In relevance to learning and development, the use of Google products has streamlined access to and management of information. The search engine is an ‘all you can eat’ drive through for many as regards to locating people, places and items of interest, as well as recent happenings/events leaving more than an average number satisfied. Google docs have become a ‘data-centric’ module for all documents, online/offline, without worrying about the file extension formats.
Also the collaborative feature enables users to generate edits and results faster without hassle. It has enabled users upload pictures/videos, creating websites to share content, and planning daily routines/meetings with the use of Google blogs, sites, calendar, Picasa, maps and YouTube.
Before Google apps for education, getting stuff done was pretty tedious and mechanical, as sometimes you would have to sign into multiple platforms despite the help of browser cookies, loading took long waits; hence speed was a major issue. User interface wasn’t as interactive or friendly.
Google Apps for education lets you:
Stay on Schedule: Set up reminders for your due dates, meetings and other important events. You can have notifications pop up in your calendar or sent to you as emails or text messages. Or administrators to provide email, sharable online Calendars, instant messaging tools and even a dedicated website to faculty, students and staff for free. There’s no hardware or software to install or maintain, since everything is delivered through a standard web browser anytime, from anywhere.
Get your Calendar on the go: View Google calendar on your mobile Phone wherever You are and set up text message event reminders so you can always know where to be. Keep up with your favorite Sports team or TV shows, adding their schedules to your calendar. Don’t miss a game. Get along with your new Roomy. Adjusting to a Dorm or apartment life with a new roommate? Create a spreadsheet in Google docs to keep track of shared expenses or trash duties
Call friends for free: Make free calls over the internet from your Computer to a friend’s and even leave a voicemail that will go directly to their Gmail inbox if they weren’t available.
Get organized: Use labels and filters to help you organize your email and manage the flow of incoming messages. You can automatically label, archive, delete, star or forward your email- all based on a combination of keywords, senders, recipients and more.
Get enough Storage: Have two gigabytes of storage per account, search tools to help them find information fast, and instant.
How about a Chat or Hangout: Messaging built right into the browser. (This feature can be disabled if it interferes with the policy of the institution). Interact in real time, hangout and share day to day campus activities by uploading lecture videos and tutorials using Google+.
Get started now with Google Apps for Education today. It’s free, plus you have nothing to lose and a lot to gain. Happy days ahead.
