Planet mezZ

Gmail is very cool in its default state. But so many people fail to explore some of the cool things. Two of which are theme and labs.

With themes, you can change the layout and design to anything from crazy to minimalist. Just log into Gmail and go to settings, then themes. Poke around – their are some neat designs there.

I like the minimalist theme, but some people like the bubble gummy wild colors.

Themes changes the looks of things, and labs changes the functionality – just look for the laboratory beaker icon on the top right of your Gmail main page.

Click on the beaker and you will see what’s available. This is where Google tests  Gmail features before they make them permanent.

These are my favorites, but check them yourself. Everyone has different needs and their are a lot more than what I have listed below.

If you use the undo send, you can set the delay time – I set mine for 30 seconds because I see mistakes after I hit my send key too often.

Title tweaks is useful because I always have multiple tabs open and I can see how many unread mails I have in the gmail tab.

 
Superstars is my favorite of all. I assign an icon to prioritize emails. Examples, yellow exclamation points for things I have to do as soon as possible, blue info for shipping information (waiting for a package), yellow stars for email I will for active projects, yellow checkmarks are things I need to follow up in a few days, etc.

If you use Chrome as a browser, Rich Levin has a nice extension for you that allows sorting based upon what Superstar is assigned to an email.

If you use Superstars you can choose your icons under settings-> general tabs

Send and archive is useful, but I wish they would have a send and delete button.

Now that we can click and drag images into the gmail composition box, this may not be as useful anymore. I still use it myself very often.

If you use Google Voice, then this feature is a must have for sure.

One thing Gmail does best is filters out spam and phishing emails. Sometimes a phishing email slips into the inbox.  If you see an email from ebay or paypal without the authenticating icon – then you know at a glance that it’s a fake. Very nice.

With so many people with droids, this is fun.

Not useful for all, but if you find yourself answering the same question or giving out the same reply again and again, you’ll love these pre-canned responses.

If that’s not enough fun for you, don’t forget Gmail now allows rich text format in your signature file (settings – > general, scroll down to signature).

Gmail, Google Gmail

Google has added some really neat search options that I think many people have missed. It can really help you get specific with your search results – and it’s pretty easy to use.

In the screen shot I searched for Nikon D90 and used the Wonder Wheel.

Nandu, from Google explains it really well, in only 2 minutes – in the video below.

Google Search

Google’s shared doc’s is soooo useful. If you have more than one person working on the same document Google Docs will save so much aggravation and time.

Gone are the days of emailing a spreadsheet, word document or other document around to people and letting then edit it and waiting for it to come be emailed back to you.

With Google docs, many people can work on a document at the same time and you will all see the newest version.

When we did use it with multiple users – it was actually fun to get the work done.

Google docs provides some incredible functionality – just read the official blog for some great tips (link below)

Even if you are the only one working with your documents, its so nice to have them all in one place, and accessible from anywhere.

The only bad point is if your internet connection is down you cannot get to them, but thankfully I, for one,  am surrounded by redundant access points most of the time.

What really blows my mind is that so many people will not use it! I have worked on several projects the past few months where collaboration was the key. A few people involved just refused to try it and insisted that we just keep emailing documents to each other. How crude! Those who jumped in and tried it – love it.

You can lead a horse to water, but can’t make him drink.

If you have not tried it – you can also take Google Docs for a test run without an account (link below). Very cool to experiment, demo and learn on the test site.

• Google Docs Demo Site
• Google Docs Official Blog
• Google Docs Templates

Google Collaboration, Docs

Since the attack on Google from the Chinese hackers, Google now has strong countermeasures. I suspect this is why a few people found their Google accounts disabled and had to reset them.

It will probably never happen to you, but just in case – it is good to be prepared.

In a case like that – the best way to restore access to your account is by having Google send you a verification code to your cell phone.

Therefore I suggest that you log into your Google account settings and add your cell phone number. While you are there you may as well add an alternate email address in case you need a password reset.

To add that information, just go to https://www.google.com/accounts/ManageAccount and click on “Change password recovery options”

and enter your cell phone number and an alternate email address.

That maybe a good time to check your security question too.

Now in the unlikely event you ever get to see the screen below their will be no need to panic and you can restore your account pretty fast.

Google Gmail, Password, Recovery

In case you missed this new feature – you can now use Google search in encrypted mode – same as when you do on-line banking. Nice for when you are using free wi-fi in coffee shops, airports, etc.

Just use https://google.com instead of http://google.com – note the s after the http

Keeps hacker types from seeing what you are searching for on Google. They have been know to use packet sniffers in free wi-fi areas to evesdrop on people’s network connections.

Firefox has an extension to keep you in secure mode, but as of today Chrome doesn’t.

Google Search, Secure, Security

Evernote has been around for quite some time now. I am happy to see that is has evolved into one of the most useful web apps I have ever seen.

Evernote is a web based archive where you can save just about anything.

Everything you save there is indexed and made searchable. You can add tags and organize items in different notebooks, or just put all your stuff in one place. It’s up to you.

Bottom line is that you can save and retrieve any information from any device. Ideas, snapshots, voice memos, web pages, notes – it’s endless. You can use your computer, (Mac and PC’s), iPhone, Touch, iPad, Android, Palm, Windows Mobile and I don’t know what else. This is a seriously useful and mature tool if you need to collect data and reference material.

You do not even have to download the Evernote software, I use it web based with a web browser extension with Chrome and it’s incredible.

Combine Google’s RSS Reader with Evernote and now it gets exciting. It’s pretty easy to make a custom button in Google RSS Reader that will push any article you want into your Evernote account. Very cool because about the only thing I thought was lacking in Google’s Reader was the ability to archive articles.

This is how to do it.

1) Log into your Google Reader and click on the Settings link then click on Reader Settings.

2)  Click on the Send To tab

3) Click on the Create Custom Link link 

4)  Enter this

Name: Evernote
URL: http://s.evernote.com/grclip?url=${url}&title=${title}
Icon URL: http://www.evernote.com/favicon.ico

That’s it – - DONE !

From that point on at the bottom of every article you read, you use be able to click on the Send To link and you will see Evernote as an option.

I made a notebook in Evernote called Google Reader Clips and save useful articles to it. i am careful to add quality keywords which will help locate things in the future.

Google Archive. Data Base, Evernote, Knowledge, Reader, RSS

I have come to depend on Google Calendar for both my work and my personal life.

Did you know that you can update it with a text message from your cell phone?

This feature has been around a while, I am finding out that not many people know about it or just forgot.

First, sign into your Google Calendar account and choose "Settings." Then, click the "Mobile Setup" tab and enter the necessary information. A verification code will be sent to your phone; enter the code in the appropriate field and click "Finish setup."

Once that setup is complete, you can send events to your calendar via your phone.

Just send a text to GVENT (48368) in plain language. Foe example just text “Haircut July 18 6:30pm” to 48368 and it will appear in your calendar. Seconds later your will get a confirmation text back to your phone.

You can even send more complex messages to your calendar like “Pick up car in New Jersey with Steve 5pm Saturday” and Google calendar will figure it out.

You can also send these commands to GVENT and get results in a second texed back to you.

• ‘next’: to request your next scheduled event
• ‘day: to request all of your scheduled events for the present day
• ‘nday’: to request your events scheduled for the following day

Google Calendar, SMS

I discovered an easy way to edit someone’s name in Google contacts while you are in the Gmail web interface.

While viewing their email, just click on their name and in a second a box will appear. Place your cursor on top of their current name and a box will appear around their name. 

At that point you can edit their name.

I have not run across this tip anywhere yet and it saves from loading the contact list and having to search and edit there.

Google Gmail

You can now drag and drop files right onto the gmail new mail windows and it will become an attachment. Firefox and Chrome only. Nice!

Google Gmail

The most important chunk of software I use next to my operating system is my web browser. So I want it to be fast, have a minimalistic user interface, be full featured – but it should stay out of my way. That is what I found in the Chrome web browser which by the way comes in Mac and Linux as well as Windows versions.

Chrome was designed from day one to run web based app’s as opposed to just displaying simple html. Chrome developers claim that Firefox and Internet Explorer is built upon old architecture that was created in the days of simple html web pages and therefore not optimized for modern web pages. The result is that Chrome is faster, better and more secure than the other browsers. 

Part of that security is due the fact that when multiple tabs are open, each run in separate processes from each other. Each process is given as few rights as possible in order to do the task. Processes can not operate between tabs, therefore keeping each tab safely separated from the next. That contributes not only to better performance, but better security.

You can also duplicate, pin and reopen a tab you may of clicked closed by accident.

Press the shift and escape key and you will see that Chrome has it’s own task manager. With that task manager you can kill any tab, extension or plug-in. If something hangs up Chrome, just kill it and continue working.

Google’s claim of Chrome security was proven recently at the Pwn2Own competition this year in Vancouver. Pwn2Own is a yearly event were security experts compete to hack browsers and win cash. Every other web browser was hacked within minutes – including Firefox, Internet Explore Version, and Safari. Despite a prize of many thousands of dollars, hackers were not able to compromise Chrome. Pretty impressive.

Chrome also  keeps us out of trouble by downloading two blacklists, one for phishing and one for malware sites. Try to load one of these sites and a giant warning box displays giving the option to continue or stop.

Initially my favorite features were the the merging of the address bar and search bar, synched bookmarks, break off tabs, and no fuss updates.

When searching for something you no longer have to load Google.com and type in your search. Just type your search right into the address bar. (the address bar is where you would see the http:// address of the page you are viewing). It’s a real time saver.

Once synched bookmarks are set up, it is 100% transparent. Any bookmarks I save, edit, delete on one computer also are synced on my other computer. Just set it up once and they sync automatically. Especially nice because I use four different computers, but they all show me the same bookmarks. A Google account is required for that because the master copy of your bookmarks end up in a folder at Google Documents – making them accessible from anywhere. Very nice indeed.

Chrome supports multiple tabs, like the other browsers, but if multiple tabs are open, you can click on one tab and drag it away – then it morphs it into a new browser window. Very cool with dual monitors. Just click and drag the tab onto your second monitor – and like magic, you have two browser windows open.

Chrome is updated with total transparency. Nothing to click on, no restarting – it just upgrades in the background and doesn’t interrupt your work. Another example of how Chrome stays out of my way.

Once I got used to that my fascination moved to all the extensions that are available. They are small, easy to add or remove and no need to restart the browser to get them to start working.

Their are three flavors of Chrome – Stable, Beta and Dev,  Google calls them channels.

• Stable Channel
  Everyone is on the Stable channel when you first install Chrome. This is version that has only the features that have been thoroughly tested. If you are not an experimenter and don’t enjoy finding a bug once in a while then stick with the Stable Channel.
• Beta Channel  (my favorite)
  You get the newest beta version of Chrome. You get to try the newest features and even get to help refine them by contributing your feedback. It "may lack the polish one expects from a finished product" as Google phrases it. 
• Dev Channel
  This is where ideas get tested and sometime they fail. This version can be unstable, but can be fun if you are the hacker type.

The best way to switch "channels" is to use Channel Changer Utility.

As if that is not enough Chrome will translate web pages for you. I ran across a photo blog in Dutch and this is what appears on the top of the page.

Some cool features that are easy to miss

• You can click and drag the corner any text area box to resize it. It’s great when those text area boxes are just too small.
• Ctrl + mouse wheel lets you zoom in/out
• After a file download is complete you can see it on the status bar. You can, if you want, just drag it on into any explorer window or the desktop.
• Control T opens a new tab
• Control H opens the history tab

Suggestions (look for the wrench icon to set options)

• Under options – select “Show Home button on toolbar” as that is off by default and
• Specify a default download folder

Chrome tracks your browsing with a unique ID number and claims to not collect personally identifying information without your permission. It is the same with all other browsers via cookies. If that concerns you then you can use an opt out cookie and also you can remove your unique id number from Chrome with a free tool. This free tool will change your unique ID to  11111111-2222-3333-4444-555555555555

If you have not tried Chrome – maybe it’s time. Give yourself a couple of days to get used to it. Once you find your way around you will not want to use anything else.

Once you start adding extensions and themes the fun and productivity really k
icks in.

Soon I will show you my top 10  favorite Chrome extensions.

Related Links

• Video from Chrome Development  Team
• Download Chrome
• Google Chrome Extensions
• Chrome Support Group
• Chrome Channel Changer

Google Browser, Chrome