Tech Tip Thursday: Shared Drive Theme Templates (FREE To Use!)


Shared Drive Theme Templates


I've always been able to edit the headers and themes for Google Sites, Forms, Keep, Slides, Classroom, and more.  However, I couldn't ever figure out how to correctly change out the folder themes (headers) in a Google Shared Drive, until now.  

Wanting to keep up with the organization of my Google Drive, I wanted to create custom made themes for my Shared Drive Folders.  I was finally able to find the minimum theme size by trying to change one of my themes the other day:



With the exact pixel dimensions, I was able to open a Google Drawing, and change the page size:

Google Drawing > File > Page setup > Switch the units to pixels (1280 x 144px)

After I knew the exact dimensions, I created a "splatter page" to find out exactly where the edges of my themed picture would end up... (knowing that the whole entire 1280 x 144 image wasn't going to show up in my Google Drive Shared Folder theme.)



I downloaded the "rough draft" of my Google Drawing as a PNG over 7 different times to get the placement just right. (Results will vary based on screen resolution... but I was able to make it perfect for my work computer).

To change out the Google Drive Shared Folder Theme:

  • Open up Google Drive
  • Click on Shared Drives (Formally Team Drives)
  • Right-click on a Shared Drive, and click: change theme
    • For this purpose, you will choose: create custom theme
    • NOTE:  Make sure that you have already downloaded and then uploaded your custom image to your Google Drive as a jpeg or png (You will choose the image from within your Google Drive)
  • Select the image from your Google Drive, and when it asks you to crop your image... don't change it, just click select again.  



I downloaded it, uploaded to my Shared Drive Custom Theme, checked it, resized the drawing, and downloaded again.  Repeated this process 7 different times.  (You won't/shouldn't have to do this, since it's pretty much perfectly set now in both my templates)

Now that it was perfect, I knew I wanted to make MANY of these, and I wanted them to be set-up the same.  So, I created a Google Slide Presentation with the same page size (1280 x 144 px).  Duplicated the slide multiple times, and changed each slide to correspond to each of my shared drive folders. 



Above is my final product (Google Drawing).  It shows that the actual area to work in is much smaller than the 1280 x 144 px image of the full page area.  So, when you change out and create your custom Shared Drive Folders using this template... stay in the middle, yellow area with your image and text.  Adjust size, if needed, based of the resolution of your computer and/or monitor.  

Enjoy!!!





Comments

  1. This is a big time saver. Thanks Tom!

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  2. I am so excited to try this! One question, after you place your image in the yellow box how do you convert the file to png or jpg to then be uploaded as a "custom theme". Thanks for the tip and template!

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    1. After adding your own image into the yellow box... Go to "File", "Download", and choose your option of a PNG or JPEG. Hope this helps. :)

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    2. Perfect! Thanks again for such a great tip!

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  3. I can't thank you enough for sharing this! It only took a minute to create a great shared drive image for my staff.

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  4. Hi, this did not work for me at all. When I tried to save it from the custom prompt, it selects the picture but also asks me to select a theme color. The theme color is all that shows up when I save. Any advice?

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  5. Thank You, Thank You! The trial and error was driving me crazy, but now it looks great!

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  6. Is the "theme" the picture that shows when you have all your shared drives showing in your drive? EX: the given themes are pictures of donuts or beaches etc. I did all you directed hoping my picture would be what is seen but it only shows the color of the theme color you are directed to choose at the top.

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  7. Once I select the image it asks me to select a color before I can move on and when I do the background just becomes a solid rectangle of the selected color and I am not able to see my image. Is there a way around this?

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    1. I am having the same issue, the image looks great but I can't get pass the colour background. Any ideas please? Thanks in advance!

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    2. Let me check on this for both of you. I'll get back to you ASAP.

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  8. Thank you for having the sizing requirement listed. I was able to solve the problem I had trying to create a theme immediately. Thanks

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  9. thank you oh so much! I had to play with mine a little in the template but that was me being picky! Thanks for all your hard work!

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  10. This is helpful! However, I still can't get mine to work. It's the correct size and I've tried png and jpg, but both look successful and then appear as broken images. Any ideas?

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  11. thank you so much for the template

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  12. I did this and every now and then the theme that I made will show up. Most days it is just the theme color I picked that shows up. It's like it crops it and just shows part of it. Any idea how to fix it?

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  13. I've noticed it can be VERY finicky based on your screen resolution. I would just keep playing around with it... resizing.... etc until it shows up more consistently.

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  14. I tried the tutorial but face the same issue with the theme color. That is what appear instead of the image

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  15. I followed your directions and used your template, and I have the same problem... it lets me select the image/theme, but then forces you to choose a theme color, which overrides the image and leaves only that solid color. Multiple tries and much time wasted on something that should be simple. Frustrating, but thanks for your assistance. Wish it would work!

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  16. OMG what a HUGE time-saver! So generous of you to share! THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH!

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  17. Same error: it tells me to select a color after I select the image.

    Once the color is selected, it overwrites the image in the drive cover... so the cover doesn't show, just a solid color.

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  18. I'm having the same broken link-background-color-taking over issues...I followed your directions and used your template, and I have the same problem... it lets me select the image/theme, but then forces you to choose a theme color, which overrides the image and leaves only that solid color. Multiple tries and much time wasted on something that should be simple. Frustrating, but thanks for your assistance. Wish it would work!
    **Could it be that I'm using a Mac??**

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  19. Yup. The background color has taken over any and all images I post. :(
    I followed your directions and used your template, and I have the same problem... it lets me select the image/theme, but then forces you to choose a theme color, which overrides the image and leaves only that solid color. Multiple tries and much time wasted on something that should be simple. Frustrating, but thanks for your assistance. Wish it would work!
    **Could it be that I'm on a Mac and the google Machine won't play well with me??**

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  20. I've figured out I cannot see my image on a Mac, but I can on a PC. Hope you're not losing sleep over any of this! :0) Thanks for the original set of directions and the slides tool!

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    1. I have the same issue. Any answers for this ?

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  21. i only expanded the yellow square a little to the right to avoid the solid color being there, and after a coupe of tries it works

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  22. I am experiencing the same issue as everyone else. Uploaded, but theme color takes over in the thumbnail view for shared drives. In the list view it just shows the broken image symbol....

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  23. I did it on a macbook air. I made my own google drawing with his instructions, downloaded it as a png, then uploaded it in to my drive. Then when it had me choose the color, I noticed it wasn't centered and I had to go back to my drawing and move it a little to the left (then I had to move it to the right a little because I moved it too far). I didn't use any of the templates from google slides. I figure I could make a copy of the google drawing and change the image out as I need to so I can make more custom themes. I hope this helps mac users. :)

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  24. Oh my gosh... thank you so much. I was trying every way imaginable to figure this out but these isntructions were perfect.

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  25. Thank you so much for this template. Now I can organise my shared drive and find things easily. It has been so annoying that my drive has been full of the same custom pictures so I can't quickly distinguish which drive is which. This solves it for my shared drives. Now to create images and send them to the owners of the other drives to upload.

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  26. Really Thanks! I discovered a new multiverse!

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  27. Oh bless you for making this! I tried to figure it out at least 10+ tries and was about to give up when I found this article.

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  28. This still isn't working for me. I used the google slides and my picture fits in the yellow box. But when I save the image and upload it, it does not work. only half the image is showing. Any tips?

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  29. Thanks for this. It's absolutely silly to me that they require such absurd dimensions for a ratio that as far as I can tell is never used.

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