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# Google Gemini: Secret to Unlocking PDF Access
- URL: https://www.jeffsu.org/productivity-ping-140/
- Published: 2024-01-12T01:00:15.000Z
- Updated: 2025-09-05T12:56:53.000Z
- Description: #140
- Author: Jeff
- Tags: #newsletter, Gemini

*(you can* [*filter previous issues*](https://www.jeffsu.org/filter-previous-editions-by-app/) *by application!)*

## Rules are meant to be broken

Just like the free version of ChatGPT, users are not allowed to upload PDFs onto Google Bard.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/85/db858a9d-1c4f-4993-8042-faa87b9bb3c1/content/images/2024/01/image-7.png)

This can be really inconvenient for Google Bard users since asking AI to summarize / analyze / take action on PDF documents can save a LOT of time.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/85/db858a9d-1c4f-4993-8042-faa87b9bb3c1/content/images/2024/01/image-8.png)

Luckily for all of you (you lucky ducks you), I have 2 simple workarounds 😉

*(do not tell Google, this stays between us)*

## Method #1

If the PDF is already being hosted online (e.g. [this BCG report](https://mkt-bcg-com-public-pdfs.s3.amazonaws.com/prod/genai-path-to-b2b-sales-profit.pdf?ref=jeffsu.org)), simply paste the URL within Google Bard:

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/85/db858a9d-1c4f-4993-8042-faa87b9bb3c1/content/images/2024/01/image-9.png)

## Method #2

1. Upload the PDF onto your Google Drive
2. Use the “@Google Drive” command and instruct Bard to pull information from the uploaded PDF file

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/85/db858a9d-1c4f-4993-8042-faa87b9bb3c1/content/images/2024/01/image-10.png)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/db/85/db858a9d-1c4f-4993-8042-faa87b9bb3c1/content/images/2024/01/image-11.png)

## ⌨️ Keyboard shortcut

- Use the “@” command in Google Bard to bring up extensions such as Google Drive, Google Docs, Youtube, and Gmail

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