U-M Google Updates

Publish to a specific audience in Google Sites

3/6/2018

Google has released an update that allows you to choose exactly who can view your content in the new Google Sites. To publish your site for a specific audience, select Share with others and change Published settings to Specific people can view when published. Next, add the individuals you want in the Invite people box and select Can view published.

The new feature is now on the web. Google Drive Android and iOS apps will have it rolled out in the coming weeks. For more info on publishing in the new Google Sites, visit the Help Center.

Spring Collaboration Services Training

3/6/2018

The ITS Collaboration Services team is happy to offer a spring series of instructor-led training sessions to U-M faculty and staff. They are offered at no-charge and open for registration via My LINC.

Working with U-M Box – ITS_BOXC100

  • April 13, 1-3 p.m., Arbor Lakes, Building 3, Dome Conference Room
  • May 11, 1-3 p.m., Shapiro Library PC Lab (2054)

Working With Google and Box – ITS_GOOC200

  • March 21, 1-2 p.m., Shapiro Library PC Lab (2054)
  • April 25, 1-2 p.m., Shapiro Library PC Lab (2054)

Introduction to G-Suite – ITS_GOOC100

May 14, 10-11 a.m., Wolverine Tower Training Room 1 (G010)

G-Suite using Mail and Calendar – ITS_GOOC101

March 20, 2-3 p.m., Wolverine Tower Training Room 1 (G010)

Working With Google Drive – ITS_GOOC102

April 11, 10 a.m.-noon, Shapiro Library PC Lab (2054)

Working with Google Forms– ITS_GOOC103

April 3, 2-3 p.m., Wolverine Tower Training Room 1 (G010)

Working with the New and Improved Google Sites – ITS_GOOC104

March 9, 2-3 p.m., Wolverine Tower, G228

Does your department or unit have a more specific need? Submit a Learning Request to the Collaboration Services team.

Google Hangouts Chat

3/1/2018

Update 5/14/18: Google Hangouts Chat will not be enabled at this time

Google Hangouts Chat is rolling out on the UMICH domain over the next 15 days.

Chat helps teams collaborate more efficiently with direct messages and group conversations. It also allows teams to track progress and follow up on tasks using dedicated, virtual rooms to house projects over time and threaded conversations. In one place, you can:

  • Work with other G Suite apps. Upload items from Drive, collaborate on Docs, Sheets or Slides, join online meetings with Hangouts Meet, or use Google’s search to look up room members, past conversations, and shared files.
  • Use artificial intelligence to speed up workflows. When your teams collaborate in Chat, you can speed up manual work, like booking conference rooms and searching for files.
  • Collaborate with colleagues around the globe. Chat currently supports 28 languages and each room can support up to 8,000 members. It’s available on desktop for Windows and MacOS, as well as iOS and Android.

Chat also comes equipped with 25 bots to help speed up workflows, ranging from finance and human resources to CRM and project management. There are bots that integrate directly with other G Suite apps, like:

  • The @Google Drive bot which lets you know when files are shared with you, comments are made, or when people request access to your docs.
  • The @Meet bot which integrates directly with Calendar to schedule meetings for you.

Chat is compatible with the classic Hangouts and works with your existing contacts. Together with Hangouts Meet, the two are intended to eventually replace classic Hangouts. We will send additional messages as we know more. To get started (once available), go to chat.google.com on the web or download the app on your desktop or mobile devices.

Reminder - New Google Calendar

2/27/2018

Hello,

In November 2017, U-M users of Google G Suite gained the option to try an updated, new Google Calendar for the web. Users were able to switch to the new Calendar and switch back to the Classic calendar in preparation for Google moving to the new Calendar in February. 

Starting February 28, Classic Google calendar will be retired, and the New Google Calendar will become standard. The option to switch back to Classic calendar will be retired as well. 

With the new Calendar for web, you can:

  • See conference room details when booking a room. Hover over a room name in Calendar and a hovercard will pop up with details about the conference room location and resources. 
    Note: ITS is currently working on a plan to convert existing calendars to the new format and add the resource details.
  • Add rich formatting and hyperlinks to Calendar invites. Link to spreadsheets, documents or presentations in your Calendar invite and open them from the new Event Detail view. Create more detailed agendas and keep materials in one place before the meeting starts.
  • Manage multiple calendars side by side in Day view. Click Day view and select the calendars to compare.
  • See contact information of meeting participants by hovering over their names in a Calendar invite. 
  • Day, Week, and Month views are now more accessible, featuring better compatibility with screen readers. 

Some changes we have noted in the new version:

  • In order to use SMS notifications, phone numbers need to be setup and verified again.
  • When creating an event, Edit Event is now called More Options.
  • You now see more details about an event if you single click on it.

Learn more at the Google support site. 

New ways to comment on non-Google files in Google Drive

2/26/2018

Google is making it possible to comment directly on more file types including Microsoft Office files, PDFs and images—without having to convert them into Docs, Sheets or Slides.

This update enables commenting on non-Google files in Drive the way you're used to in Google Docs. In the Drive preview pane, comment, assign tasks, or mention coworkers and they can reply back, even if they’re not using G Suite. When commenting in Drive preview, you don’t need to open up other tools to complete tasks. To comment, open Microsoft Office files, like Word, Excel and PowerPoint, in Drive preview and give feedback in comments.

If you find you would rather convert your non-Google files, go to Google Drive, right click on your Office file and click Open with and then select Docs (or Sheets or Slides). Or, you can choose to edit Microsoft files without converting them fully using Office Compatibility Mode (OCM.)

This update will be slowly rolling out on the UMICH domain.