U-M Google Updates

Update to “Make changes to events” permission on shared Google calendars

2/25/2025

To improve the experience of individuals with the “Make changes to events” permission on Google shared calendars, collaborators can now view with whom the calendar is shared. Previously, they could not view who the calendar and its events were shared with, even though they could create events on it.

If you own and/or manage a shared calendar with individuals assigned the “Make changes to events” permission, and you do not want them to view who it is shared with, you will need to change their access permissions to either “See all event details” or “See only free/busy (hide details).” Please note that this will also remove their ability to create and edit events on the calendar.

Access permissions and shared with sections of shared calendar settings in Google (as someone with "Make changes to events" permission)

U-M Google November & December Monthly Summary

1/30/2025

Updates

Google Chat

There is now automatic transcription of voice messages in Chat on web and mobile. For screen reader users, voice transcripts are treated as readable texts. Learn more about sending a voice message in Chat.

Your Home view in Chat has a new split pane option to respond to space, group, or direct messages without navigating away from Home. The split pane option can be toggled on and off from the top of your Home view.

In November, Google announced they would be auto-installing the Google Drive app in Chat for every U-M account. As a result, many of you may have received a notification from the app welcoming you and providing more information on its purpose. You will now receive notifications about recent activity in Google Drive documents, such as new comments and share requests, directly in Chat (via the Gmail integration, mobile app, or desktop). If you would not like to receive these notifications, you can either mute or uninstall the app from Chat.

You can upload and send up to 20 photo and video files in one Chat message. Dragging and dropping files into the compose bar from your desktop is also supported. Learn more about sending and sharing files in Chat messages.

  • Improving out-of-office notifications in group messages and spaces 

You will now notice a banner that shows when a person you are chatting with is out of office and the date they are returning in Chat group messages and spaces. Previously, this banner only appeared in direct messages with someone.

Google Drive

The video player within Google Drive has a new look and feel and enhanced functionality, including improved controls for fast forward/rewind and an updated experience when adjusting playback speed and managing captions.

  • Send emails about files to collaborators using the sharing dialog

Once a file is shared, you can choose to notify someone when they’ve been added as a viewer/commenter/editor. Google has built upon this feature by adding the ability to send an email to any collaborator if you are a file owner or editor. To email collaborators, click Share, click the envelope icon (“Email people on this file”) under the text field, select the email recipients, and add a custom message.

You can create and manage tabs in Docs to better organize your documents, especially to break down long, structured ones into smaller, more digestible sections. Within each tab, you can also create subtabs. Learn more about using document tabs in Docs.

A user creates and customizes a new document tab in Google Docs

You can now add cover images that extend from one edge of your document to the other using Google’s gallery or uploading your own image. Cover images can only be added to documents set to pageless mode. Learn more about adding cover images to your Docs.

Google has released 40 new, customizable templates to their Docs template gallery. These pre-made templates use the pageless format and incorporate several new features like document tabs, placeholder chips, and cover images. You can access these templates via the Templates button at the top of a newly created Doc, by going to File > New > From a template in an open Doc, or by clicking New, hovering over Google Docs, and selecting From a template in Drive.

  • Improved accessibility tagging to PDFs exported from Docs

Google has improved the ability for individuals with screen readers and other assistive technology to read and navigate PDFs by adding more structural and accessibility tagging in PDFs exported from Docs. Specifically, they’ve improved tagging for paragraphs, headings, hyperlinks, image ALT text, and lists. Learn more about using Docs with a screen reader.

You can now add a rating question type to your Forms. The rating scale can be three to ten whole numbers (starting at 1) and use star, heart, or thumbs-up icons.

Previously, form creators had two sharing options: restrict responses to U-M Google users or make forms public (i.e., anyone with the URL can respond). Form creators can now limit response access to specific individuals or MCommunity groups, similar to how owners can restrict the sharing of their Drive files. Currently, this feature is limited to newly created forms and is not retroactive for existing forms. Learn more about publishing and sharing your form with responders.

When you create a new Sheet using your Forms data, Sheets will automatically open the data as a table. If you open a pre-existing Sheet connected to a Form, there will be no change, and you will need to convert the data to a table by clicking Format > Convert to table.

  • Allow drop-down chips to have multiple selections in Sheets

Previously, drop-downs could only have one value selected in Google Sheets. Sheets now allow for multiple selections within a drop-down. Learn more about inserting drop-down chips in Sheets.

Multi-monitor support lets presenters see Presentation View components, such as speaker notes and the timer, on one display while displaying the Slides presentation on an external monitor. Learn more about presenting Slides with other monitors.

Google has released a new collection of customizable templates in Slides. You can access these templates using the new Templates button in the Slides toolbar or by clicking Insert and selecting Templates. Once clicked, you can browse the collection, select a template, and choose to insert all slides or just the ones you need. According to Google, you can expect more Slides templates in the coming months.

Google Meet

Picture-in-picture mode now automatically triggers when you switch tabs during a Meet call. Previously, you had to manually turn on this feature during a meeting. Picture-in-picture mode is only available on a computer using the Google Chrome browser. Learn more about using picture-in-picture mode with Meet.

  • Pronouns are displayed in Meet

If you have set your pronouns in your U-M Google account settings with visibility set to “Anyone,” they will be displayed on your video tile during Meet calls. This update is available only when using Meet on the web. Learn more about setting your pronouns in U-M Google.

Access to the automatic framing feature has been expanded to include Education Fundamentals domains like U-M Google. With automatic framing, Meet will automatically center your video before joining a meeting to ensure equal visibility for all participants. Additionally, Meet will now continuously keep you centered when using a virtual background, ensuring your background is fixed and not constantly reframing. Learn more about turning video framing on or off in Meet.

Google Meet pre-meeting audio and video check featuring the automatic reframing feature on an individual's video feed

Previously Communicated

Final Reminder: The Google Jamboard service is retiring on December 31, 2024

12/10/2024

As a final reminder, Google Jamboard retirement processes began on October 1, when the Jamboard service became view-only. The service will be officially shut down on December 31, 2024. You may continue to export your Jams as PDFs up until that date, after which the service will become unavailable on every platform, and all Jam files will be permanently deleted by Google.

ITS doesn’t offer an alternative solution to replace the Google Jamboard whiteboarding service or device. If you are interested in another whiteboarding service or device, you should explore other third-party solutions within your unit.

Update your pronouns in U-M Google

11/14/2024

You can now update and share your pronouns on your U-M Google account. If you choose to display your pronouns in Google, they’ll appear when someone views your contact info or hovers over your profile picture in Gmail, Chat, or other Google products. Pronouns will appear in the language they were set, regardless of current language settings.

To update your pronouns:

  1. Go to your Google Account personal info page and log in with U-M Weblogin if prompted.
  2. Click the Pronouns row under "Basic info."
  3. Select from the list of pronoun suggestions or click Add custom pronouns to add your own.
    1. If adding custom pronouns, enter them in the text field that appears and click Save.
    2. You can also choose not to have pronouns appear by selecting No pronouns set from the list (which is the default for all U-M Google accounts).
  4. Select how you'd like your pronouns shared in Google under "Choose who can see your pronouns."
    1. Only you: Your pronouns are private, and you can only view them.
    2. Your organization: Your pronouns are visible to every person within U-M Google.
    3. Anyone: Anyone (both at U-M and external) can view your pronouns when they communicate with you or view the content you create in Google.

Note: Pronouns will only appear next to your picture in Google Meet if you have access set to Anyone and you're using Meet on the web (mobile users won't be able to view pronouns). Refer to the Google Help Center for more information.

Refer to the ITS knowledge base for more information on updating your pronouns in other ITS services.

Final Reminder: New annual renewal process for Google Shared Accounts and shared drives

11/6/2024

As a final reminder, you are now required to renew your Shared Accounts and shared drives annually using the ITS Shared Account Manager and ITS Shared Drive Manager tools. These processes are similar to the existing MCommunity group renewal process, where Shared Account owners and shared drive Managers will be notified 30 days before the Shared Account or shared drive expires and asked to use the respective tool to renew it once a year.

If you own or manage a Shared Account or shared drive, you should have received multiple targeted messages from ITS since September with more details on initiating the renewal process. Shared Accounts and shared drives must be imported and renewed before December 6, 2024, to prevent deactivation and deletion.

Refer to Renew a Shared Account and Renew a Shared Drive for detailed instructions. For more general information on the processes, refer to Shared Accounts in U-M Google and Shared Drives in U-M Google.