Gmail Labs

by | Sep 14, 2016 | Student Blog, Teacher Blog

One of the most beloved features of Gmail is the Labs (beta versions of possible Gmail features). Labs are turned off by default because they are experimental features that may or may not make into future releases of Gmail. Because the lab experiments are, well, experimental, they can act erratically and are sometimes half-baked. Despite that, I have had good luck over the years with several of the labs. Here are a few of the labs that I love.

Mark as Read Button:  Adds a button in the top menu bar that allows you to mark an email as read without having to dig into sub menus. It is a huge time saver.

Canned Response:  I seem to write the same email over and over again to parents. The canned response makes the process a lot less painful. You type an email and save it as a canned response. Next time you need to send out the same email, you just insert the canned response and press send. You can find a how-to on creating canned responses here.

Apps Search:  There are times that I am tired of swapping between Drive and Gmail to find things. Was it emailed to me as an attachment, or shared via Drive? With the Apps Search lab, you can use the Gmail search bar to search your Drive as well. It searches only the titles of items in Drive so it isn’t as powerful as the search feature in Drive, but it has saved me a few headaches.

Preview Pane:  I miss the preview pane in Outlook. In fact, it is the only thing I miss from Outlook. This lab brings that feature to Gmail. You can put your preview pane either below or to the right of the message list.

Undo Send:  There are times that I send an email only to regret pressing send. Undo send gives me an option to unsend an email. The only drawback is that I have to make the decision within 30 seconds because that is all the leeway they give you with this lab.

You can find instructions on how to enable Labs at Google’s help site.  If you would like to know more about Gmail labs you can visit the Google Guru or check out his YouTube channel.

Leave a comment below and let me know what you think and what Labs you love.

Using Filters in Gmail

Using Filters in Gmail

by | Sep 14, 2016 | How To, Student Blog, Teacher Blog

Using Filters in Gmail

Gmail is a powerful email client based in part on its ability to apply an infinite number of filters on incoming and outgoing emails. If you are unfamiliar with the concept of email filters, they are a set of rules you set up that determines what happens to certain emails when they come into your inbox or out of your outbox.

You can create filters in at least three different ways (there may be more, but this is what I have found so far).  The first is the search bar at the top of the Gmail tab in Chrome (please tell me you are not still using IE).

The search bar looks like this. Notice the small down arrow to the left of the magnifying glass


The down arrow to the left of the magnifying glass gives you quick access to creating filters.

Here you can set what emails will be filtered. They can be filtered by incoming/outgoing email address, subject line, keywords, or lack of keywords. You can even filter based off of attachments and email size, or combine multiple parameters. This is useful if you want to filter emails from a certain person on a specific subject.  Once you have put in the parameters select “Create filter with this search” in the lower right corner of the dialogue box. This will take you to a new window.

This window lets you determine what will happen to emails that match the parameters you set up in the previous window.  A quick run down:

  • Skip the Inbox automatically archives the message so it never makes it to your inbox.
  • Mark as read delivers the email to the inbox but as an already read email.
  • Star it flags the email for easier access via the “Starred” tab on the left-hand menu.
  • Apply label will automatically label the email for quicker searching and organization.
  • Forward will auto-forward the email to a specified email address.
  • Delete will delete the email.
  • Never send to Spam because it will white list the email to make sure it doesn’t get delivered to the spam.
  • Send canned response because it will auto-reply to the email with a pre-written response.  (You have to create it).  You can find directions here.
  • Mark as important will mark an email as important.  (Useful if you use the priority inbox).
  • Never mark as important is the inverse of the previous
  • Categorize allows you to sort the emails into predetermined inboxes.  (You must have the inboxes set up before you can categorize emails).

Once you set up your filtering options you can apply the filter to emails currently in your inbox by checking the box at the bottom of the screen. Now that everything is set up as you want, click “Create Filter” and you are done. You can now rest assured that your inbox is working for you instead of against you.

The second way to create filters is through the settings cog on the right side of the screen. Click on the Cog>Settings>Filters.  From there you can create and edit filters to your heart’s content.

 


You can create a new filter by selecting “Create a new filter” at the bottom of the screen

The third is from within an email itself. To the right of the reply button, there is a down arrow. Click on it and then select “filter messages like this”.  Follow the same steps as above.


Bonus Tip:  If you don’t want to give out your email address because of fear of spam, throw in a couple of periods into the first part of the email address. Gmail doesn’t recognize the periods so they still get delivered to you. You can then create a filter to automatically trash any email that comes to that period ridden email address.

Behind the Scenes: Promotions

by | Sep 12, 2016 | Student Blog, Teacher Blog

What is Promotions?

Promotions is just one of the many branches within Royse City High School’s Chrome Squad. The main concept behind Promotions is to spread the word about C4L through different social media websites as well as various posters that are hung up throughout the school campus. These websites include Twitter and Instagram, and the possibility of Snapchat coming soon.

Meeting the Guys Behind Promotions

Believe it or not, the entire branch of Promotions is run primarily by only two C4L members. Bayley Owen and William Sowden, seniors, make this critical operation possible. Bayley is in charge of Twitter while William takes care of Instagram. They both collaborate from time to time with each other’s social media websites. Bayley has been a part of the Chrome Squad ever since it began last year and has been running Promotions since it was established along with the other teams in the middle of last year. When he isn’t posting helpful technology tidbits and information about C4L on the Chrome Squad’s Twitter account, you can find him putting his heart out on the stage, performing in our school’s plays and even in a substantial amount of Dallas Summer Musical plays. William is a new member of the Chrome Squad. When he isn’t spreading the word about C4L and all its benefits, you can find him giving 110% out on the baseball field. Although both leaders of Promotions have other things on their plates, they still give between 60 and 75% of their class time and 20 to 30% of their own time to preparing and building different projects within Promotions.

Impact of Promotions

Promotions is an essential part of making the Chrome Squad efficient and effective. Without Promotions around to inform others about C4L, where would the Chrome Squad be? No one would know what our main goals are, what our message is, nor what we stand for. Promotions is definitely one of the main parts of C4L and serves as the roots from which Chrome Squad grows upon. In order for a company/organization to maintain its stability and to be successful, it must have a strong structure and foundation. In the case of C4L, Promotions plays a monumental role in that base. From electronic announcement systems to printed posters, Promotions spreads the word about the Chrome Squad. From performing on stage to batting on the baseball field, the geniuses behind Promotions are always here for the technology department of Royse City High School, as well as, everyone else who makes up the tight-knit family of the Chrome Squad.

 

Smore and So Much More

by | Sep 10, 2016 | Student Blog, Teacher Blog

Are you tired of the traditional PowerPoint? Do you need a new way to spice up your presentation?

Try these free and easy to use websites!

Smore allows you to make beautiful flyers. The first couple of flyers are free, but if you wish to make more, then you can just edit an older flyer and reuse the same template. There is also educator discount pricing if you wish to have even more flyers. Even though Smore is meant for flyers and poster purposes, you can still use it for organizing information. Smore is unique because you can add videos, locations, audio, google forms, and many other tools.

Emaze is PowerPoint on steroids. While it may not have as many features as PowerPoint, it gives off a fresher, more modern vibe. It takes seconds to create one. You can even upload your boring PowerPoint, and “Emaze it.” Not only can you make presentations, you can also create games, e-cards and mini websites.

Canva is great for a short, simple, sophisticated presentation. Canva is typically a single poster type page, but you may add more pages if you wish. You can also share and send the link of the Canva to others, so you can all have access and collaborate on the poster together. Canva caters to all types of aesthetic. These contemporary templates make for an attractive poster.

Slides is the minimalist version of PowerPoint. Not to be confused with Google Slides, Slides is a modern presentation website that automatically saves all of your work. One of the best aspects of Slides is that it’s simple and easy to use. If you want to quickly set up a basic set of slides, use this!

Powtoon engages your audience with amazing graphics. Instead of the traditional slide by slide, Powtoon is a video tool. It gives your presentation that extra oomph, and creates a “minimalist, animated” feel. Powtoon takes more time and effort to put together than other websites but definitely, captivates the entire class.  

From Smore to Powtoon, there is an abundance of alternatives to PowerPoint. These websites are mostly free, but in order to unlock certain features, it requires a membership fee. You won’t have to worry about not understanding how to use the sites because they are super easy and straightforward. I suggest trying these tools to escape the same old, same old PowerPoint.

About Google Hangouts!

by | Sep 9, 2016 | Student Blog, Teacher Blog

What you need to get started on Hangouts

  • A Google Account
  • Access your computer’s mic and camera
    • Internet Explorer, Firefox & Safari browsers: Download and install the latest version of the Hangouts plugin.
    • You can sign in to Hangouts on more than one device:

What you can do with Hangouts

  • Send Hangouts messages: You can start a Hangout conversation with just one person or have a group chat with several people.
  • Make video calls: Have face-to-face video calls with up to 9 other people. You can invite individuals or circles.
  • Make phone calls: Almost all calls you make to the U.S. and Canada are free, but a few destinations will cost USD 1 cent per minute depending on the specific phone number. Costs may vary depending on the local currency. Calls to destinations outside of the U.S. are at low rates, but calling isn’t available to all locations.
  • Send text messages: You can send text messages using Hangouts with your Android device or your Google Voice phone number.
  • Share photos, locations, and stickers: You can share photos, stickers, and emoji in conversations. On mobile devices, you can also share your location with other people.