For this month’s tip, I am sharing an open source Google Docs alternative: Etherpad. You can install your own instance of it, or can use one of the many free available online options listed below. If you would like to collaborate with someone who does not have a Google account, only need a temporary collaborative document, or would… Read More »
As our work and education continue to move online, it is important to become acquainted with each videoconferencing service the university offers. Moreover, with the announcement of the retirement of BlueJeans in May 2021, consider an option for day-to-day meetings that’s already available at your fingertips: Google Meet. Google Meet is a G Suite for Education videoconferencing core… Read More »
The Academic IT DevOps team from Health Information Technology & Services (HITS) recently deployed their first containerized vendor applications to Google Cloud Platform (GCP) through MCloud. By the end of December 2020, it will be supporting thousands of users and over 500 departmental solutions, including Jenkins, GitLab, Michigan Medicine HR Service Desk, and the Data Office Service Desk. These applications… Read More »
The U.S. government’s lawsuit alleging violations of antitrust laws by technology giant Google marks a new era of uncertainty for emerging startup companies in Southeast Michigan and beyond, according to Erik Gordon, a clinical assistant professor at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. The immediate impact of the lawsuit, said Gordon in a recent story in Crain’s Detroit Business, will… Read More »
Over the past year, Google has continued to accelerate the development of new features for the growing number of individuals, teams, and organizations that rely on Meet to stay connected. Want to learn more about how to use Meet for videoconferencing? Register in Zoom to join IT4U98: Getting the Most Out of Google Meet on Wednesday, 10/28/20, 9-9:45… Read More »
A key ITS area of focus is “to work as one ITS team to improve the way we serve the U-M campus.” This has the potential for significant impact. A recent dialogue between the digital accessibility and collaboration teams is an outstanding example of how ITS can benefit users far beyond our campus. Like many vendors of cloud-based… Read More »
Starting today, July 15, 2020, Google Chat has replaced classic Google Hangouts in Gmail and is now the default option for direct (one-to-one) messages, group messages, and team-based room discussions within Gmail. For several years, classic Google Hangouts had been a part of Google at U-M and integrated with Google Mail. Google Chat is an updated, team-based experience… Read More »
Google Chat will be replacing classic Google Hangouts in Gmail. Google Chat is an evolution of classic Hangouts, adding additional features that let you chat with individuals, send group messages, and engage in team-based collaboration with rooms across the entire university community and externally. Starting July 15, 2020, Google Chat will become the default option for direct (one-to-one)… Read More »
As of December 31, 2020, Google will no longer support Google Cloud Print, Google’s beta, cloud-based printing solution. Beginning January 1, 2021, devices across all operating systems will not be able to print using Google Cloud Print. It is recommended 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… Read More »
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. Google Currents is a rebranding of Google+ with an updated… Read More »
Google has announced they will integrate Google Meet into Gmail, making it easier to create a session and stay connected right from your inbox. This feature is currently only available in Gmail on the web but is coming soon to the Gmail mobile app. According to Google, this feature should begin showing up in U-M Google on April 30 and… Read More »
When you share files or folders from Google Drive or Box, you can control the level of permissions granted to others. The U-M Collaboration Services team recommends using caution when you choose permissions for your files and folders to ensure the privacy and security of university data. This is especially true when collaborating with people outside of U-M.… Read More »
As U-M has shifted to offering classes, programs, and events in alternative and virtual formats, Michigan IT has risen to the challenge by enabling and supporting the most cutting-edge conferencing services available.
At the beginning of March, Google announced they would extend temporary access to some premium Hangouts Meet features until July 1, 2020. These features are now available within the U-M domain: Increased participant limit of 250 participants per video call Livestream a video call (up to 100,000 viewers) Record a video call Important: U-M Google is not HIPAA-compliant. Review the Sensitive Data Guide for types of data permitted… Read More »
To better accommodate the need for team-based chat and collaboration, Google Hangouts Chat is now available for use at U-M. Hangouts Chat is a G Suite for Education core service. It is free and covered under U-M’s agreement with Google and also can be used for certain kinds of sensitive data. It should not be used for protected… Read More »
As we move into the new year, UM-Flint ITS is completing the final steps of the Google implementation started over a year ago. Over the past year, this migration involved a significant effort from a core team comprised of nine full-time ITS staff members and approximately 20 part-time student workers known as Google Guides. The rest of ITS,… Read More »
Google launched Fusion Tables almost nine years ago as a research project in Google Labs, later evolving into an experimental product. For a long time, it was one of the few free tools for easily visualizing large datasets, especially on a map. Since then, Google has developed several alternatives, providing deeper experiences in more specialized domains. To continue… Read More »
In February, Google announced plans to transition from classic Hangouts to Hangouts Chat. Hangouts Chat is a workstream collaboration tool that allows for team-based discussion, bots, and more. Google provided a timeline of changes and initially stated they would start retiring classic Hangouts in October, 2019. However, there have been delays as Google listened to critical customer feedback… Read More »
In response to strong feedback about certain features and functionality missing in new Google Sites, classic Sites creation has been re-enabled in U‑M Google. This decision was made to minimize impact to fall term coursework requiring those features. Classic Sites creation will be available until closer feature parity exists between classic Sites and new Sites. The main impact… Read More »
At the beginning of this year, UM-Flint ITS began the process of migrating the campus to Google G Suite for Education from Microsoft Exchange/Outlook email and calendar services. Currently, all students and a majority of faculty and staff have been successfully migrated to Google. Remaining departments will continue to migrate up to the end of July. ITS moved… Read More »