Better Family Communications
Google.com has a new service called Google Apps. It allows groups like ours to choose Google's services (email, chat, document sharing, personal web pages, etc.). The setup to do this would only cost $10 for ALL of us, which I'll gladly pay out of my own pocket if there's enough interest. You wouldn't have to lift a finger to sign up because I would do that for you.
For example, I can sign up the domain name wilsonbingham.com with Google. Then I can give each of you email accounts at that domain such that, say, Bruce Young's email address would be something like bruceyoung@wilsonbingham.com. Mine would be robwatson@wilsonbingham.com. My wife's would be shannonwatson@wilsonbingham.com and so forth.
Additionally, everyone could just keep sharing with other people the email addresses they already have. That's because through this one wilsonbingham.com account, you are allowed to check and send email through up to five other email accounts. You just tell Google how to check your other e-mail accounts and then all of that email flows right into your single Google account. (Some email providers do charge a fee for Gmail to access your inbox. Yahoo charges $1.66/month.)
It's easy to switch because you don't even have to tell other people what your new email address is. When you send or respond to emails, you can tell Google to make it so that when people reply to your message, they will be replying to an older address, if that's what you want them to see. (This part is free from Google.)
For example, if Bruce's old address was bruceyoung@hotmail.com and he writes an email to someone using his new Google email account, they would never know the difference. Whenever they reply, it will say bruceyoung@hotmail.com at the top of the e-mail, as if he had never moved to another address.
Bottom Line: You could easily never have to remember how to log in to multiple e-mail accounts again.
Chat
Calendar
Personal Web Sites
Ever wanted to create your own web page for a business or to show off your kids or grandkids? Google has made it so simple. You don't need to know anything other than how to type and how to use a mouse. This feature would also be a part of our Google Apps Family account.
Photo Sharing
Picasa, which is also a Google service, allows you to upload hundreds of photos to the web to share privately or publicly, according to your preferences of whom you want to view them. I've set up a slideshow in a public album to demonstrate.
Documents & Spreadsheets
Easy Access
So, What Do You Think?!
Would you personally use a Google Apps setup for simplifying family communications? I'd like to hear from at least 10 people to get this started. Then we can work on inviting others to join in the fun. I won't take a "no" personally, so don't worry. Please reply in the comments section below with a yes or a no, and any other comments you have about it.
1 Comments:
yes. i'm willing to try this.
mom
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