Gmail

= Google Gmail @muskegonisd.org=

Accessing your MAISD Gmail

 * Open a browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.) and enter the address – [|http://mail.muskegonisd.org]. Enter your username and password when prompted. Note: Your new email address has not changed from your Groupwise email address.
 * Put a link in your Bookmarks toolbar (Firefox) or your Favorites toolbar (Internet Explorer).
 * Put a shortcut on your desktop. (Go to the “!Google Link” folder on the I drive and drag the icon that is named “MAISD Gmail” to your desktop.)

Benefits of Gmail

 * Improved spam filtering
 * Ongoing email "conversations" are organized into one thread
 * Labels instead of Folders - can attach many labels to one email
 * Powerful filters and rules help users organize emails
 * Powerful search feature - use search (instead of sort in Groupwise) to locate an email
 * Chat - instant messaging between any ISD staff
 * Reliability - Google promised 99.9% uptime
 * Access from any computer with an internet connection or smartphone using any browser
 * Consistent look and features between work and home access
 * 8GB of storage

New to Gmail?

 * If you've never used Gmail, you might want to read Google's "Getting Starting Guide." This site describes the basic navigation tools in the gmail interface.

Organizing and Sorting your Mail

 * One of the differences you'll notice immediately is that Gmail uses Labels instead of Folders to help you organize your email. Labels that you establish and attach to your emails will make finding emails easy.
 * Archivingan email removes it from your inbox. By labeling it before you archive it, you can locate it quickly if you need it later.
 * Filters and More on Filters
 * Search, Search Operators, Advanced Search (If you are unable to see the video below, click here.)

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Threaded Conversations

 * Another big difference from GroupWise you'll notice from GroupWise is that any emails with replies appear grouped as Threaded Conversationsinstead of separate emails.

Old Groupwise Listservs

 * At this time you can still use the listserv addresses that we used in Groupwise (i.e. curric@remc4.k12.mi.us). Just address your email accordingly. Please note two important items:
 * 1) The address won't self populate in the To: area the first time you use it in our new email system.
 * 2) You won't receive a copy of the email when you send it to the list.

Groups and Contacts

 * We have some groups set up already such as ESC, CTC, Wesley, etc. but you might want to create a group yourself for a project or a specific audience. To see which groups have already been created, click on Groups and select Browse all groups. (You can also Search for groups using the search window.) Here you'll find a list of groups that have been created. The address of the group is on the right of the name of the group. Address your email accordingly.
 * If you already have this group created in Groupwise, follow these directions below to move those addresses over to a new group in mail.muskegonisd.org.
 * 1) Login to Groupwise.
 * 2) Click "Address book", right click an address book (i.e. Frequent Contacts) you want to move to Google Apps and select export book.
 * 3) Name the file "address", select "vCard Addresses(*.VCF)" as the "Save as type:) and save to your desktop.
 * 4) Login to Google Apps ([|http://mail.muskegonisd.org] (your username is the same as groupwise (i.e. dzoellme)).
 * 5) Complete change password screen, accept user agreement if prompted.
 * 6) Click "Contacts" link on lefthand side of the window.
 * 7) Click on the "Import" link near the upper-righthand corner of the window.
 * 8) Click "Choose File" and browse to your desktop and select "address.VCF" and click import.

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 * To create a new Group, open your email and click on Contacts. On the left side of the window you will see two boxes with plus signs and "people" icons. Click on the button that has the plus sign and two heads. This will create a new group and ask you to name the group. At this point you can populate this group in a few ways. You can:
 * 1) Import a list from Groupwise.
 * 2) Click on All Contacts from the Contacts window, select the contacts to add to the group, click on the Groups button and choose the "//**Add to...**//" group you want.
 * 3) Select the group from the My Contacts column and add members to the group by clicking on the button with the plus sign and one head icon. This will allow you to manually add members to the group.
 * Another way to create and populate a new group is to click on Contacts, select All Contacts and select the names of the members you wish to add to the group. Click on the Groups button and choose the //**"Add to..."**// New Group option. It will ask you to name the group.

Adding Attachments to your Gmail

 * You can add attachments by clicking on the "Attach a file" link next to the paperclip in your Compose Mail window. The file size is limited to 20M and you cannot attach executable (.exe) files.

Using Tasks

 * Tasks can be used in Gmail with or without linking to your Calendar. Watch the video below to see how to use them. If you are unable to see the video, click here.

Chats

 * A very nice feature that is now available to us is the ability to chat, real-time, in your email window.

Customizing your Gmail

 * Changing Your SettingsYou'll discover that Gmail has a simple interface that is easy to customize. By clicking on Settings in the upper right-hand corner of the window and then clicking on Themes, you can choose a color or background image for your email window.
 * Selecting Your Google Picture
 * Gmail Themes
 * Your Signature - to create a signature:
 * Sign into Gmail.
 * Click **Settings** at the top of any Gmail page.
 * Enter your new signature text in the box at the bottom of the page next to the **Signature** option. As you type, the radio button will shift from **No Signature** to the text box.
 * Click **Save Changes**.
 * Gmail adds your signature in grey at the very bottom of your message. Signatures are separated from the rest of your message by two dashes.
 * If you don't want your signature to appear on a specific message, you can delete it manually before sending the message. Just highlight the text and delete it before sending.
 * Gmail does not support rich text formatting, graphics, or HTML in your signature.

Shortcuts

 * Keyboard Shortcuts

News, tips, and tricks from Google’s Gmail team

 * [|The GMail Blog]
 * [|Gmail Tips]