Over at LifeHacker there is a short article up that is an amazing tip for those of you that have a Gmail account.

You can use Gmail as a file viewer. At a friends place that does not have the ability to open the file you brought? E-mail it to yourself, and click the “view as html” link.

Next time you find yourself in an Internet café or hotel lobby that does not let you install programs, remember that GMail will let you preview all sorts of files that may otherwise be inaccessible to you on such a computer, like bus and train schedules only available as a PDF.

If your computer or ‘net kiosk doesn’t have a PDF reader installed, just email yourself a copy of the file and view it using GMail. This should save you some headaches and let you be on your way to your next destination.

I have done this myself and I have found it works really well.

Also, if you still don’t have a Gmail account, leave a comment with your e-mail, and I will send you an invite.

Tags: tip, travel tip, gmail, file viewer