After the switch checklist

Now that you have a Google Apps account, it's time learn more about the capabilities of Gmail, Google Calendar, and all the other new apps you'll be working with. Use our Google Apps Help site as a guide during your first days and throughout the transition. On this site you will find a variety of training materials related to Google Apps and its use. Go ahead and become familiar with the Google Apps interface and its tools. You may print a copy of this checklist for reference.

If you need more information about the steps outlined below, the following support resources are also available to you:

• Additional Help Site documentation

• Classroom Training with a Google Apps Certified Trainer

• Help Desk support (by appointment)

First Steps: Set Up Your Email and Calendar

GroupWise users will find that Google Apps is a different way of managing email. The below checklist items will help you to get your account up and running using the Google Web interface (if you plan to use an email software such as Outlook or Entourage this checklist does not apply to you, please see our Specialized Migration Support for client setup instructions). The below items will address What didn’t migrate (or was converted to a different Google Apps feature) and help you to recreate those features/functions in Google Apps.

[ ] Set up your rules with filters

Google Apps Mail filters allow you to manage the flow of incoming messages. More...

[ ] Set up email delegation

Google’s email delegation will provide you with similar functionality to the GroupWise proxy tool. Set up email delegation as needed. More...

[ ] Set up your email signature

If you used a GroupWise sigature, that signature did not migrate. Set up a new signature in your new account. More...

[ ] Familiarize yourself with Google labels

When using GroupWise, you may have used folders to organize your mail. These folders have been converted to “labels.” As you become accustomed to Google’s various search and sorting features, you are likely to find that many of these labels are no longer needed. Learn how to clean up your labels (edit and remove) as needed. More...

[ ] Set up your calendar(s) sharing

While GroupWise offers “Sub-calendars” most users use a single calendar to manage appointments. With Google you can create multiple calendars and may share calendars as needed. More...

[ ] Organize your priority email

Some of your email in GroupWise may be associated with a GroupWise priority level (e.g. High Priority/Red). These emails will automatically appear in Google as starred email. Assign or remove stars to special conversations or messages. More...

[ ] Familiarize yourself with Google Docs storage

Google Apps does not permit email messages to exceed 25MB of storage. This not not usually an issue, but emails with large attachments may not have been fully transferred to Gmail from GroupWise. Upload GroupWise attachments to email larger than 25 megabytes to Google Docs. More...

Mobile Users:

[ ] Set up POP/IMAP to receive your email on a mobile device

If you had your mobile device set to access your Casper College email via POP or IMAP, you will have to reconfigure your device for Casper College Google Apps. More...

Next Steps: Get Comfortable

Once you have completed the first steps, you will want to clean up your inbox and get comfortable with the interface.

[ ] Decide if you want to disable “web clips”

Web Clips show you news headlines, blog posts, right at the top of your inbox. Many people find this to be distracting and prefer to disable. More...

[ ] Find and merge duplicate contacts

Simplify your Contacts by using the Find and Merge tool. More...

[ ] Archive excess mail in your inbox

Archiving lets you tidy up your inbox by moving messages from your inbox into your All Mail label, so you don't have to delete anything. More...

[ ] Get to know “conversation view”

One change you will encounter is that Google automatically threads email conversations. If you don't like conversation view, you may disable. More...

Final Steps: Explore

Lastly, you’ll want to take some time to learn about some of the additional features that Google Apps has to offer. The below checklist is only a starting point, but will help you to get started customizing your account.

[ ] Select a Theme

Themes allow you to customize the look and feel of your Gmail account. To choose a theme, click a thumbnail on the Themes tab of your Settings page. More…

[ ] Enable Labs

Gmail Labs allows you to try out experimental new features in Gmail such as adding new buttons or gadgets to your inbox and addition tools like “Undo Send.” More...

[ ] Join Us for a Training Session

Learn new techniques for managing your mail and bridge the gaps between the old ways of doing things with new and improved approaches offered by Casper College Google Apps. More...

“Good to Know” Items

There are a few additional items you should know about the migration. Please review so that you are aware of this “Good to Know” information.

[ ] Some Calendar events may not reflect your event response status

You are may find that some of you Calendar Events appear in Google Apps with a “?” This means the Google Apps could not determine if you had accepted the event invitation. More...

[ ] Recurring GroupWise events will appear as multiple, individual events

Your recurring events migrated from GroupWise will appear as multiple, individual events and may not be modified as a group of events. If you need to manage recurring events as a series group, you may opt to reissue the appointments. More...

[ ] “Shared Contacts” are no longer shared

If anyone has shared contacts with you, know that these contacts were migrated as personal contacts. As such they are not dynamically updated based on changes made by the original contact group owner. More…

[ ] Check the privacy settings on your social media accounts

Some third party add-ons for Google Apps can pull information from your personal social media accounts such as Facebook or LinkedIn. While Casper College does not provide these add-ons, individuals are liable to install these add-ons on there own. Check the privacy settings on personal accounts and adjust as you like. More...

[ ] Look out for proprietary GroupWise email addresses

We have found instances where some email is addressed with a proprietary GroupWise format and will not be delivered. An example of such an address format is doej.55W13TH.UCC@newschool.edu. This extra text was automatically added by GroupWise, but Gmail won't recognize these email addresses. More...