U-M Google Updates

Reminder: Google Cloud Print Ending Dec. 31

7/1/2020

You may disregard this message if you do not use Google Cloud Print.

This is a reminder that beginning January 1, 2021, devices across all operating systems will not be able to print using Google Cloud Print. We recommend that you find an alternative print solution and migrate your print services by the end of 2020. One alternative, MPrint, is U-M's printing service that allows campus community members to print from their computer or mobile device to many printers on campus. Note: Due to COVID-19, many printers are unavailable across the university. To find a list of available printers, see the Shared Computing Site Directory - COVID-19 Temp Operations spreadsheet.

Google Currents will replace Google+ on July 6, 2020

6/30/2020

Google has announced they will be transitioning Google+ over to an updated service called Google Currents. Starting on July 6, 2020, you will begin to lose access to Google+ and all existing communities will begin the transition to Currents. No action is required by you or your team.

Picture of an open laptop and mobile phone, each showing the new Google Currents dashboard.

Google Currents is a rebranding of Google+ with an updated interface and a set of new features. Currents offers a more streamlined experience to collaborate on and exchange ideas across the university. For more information, see Get started with Currents.

What should I expect?

  • All users and existing Google+ content will be automatically transitioned to Currents.
  • All existing links to plus.google.com will continue to work. These links will automatically be redirected to currents.google.com.
  • The Google Currents Android and iOS apps will replace Google+’s mobile apps, which will no longer be supported. Within your Google+ app, you will be prompted to upgrade to the new Currents app to continue to use the service on mobile. If you have auto-update enabled on your phone, your app will be automatically upgraded to Currents.
  • In the days prior to the transition, you may see a banner in Google+ notifying you of the launch of Google Currents. The banner will also include links to relevant G Suite Help Center articles.
  • There will be no option to revert back to Google+.

According to Google, this transition will begin on July 6, 2020, and could take 5 days or longer to complete.

Reminder: Check your spam label periodically

6/23/2020

When was the last time you checked your spam label in Gmail? Once in a while, a legitimate email can be marked as spam instead of appearing in your Inbox. We recommend you check your spam label periodically for legitimate emails that may appear there by mistake. If you do find a message that has been accidentally marked as spam, you can select it and click Not Spam in the top toolbar to help ensure that future messages from this sender are not flagged as spam. Additionally, adding colleagues to your Google Contacts can help with mail delivery.

New quick settings to change your Gmail layout

6/17/2020

Google has announced a new quick settings menu to help you find and use different layouts, settings, and themes to make Gmail look the way you want it.

Note: This update only adds an easier way to access settings that already exist in the full Gmail settings menu. There are no new settings and your existing settings won’t be changed. You can still view the full settings menu by clicking the “See all settings” button at the top of the new quick settings menu.

Screenshot of the Gmail inbox with the new quick layout settings menu located to the right side of the screen.

When you click on the Settings gear icon, you’ll now see different interfaces, inbox types, and display options alongside your inbox. When an option is selected, the inbox will instantly update so you can compare choices and see how settings work in real-time.

Gmail has many options to customize layout, look and feel, and other details. These include:

  • Changing the density of text and information displayed.
  • Choosing a different inbox type to help prioritize and organize emails. 
  • Adding reading panes to quickly see email contents. 
  • Applying themes to personalize the look and feel of your inbox.

According to Google, this feature should begin showing up in U-M Google on June 22, 2020, and could take 15 days or longer to become fully visible.

Reminder: Use MCommunity for your out of office notifications

6/16/2020

This is a reminder to only use MCommunity for your out of office notifications and not U-M Google Mail’s vacation responder.

The MCommunity Directory and U-M Google Mail both offer out of office/away/vacation message features. However, we strongly recommend the use of MCommunity because it has been specifically designed to work within the U-M computing environment. Using Gmail’s native feature has been known to cause issues with recipients of out of office messages.

The most common known error caused by the use of Gmail’s vacation responder occurs when someone emails an MCommunity group of which you are a member. If you are a member of an MCommunity group and have Gmail’s vacation responder turned on, the individual sending the message to the group will not get your vacation response. An error message will be sent to all owners of that MCommunity group instead. We have no control over this behavior as it is originating from Google. The MCommunity service minimizes these notifications to group owners as it keeps track of who sends you email while you are away and only generates one automated reply to a given sender in a three-day period. 

Learn more about the benefits of using MCommunity’s Away Message and how to use it on the ITS documentation page.