Scheduled Release track features update 5/30/12

The following features are now available to domains following the Scheduled Release track:

-Docs: Research pane which allows you to look up information and search from inside your document.
-Gmail: Quick access to contact details: When searching for an email address, the results will now show you contact details in addition to that person's profile photo and the emails sent from and to them. From here, you can start a chat, call their phone and more. Plus, if your contacts have a Google+ profile, this information will stay up to date automatically.
-Gmail: More circle integration and circle search: Users on Google Plus will also now see profile photos of people in their selected circle and circles are now supported in search and filters.
-Contacts: Contacts delegation allows users to delegate full access to the contacts in their “My Contacts” group without granting access to their mail or anything else in their accounts.

The following features are intended for release to these domains on June 5th:
-Gmail: Graduation of the "Nav bar drag and drop" lab, which allows the user to reorder gadgets inside the gadget pane.

Release track:
Scheduled*

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

*Scheduled Release track: Domains with ‘Scheduled Release’ option enabled in the administrator control panel. Learn more.

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Gmail, Contacts, and Google+ integration

Users on Google+ can now manage their contacts more efficiently in Gmail.

- See user details in a new right-hand side box
- Sort Gmail messages and Contacts by Circle
- Google+ contact information is automatically updated to users in shared circles
- Users can easily share images in Gmail messages to Google+
- See details from your Google Contacts when you view someone's Google+ profile

Release track:
Rapid or Scheduled

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

Languages included:
All languages supported

For more information:
http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/gmail-and-contacts-get-better-with.html
https://plus.google.com/101994211282765276238/posts/aafrYUxx1Ee

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Scheduled Release track features update 2/28/12

The following features are now available to domains following the Scheduled Release track:
- No new features to announce

The following features are intended for release to these domains on Mar 6:
- Contacts: Google Contacts integration with profiles and Google+ circles

- Presentations: New presentations editor is now the default editor, also has discussions just like in Docs

- Spreadsheets: Menu options are now supported in right-to-left languages

Release track:
Scheduled

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

*Scheduled Release track: Domains with ‘Scheduled Release’ option enabled in the administrator control panel. Learn more.

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Google Contacts integration with profiles and Google+ circles

The following features which were previously launched in Gmail, are now available to Google Apps users:

- Connected profiles. If your contact has a Google profile, their contact entry will be updated with the profile information they’ve shared with you, including phone numbers, email addresses and more. If they change it in the future, you’ll get those updates automatically. (This has worked for profiles internal to the domain for quite some time, but now we've enabled it for profiles external to the domain as well.)

- Circles in Contacts. If you are a Google+ user, your circles will appear in your contact list, making it easier for you to view the contact information for all of the members of a circle in one place

Release track:
Rapid

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

Languages included:
All languages supported by Gmail

For more information:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/gmail-and-contacts-get-better-with.html

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Browse the Google Apps directory from within Gmail Contacts

Users can browse the entire Google Apps directory for their domain from within Contacts without having to search. This is especially useful when a user doesn’t know the exact name or spelling of the person they’re looking for or wants to see a complete list of contacts for their domain in alphabetical order. Just click “Directory” in the left sidebar from within Contacts in Gmail to get started.

Release track:
Rapid*

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

How to access what's new:
- To enable / disable the ability to browse the Google Apps directory, enable / disable Contact Sharing: Control Panel -> Settings -> Contacts -> Enable / Disable contact sharing.
- To hide specific users (or resources) from being visible to other users from within Contacts: Control Panel -> Organization and Users -> User information -> Contact Sharing checkbox.
- To set the Google Apps directory to be alphabetized by first or last name: Control Panel ->Settings -> Email -> Name format.

- Reload Gmail
- Go to "Contacts"
- In the left sidebar, click "Directory", above "New Group..." at the bottom.
- Browse by using either the next/prev arrow buttons or open the drop down to the left of the next/prev arrow buttons to jump directly to a specific alphabetical range.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?answer=1628008

*Rapid Release track: Domains with ‘Rapid release’ checkbox enabled in the administrator control panel. Learn more

New look available for Gmail, Calendar, Docs and Sites! Find out more at whatsnew.googleapps.com/new-look

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Hide users from the domain’s contact list? Now also possible with the Google Apps Profiles API

Administrators have the ability to hide a user’s contact information from the rest of the domain even if contact sharing is enabled. This was previously only available using the administrator control panel.

This can now be done programmatically via the Google Apps Profiles API.

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

For more information:
http://googleappsdeveloper.blogspot.com/2011/08/unshare-domain-users-contact.html
http://code.google.com/googleapps/domain/profiles/developers_guide.html

New look on the way for Gmail, Calendar, Docs and Sites! Find out more at whatsnew.googleapps.com/new-look

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Ability to hide nicknames from the global address list now available in the Control Panel

Google Apps administrators now have the option to hide nicknames from the global address list/autocomplete. They can choose one of the following options:

- Show all email addresses
- Hide nicknames
- Hide the primary email address if the user has a nickname

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

Languages included:
US English Only (Next Generation Control Panel)

How to access what's new:
In the administrator control panel, select “Domain Settings”, then “User Settings” and “Contact Sharing” to access the new options.

Note:
- The setting can take up to 24 hours to propagate.
- Email addresses based on domain aliases will not be affected by this setting - they will continue to be hidden.
- Email addresses that the user already has in their contact list will not be affected by this setting - they will continue to appear in autocomplete unless that contact is manually deleted.
- This setting also controls whether nicknames will appear in Contacts search and Contacts details view.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?answer=60218

whatsnew.googleapps.com
Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

New Contacts interface and business-specific features for Google Apps

This release of Contacts brings all of the improvements that were previously available to consumer users.

The following business-specific features have also been added to help you and your colleagues get in touch with contacts more easily. You can now:
- Add new contact information that will default to “Work” instead of “Home” field types.
- View domain directory contact details interwoven inline with any contact details you’ve added yourself.
- Add contacts from the domain directory to your “My Contacts” list in a single click.
- Manage groups more easily by quickly adding email addresses to groups, and picking from a contact’s multiple email addresses to use on a group-by-group basis.
- Revert changes to your Contacts for up to 30 days in case you need to restore deleted or merged contacts, or undo an import.

Note: These improvements do not affect the standalone version of Contacts outside of Gmail but we hope to make them available soon.

Editions included:
Google Apps, Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

Languages included:
Administrator Control Panel: US English Only (Next Generation)
Gmail: All languages supported by Gmail

How to access what's new:
- To see the new Contacts interface, admins must opt-in in the administrator control panel to enable the new Contacts features.
- In the administrator control panel, go to ‘Services’, then ‘Contacts' and select the checkbox ‘Preview the new contact manager in Gmail’.

Note: In order to see the opt-in checkbox, the control panel must be set to the ‘next generation’ version which is US English only.

For more information:
http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com/2011/02/get-in-touch-faster-with-new-gmail.html


Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Google Apps shared contacts, now with double the capacity

Domains using the shared contacts functionality can have up to 50,000 entries, up from 25,000. Shared contacts are part of the organization’s global address list (GAL), and these contacts auto-complete across Google Apps.

We also made updates to the Shared Contacts API to make uploading much more quicker.

Editions included:
Google Apps for Business, Government and Education

How to access what's new:
- Information on the Shared Contacts API

For more information:
http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com/2010/11/google-apps-shared-contacts-now-with.html
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=138760

Ideas for Tasks! If you're using Tasks, you've probably thought about something you'd like us to improve or an additional feature you wish you had. We really want to hear your ideas - whether they're for Tasks in Gmail, in Google Calendar, or on your phone.

For the next few weeks, we're running a poll for Tasks feature requests. Admin feedback is very important to us, so if you have a few minutes, please visit this product ideas page and vote to help us improve Tasks functionality for you and your users.

Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

New ability to remove/include individual users from contact sharing

Administrators now have the ability to remove individual users from appearing in contact sharing when that option is enabled. Contact sharing is also sometimes referred to as the global address list.

Editions included:
Premier and Education Editions

Languages included:
US English

How to access what's new:
- In the Google Apps control panel, click the ‘Users and groups’ tab, then click on the individual user’s name to access the user’s settings.
- Under ‘Contact sharing’, disable/enable the checkbox to remove/include the user from appearing in contact sharing.
- If contact sharing is enabled, then the user’s contact information is shared by default.
- If contact sharing has not been enabled, then this new option will not be visible.

Note: The control panel needs to be the ‘Next generation’ version.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=60218

Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Google Sync Beta - Now for S60

We love to hear user feedback and one of the most common questions we get is, "When is this coming out for my phone?" Well, for those of you who have been asking about Google Sync for mobile on your Nokia S60 smartphone, we're happy to announce that you can now synchronize your Google Contacts and Calendars with your mobile device.

Google Sync offers two-way, over-the-air contacts and calendar synchronization. This means that you can make changes to your contacts and calendar on your phone or in your desktop Google account. Since Sync uses push technology, the changes should automatically appear within minutes. And your information is constantly syncing, so it's up-to-date and securely stored within your Google account, even if you lose your phone.


Please note: Google Sync for S60 requires Nokia software to be installed on the phone. We also recommend backing up your calendar and contacts before setting up Sync. To find out more about setting up Google Sync on Nokia S60 phones, please visit our help center.

To try Google Sync, visit m.google.com/sync from your desktop.

Posted by Jon Skeet and Douglas Gresham, Software Engineers, Google Mobile

Google Sync Beta for iPhone, WinMo and SyncML Phones

One of the hardest parts about switching phones is getting your address book and calendar to your new device. We're making that process a little easier by releasing a beta version of Google Sync for the iPhone and Windows Mobile phones as well as a contacts-only version for phones that support SyncML.

For iPhone and Windows Mobile devices, Google Sync allows you to get your Gmail Contacts and Google Calendar events to your phone. Once you set up Sync on your phone, it will automatically begin synchronizing your address book and calendar in the background, over-the-air, so you can attend to other tasks. Sync uses push technology so any changes or additions to your calendar or contacts are reflected on your device in minutes. The connection is always on so you don't have to manually sync your phone after Sync has been set up. This means that when your colleague changes the time of the TPS report cover sheets meeting, you'll know about it right away.

Since Sync is a two-way service, you can make changes on your phone or in your Google Account. Your calendar and contacts are always up-to-date, no matter where you are or what you're doing. Also, since your data is automatically backed up to your Google Account, it's securely stored even if you lose your phone.

For devices that support the open SyncML protocol, Google Sync will allow for two-way contacts synchronization. If you're a BlackBerry user, a version of Google Sync is already available.



Following the Google credo to launch early and iterate, we're introducing Sync in beta. We encourage you to visit our Help Center to review device specific instructions and known issues. Also, please keep in mind that Google Sync may remove all existing contacts and calendar events from your phone, so make sure to back up any important data before you set it up. You can find more information on backing up in the Help Center.

To try Sync out, visit m.google.com/sync

Posted by Bryan Mawhinney, Software Engineer, Google Mobile

Administrative management of non-employee contacts now available

Premier Edition administrators can now add contacts that aren't employees of their own company to the contact list that each user can access in the new standalone contact manager. These shared contacts are managed with the Shared Contacts API.

Editions included:
Premier Edition

Languages included:
US English

How to access what's new:
Administrators can learn more about how to manage shared contacts that aren't employees of their own company through the Shared Contacts API documentation. (See link below.)

For more information:
http://code.google.com/apis/apps/shared_contacts/gdata_shared_contacts_api_reference.html

Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Standalone contact manager available

Administrators of all editions can now allow users to access their contacts outside of Gmail with the new standalone contact manager. Premier Edition is required for the standalone contact manager to include shared contacts from outside of the organization.

Editions included:
Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions

Languages included:
All languages supported by Gmail

How to access what's new:
To enable the standalone contact manager, sign in to the control panel, click 'Add more services', and enable the 'Contacts' service. A new 'Contacts' link will then begin to appear for users in the row of links at the top left of each application.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?answer=134378

Get these product update alerts by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed of these updates

Contact sync for BlackBerry now available

BlackBerry users can now synchronize their BlackBerry's built-in address book with their Google Apps contacts. Two-way sync happens automatically over the air.

Editions impacted:
Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions

Languages impacted:
US English

How to access what's new:
To use Google Sync or upgrade from the older version, visit m.google.com/sync from your BlackBerry browser.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/mobile/blackberry/sync.html

Get these updates by email
Subscribe to the RSS feed

Google Sync for BlackBerry: Now with contacts

You asked for it, so here it is. We're happy to announce that in the latest update to Google Sync for BlackBerry, we've added two-way contacts synchronization. This new functionality will enable you to sync your handheld's built-in address book with your Gmail contacts. This all happens in the background and over the air, so your information is always up to date, no matter where you are or what you're doing.

Once you've installed Sync, all your information will be safe in your Google account. If you ever lose your phone or buy a new one, getting your address book and calendar to your new device is as easy as installing Sync. Current and new Google Sync users can try Google Sync today by visiting m.google.com/sync from their BlackBerry browser.

Posted by Marcus Foster, Product Manager, Google Mobile

Improved contact manager features in Gmail

Gmail now automatically adds people that you corresponded with to 'Suggested Contacts'. You can move people you correspond with regularly to 'My Contacts'. Gmail's address auto-complete feature works for all of your contacts, whether they're in 'My Contacts' or 'Suggested Contacts'.

Furthermore, to ensure that only the right contacts are synced with your mobile device in the future, Gmail is moving previously auto-added contacts in 'My Contacts' back into 'Suggested Contacts'. Only contacts that you've moved to 'My Contacts', edited, imported or added to a group will remain in 'My Contacts' for syncing.

Editions impacted:
Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions

Languages impacted:
US English

How to access what's new:
Sign in to Gmail and click 'Contacts' to manage 'My Contacts' and 'Suggested Contacts'.

For more information:
http://mail.google.com/support/bin/topic.py?topic=12867

Google on Android: Gmail and Contacts

On September 23, T-Mobile announced the world's first Android-powered phone, the G1. The phone comes preloaded with Search, Maps, Gmail with Contacts, Calendar, Google Talk, and YouTube. The applications are easy to use, fully synchronized with the web, and work together in new and innovative ways, as explained in our first post in the blog series: 'Google on Android'. Over the next couple of weeks, we will put the spotlight on each one of the Google applications for Android. Today: Gmail and Contacts. -- Marc Vanlerberghe, Product Marketing Director.

As an engineer on mobile, part of my job includes testing multiple phones. Having to add and update contacts whenever I get a new phone is one of my least favorite things to do. Switching phones is such a hassle in no small part because manually adding my friends' contact information takes so much time.

In the early days of developing Gmail and Contacts for Android, the team set a clear goal to make this problem disappear once and for all. We envisioned a world where your various computers and phones would always be in sync without needing discipline, USB cables, Bluetooth, and synchronization software.

It occurred to us that the best way to synchronize these various pieces of information is to let the device do it on its own while you're not looking, so you never have to think about it. Once you've logged into your Google account on an Android-powered phone it automatically synchronizes all your contacts and Gmail information so everything is always available, regardless of where you are and whether you have cell coverage. Since all your contacts and mail are backed up to the network, they will still be available if you get a new phone or just have multiple phones.



You will also find that Gmail on Android preserves all the nice functionality that you are used to on your desktop, such as starring, archiving, assigning and reading labels, and the conversation view that makes reading email on Gmail so pleasant. You can also configure which labels you want to synchronize to your phone and how much data you want there. More than ever, you are in control of the data that you want to find on your phone. Gmail even syncs your drafts so you can begin a message on the phone and send it from the web, or vice versa. With push email, Gmail offers real-time, two-way synchronization of your email, notifying you of new e-mails even when you're using another application.



Of course, your contacts list in Gmail also syncs to the phone, and any changes you make on the phone sync to your contacts list on the web.

Because this synchronization works in both directions, you can add a contact on the web and almost immediately use it to call the person from your phone. Once you get used to automatic synchronization, you'll wonder how you could ever live without it. We certainly became addicted to it, and we hope you will too!

To learn more about Gmail on the world's first Android-powered phone, visit the Gmail blog

Posted by: Fred Quintana, Software Engineer, Android Team

Google on Android

At Google, we develop products that we love to use ourselves. For example, we're avid users of Search, Gmail, Maps, and many others. But for those of us in mobile, it's tough. Not all products work the same on all devices, and although we try and optimize for each device, we often run into challenges specific to certain mobile phone platforms. I, for one, used to carry three devices with me all day. I love my iPhone for its powerful browser and music player. I use my BlackBerry for Gmail and Calendar (and occasionally Brick Breaker), and I carry a Nokia N-series phone because of its camera and YouTube application.

The first Android-powered phone, announced today by T-Mobile, comes 'with Google'. The following Google applications are preloaded on the device: Search, Maps, Gmail with Contacts, Calendar, Google Talk, and YouTube. There are a few things I'm particularly excited about:

• Easy to use. It's never been easier to use Google on your phone. With single sign-in, you can log in to your Google account and have instant access to all your favorite Google products. No messing around with settings, your login never expires, and everything just works. If you don't have a Google account yet, you can set one up on your phone and be up and running in seconds.
• Fully synchronized. Your emails, contacts, calendar entries, Google Talk chats are fully synchronized with Gmail and Calendar on the web. New events are pushed in real-time to your phone and any changes you make on-the-go are immediately available on the web. If you ever lose or break your phone, all your data is safe and secure in the cloud.
• Designed to work together. Search is now available as a feature in many applications, including non-Google ones, such as the music player. While you're listening to a song -- like something from Depeche Mode -- just 'long-press' the artist's name. You'll see a menu pop up that let's you search Google for the Depeche Mode Wikipedia entry, or search YouTube for the music video. The contact application lets you see your friend's IM status, view his address on a map, and communicate with him using Gmail or Google Talk. And, of course, you can call or text him as well.

Check out the video below to see these features in action:



The Google applications on Android take full advantage of the features of the Android platform. Gmail is built on 'embedded WebViews', the real-time push features and synchronization use the multi-tasking capabilities of the platform, and the integration between applications relies on the 'Android Application Framework'.

We're kicking off a new blog series, called 'Google on Android'. Over the next couple of weeks, we will dig deeper into each one of the Google applications available for Android, and at the end of the series, I'll let you know whether I've decided to switch phones or switch to pants that let me carry four phones instead of three.

Posted by Marc Vanlerberghe, Product Marketing Director

Gmail supports easier access to contacts when composing a message

When composing a message in Gmail, users can now just click the 'To:' link to access Gmail's contact list. Before, the Gmail contact list was available through a link labeled 'Choose from contacts'. Contact sharing must be enabled in the control panel for this feature to appear.

Editions impacted:
Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions

Languages impacted:
US English

How to access what's new:
To select recipients from your contact list when composing a message in Gmail, click the 'To:' link next to the box for recipient addresses. Similar 'Cc:' and 'Bcc:' links are available if you click 'Add Cc' or 'Add Bcc'. Contact sharing must be enabled in the control panel for this feature to appear.

For more information:
http://www.google.com/a/help/intl/en/users/gmail.html