But today, Google announced the "Convert, Zip and Download" feature in Google Docs to tackle this challenge. The new features make it a simple two step process to pull down any and all the Google documents of your choosing (up to 500 MB), convert them to your preferred file types, and zip them up in a concrete package you can download and save to your desktop.
The new feature is accessible from the Google Docs home page, and all that is required is that you select the files you wish to download, click the "More actions" tab, and select "Export." You'll then be guided through the straightforward process, which will let you convert your files to a number of different formats, including PDF, .xls, and .doc. Once you hit continue, the file zipping process automatically begins.
Though Convert, Zip and Download is a rather unsexy update to Google Docs, it should prove to be an incredibly handy utility and time saver should the need arise to ever export all your data out of Google. We can thank the Google Data Liberation Front for today's important update, and we can expect even more liberation features in Google products in the future.