scripts/generate_presentation.py \
  --template-id TEMPLATE_ID \
  --data-source SHEET_ID \
  --output-title "Weekly Dashboard"

Workflow 4: Document Translation

Scenario: Create multi-language versions

# Extract text and translate
python scripts/translate_doc.py \
  --source-doc-id DOC_ID \
  --target-languages "es,fr,de" \
  --create-copies

Workflow 5: Collaborative Editing

Scenario: Track and manage document changes

# Get revision history
python scripts/get_revisions.py --doc-id DOC_ID

# Accept/reject suggestions
python scripts/manage_suggestions.py \
  --doc-id DOC_ID \
  --suggestion-id SUGG_ID \
  --action accept

Document Structure

Google Docs Structure

{
  "title": "Document Title",
  "body": {
    "content": [
      {
        "paragraph": {
          "elements": [
            {
              "startIndex": 1,
              "endIndex": 10,
              "textRun": {
                "content": "Text here",
                "textStyle": {
                  "bold": true,
                  "fontSize": {"magnitude": 12, "unit": "PT"}
                }
              }
            }
          ],
          "paragraphStyle": {
            "namedStyleType": "HEADING_1"
          }
        }
      }
    ]
  }
}

Google Sheets Structure

{
  "properties": {
    "title": "Spreadsheet Title"
  },
  "sheets": [
    {
      "properties": {
        "title": "Sheet1",
        "sheetId": 0
      },
      "data": [
        {
          "rowData": [
            {
              "values": [
                {"userEnteredValue": {"stringValue": "Cell A1"}}
              ]
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

API Rate Limits

Docs API:

• Read requests: 300/min per user
• Write requests: 60/min per user

Sheets API:

• Read requests: 500/min per project
• Write requests: 100/min per user

Slides API:

• Requests: 300/min per user

Best practices:

• Batch operations when possible
• Use exponential backoff
• Cache document structure
• Minimize read requests

OAuth Scopes

Docs Scopes

'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents'  # Read/write
'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.readonly'  # Read-only

Sheets Scopes

'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/spreadsheets'  # Read/write
'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/spreadsheets.readonly'  # Read-only

Slides Scopes

'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/presentations'  # Read/write
'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/presentations.readonly'  # Read-only

Scripts Reference

Docs:

• create_doc.py - Create document
• read_doc.py - Read content
• append_doc.py - Append text
• insert_text.py - Insert at position
• replace_text.py - Find and replace
• format_text.py - Apply formatting
• export_doc.py - Export to format

Sheets:

• create_sheet.py - Create spreadsheet
• read_sheet.py - Read data
• update_cell.py - Update cell
• update_range.py - Update range
• append_rows.py - Append data
• set_formula.py - Add formula
• format_cells.py - Format cells
• sort_range.py - Sort data

Slides:

• create_slides.py - Create presentation
• read_slides.py - Read slides
• add_slide.py - Add new slide
• update_slide_text.py - Update text
• replace_image.py - Replace image
• export_slides.py - Export format

Common:

• authenticate.py - OAuth setup
• batch_update.py - Batch operations
• create_from_template.py - Template operations

Best Practices

1. Use batch requests: Multiple operations in single API call
2. Cache document structure: Avoid repeated reads
3. Validate indices: Check ranges before operations
4. Handle concurrent edits: Implement conflict resolution
5. Use named ranges: (Sheets) Reference data by name
6. Template everything: Reusable document structures
7. Export regularly: Backup as different formats
8. Monitor quotas: Stay within rate limits

Integration Examples

See examples/ for complete workflows:

• examples/report-automation.md - Automated report generation
• examples/data-pipeline.md - Data collection and analysis
• examples/presentation-builder.md - Dynamic presentations
• examples/collaboration-workflow.md - Team workflows

Troubleshooting

"Invalid index"

• Verify index is within document bounds
• Remember indices are 1-based for content

"Permission denied"

• Check document sharing settings
• Verify OAuth scopes

"Rate limit exceeded"

• Implement exponential backoff
• Use batch operations
• Reduce request frequency

"Invalid range"

• Check A1 notation syntax
• Verify sheet name
• Ensure range exists

Reference Documentation

• reference/setup-guide.md - Complete setup
• reference/docs-api-reference.md - Docs API
• reference/sheets-api-reference.md - Sheets API
• reference/slides-api-reference.md - Slides API
• reference/formatting-guide.md - Formatting options