Programming

Introduction to Google Apps Script

Introduction

GAS stands for Google Apps Script, a serverless application development service provided by Google.

Typically, developing an application requires setting up a server and configuring it to run programming languages. However, with GAS, you can skip all of these steps and focus solely on writing code. It's that simple!

Such services fall under the category of FaaS (Function as a Service). Other examples include:

  • AWS Lambda
  • Google Cloud Functions (GCF)
  • Azure Functions
  • IBM Cloud Functions

Features of GAS

GAS is primarily used for integration and automation with other Google services (e.g., Gmail, Google Drive, Google Sheets). Below are the key features and benefits of GAS as I see them:

1.A Suitable Environment for Learning JavaScript

GAS runs on a JavaScript-based platform. For those wanting to learn JavaScript, writing and running code in GAS provides an excellent hands-on opportunity to develop skills in JavaScript.

Additionally, there are abundant documentation and community resources available online, making it easier for beginners to learn.
If you already have some knowledge of JavaScript, you may find GAS relatively easy to pick up.

2.Seamless Integration with Other Applications

GAS allows you to automate or customize Google Apps functionalities. For instance, you can automate email sending, process data in spreadsheets, and more.

Furthermore, GAS can integrate with popular services like OpenAI or Twitter. Most of these services provide APIs based on the REST API standard, making API calls consistent across platforms (details on this are omitted for now).

If you have tasks you want to automate or integrate with these applications, GAS is an excellent choice.

3.Free to Use

This is perhaps the most compelling advantage of GAS. For those who lack financial resources but still want to create applications or automate tasks, GAS is an incredibly helpful service!

Hands-on

Let’s get hands-on and try working with GAS!
Using the URL below, we’ll go all the way to running a GAS program.

Google Apps Script

Once you’ve navigated to the GAS site, click the “Start Scripting” button. (If user authentication is required, be sure to authenticate with your Gmail account!)

On the screen you land on, select "New Project" from the menu.
You’ll then be taken to what looks like a code editor screen. (Sorry for the Japanese text in the image in advance.)

With this, you’re all set up to start application development! (That was quick, wasn’t it? 😄)
Now, let’s dive right in—copy the following code into the myFunction section and run it!

function myFunction() {
  const test = 'Hello World!';
  console.log(test);
}

Once you've pasted the code, press Ctrl + S to save it, and click the "▶︎ Run" button at the top!

You should see "Hello World!" displayed in the execution log section.
Congratulations, you’ve successfully tried out GAS!

If you’re eager to try something that feels more like real app development, check out the article below!

Summary

In this tutorial, we went over the basics of GAS and even gave it a quick try.
There’s still a lot more to share about GAS, so I plan to periodically update this article or provide additional information in separate posts!

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  • Author

kaz

Full-stack Engineer specializing in Backend/Frontend/Cloud Infrastructure | Digital Nomad since June 2023, traveling the world | Sharing programming tips and insights | Posting travel updates on X

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