Google Apps for Dummies

If you've been wondering why I've been a bit lax on updating my blog in the past few weeks (okay, months), it's because I've been very much involved in school and writing a little book called "Google Apps for Dummies" with my good friend Ryan Teeter. Ryan has emerged as the key authority on this subject, and worked for me at Google, creating their first formal training materials for Google Apps.

So, to quote Ryan, “ I'll blame my complete lack of blog updates to the overwhelming detail and humor that have gone into creating this amazing tome.

“Now, mind you, this book is chock full of random and amazing stuff that will take you cleverly through the epic journey of Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs (word processing, spreadsheet and presentations apps), and Google Talk and help you make the most of these amazing tools. I'm not too biased, of course, having worked as a trainer at Google, so you can expect only the best information and goodness. And if that weren't enough, we even cover the brand new Google Apps Team Edition, which lets you get going right away with Google Apps using your existing company or school email account.

“Don't trust me, though. It's on Amazon.com so it has to be real, right? Expect to see all of the black-and-yellow goodness at your local bookstore this April!”

With Microsoft offering 44 Billion for Yahoo!, something is going on online that we need to pay attention to. Mainly, we need to question the long-term usefullness of the personal computer as technologies, like the iPhone, move these tools to the phone and handheld computers. When this decade-long change takes place, all data and applications will come from an online source – it has to happen that way. So, Google and Yahoo! are on the long-term correct path and Microsoft has to use its wealth to get into the game that will be the reality a decade from now.

Anyway, that’s why I would hope you would take the time to investigate Google Apps. It’s a peek into our future as Business Educators.