Google Apps Tip – Better Searches = Better Results

With the Internet expanding with more and more information at an incredible rate, a essential skill required for accessing this data is the ability to command the full power of a search engine. While a search engine has rules and algorithms to try and give you the best results you are looking for, it is [...]

Website of the Week: Yong’s China Quest Adventure (Gr. 1-7)

Yong’s China Quest Adventure – An interactive learning game Yong’s China Quest provides an interactive approach to learning about China and Chinese culture. While the site is more game than academic, students will be exposed to bits and pieces of information on clothing, figurines, and weaponry as they try to solve puzzles. Where the real [...]

Google Apps Tip – Canned Responses

Do you remember those rubber stamps you could use to quickly mark a bill as being paid or print the words, “Great Job!” on a student worksheet? Wouldn’t it be nice if we had a rubber stamp for replying to some emails? Enter the Canned Responses lab by Chad P. This lab allows you to [...]

Website of the Week: Instagrok (Gr. 3-12)

Instagrok – A new way to learn Instagrok is a new twist on the traditional search engine that utilizes a visual mind map and a sorting outline that organizes results into facts, sites, videos, images, and even quizzes. In the mind map view, clicking on one of the satellite concepts will expand the map to [...]

Google Apps Tip – Apps Status Dashboard

A while back I shared a tool that allows you to check if a website is truly down or if it is just you (Is It Just Me? on 1/8/2012). Did you know that there is a similar service available that checks the up/down status of 13 different Apps provided by Google? Enter the Apps [...]

Google Apps Tip – Unread Message Icon

This neat little lab, created by Manu C, adds a small numerical counter to the Gmail icon visible on the browser page tab. This way, even if you are working on another website in another tab, you can quickly take note of whether or not you have received any new mail in your inbox. Please [...]

Google Apps Tip – Signature Tweaks

One of my big irritants when I started using Gmail was when I would reply to an email. My cursor would be waiting at the top of the box for me to begin typing, but my saved signature would be inserted at the very, very bottom of the email response after all of the quoted [...]

Google Apps Tip – Historical Imagery

Historical Imagery – Using Google Earth to see change over time Historical Imagery is a fantastic, yet often overlooked tool found in the free application Google Earth. This tool allows the user to view a location on the planet at different points in time thanks to Google periodically updating its maps with newer satellite images. [...]

Google Apps Tip – Printing in Gmail

If you’ve ever tried to print a webpage, then you know that the document that comes out rarely conforms neatly to an 8 1/2″ by 11″ piece of paper. This problem can be doubly troublesome when trying to print messages from Gmail…that is, if Google hadn’t already planned for such situations. Print an Email Conversation [...]

Google Apps Tip – Undo Send

First Class email users will remember fondly the option to undo a sent email long after the send command had been given. Google has an Undo option built-in to Gmail as well…it just last only a few seconds. Frankly, I’m not always fast enough to use it. Enter the Undo Send lab, created by Yuzo [...]