Tag Archive for: Google Apps for Business

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Google Apps and Google’s New Privacy Policy

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The cloud world is buzzing as Google announced that effective March 1, 2012, it would consolidate more than 60 privacy policies for different services into a single, simplified policy covering all Google services.  Not surprisingly, we are already fielding calls from our Google Apps for Business / Education / Government customers with questions about the impact of the change.

Rest easy.  Here are the answers.

Not Much is Changing

The consolidated privacy policy is not changing how Google collects or uses information with individual services or across services.  The policy is providing a simpler, easier to understand document that is consistent across all services.  Google has also removed components of its existing privacy policies that are redundant with content in the Terms of Service policy for each service, which are also being updated and consolidated into a single, consistent policy.

Note that the Privacy Policy address how Google collects and uses information about individual users, but that the Terms of Service dictate how Google treats content you place or store using Google services.  To understand how your information is protected, you must review both documents.

Public and Free Services versus Business / Education / Government Services

The new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy provide a baseline for all services.  The Terms of Service clearly states that

“Also, in some of our Services, there are terms or settings that narrow the scope of our use of the content submitted in those Services.”

Google Apps for Business, for Education, and for Government all have these additional terms and settings.

Confidentiality in Google Apps for Business / Education / Government

The Terms of Service for Google Apps for Business, for Education, and for Government each define Confidential Information as follows:

“Confidential Information means information disclosed by a party to the other party under this Agreement that is marked as confidential or would normally be considered confidential under the circumstances. Customer Data is Customer’s Confidential Information.

Very simply, the agreement defines all user/customer content in these services as confidential.

The Terms of Service prevent Google from accessing or disclosing customer information without permission and guarantee a standard of care related the security, availability, and privacy of customer information.

Exceptions

There are exceptions when Google may disclose or publicly display Google Apps for Business / Education / Government customers.

  1. A User Marks Content as Public:  If a user marks content as “public” or as “publish on the web”, the user is giving permission to Google and instructing Google to index the content in Google search engine and to make the content available to everyone publicly.   Google Apps administrators can limit user permissions to prevent them from marking content as public.
  2. Required Disclosure:  Per the Terms of Service, Google may “… disclose the other party’s Confidential Information when required by law but only after it, if legally permissible: (a) uses commercially reasonable efforts to notify the other party; and (b) gives the other party the chance to challenge the disclosure.”

Summary

While Google’s consolidation of privacy policies makes for great, sensational headlines, the reality is that their is no material change in how Google addresses information privacy.  For Google Apps for Business, for Education, and for Government customers, there is no change what so ever.

Tuesday Take-Away: File Service Strategies with Google Docs

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As more of our current and future customers move to the cloud, they have greater interest in moving beyond email, calendars, and chat.  More organizations see cloud file services as a way to improve access to information while simplifying IT infrastructure and lowering costs.  These organizations are right on the mark!

For those running Google Apps for Business, Education, or Government, the Google Docs service is a great foundation from which to build an integrated file service.  Here are some considerations and strategies.

Central Ownership

Every user has the ability to use Google Docs to store and share information, and to create a hierarchy of collections (just like folders) to organize and manage files.  When building a file service using Google Docs, you may want to consider central ownership of data that would normally be housed on shared space on a file server.

Central Ownership …

  • Puts all of the “file server” data under “Collections Shared with Me” in all users’ Google Docs screen, providing a consistent interface and experience.
  • Gives administrators control over permissions.
  • Avoids underlying document ownership issues.
  • Provides a central account for managing the amount of storage needed.
  • Further simplifies backup/recovery.

To setup central ownership of your file service, you will need to purchase or dedicate one account as the “file service” account.

Desktop Integration

While Google Docs is pretty good as a productivity suite, many of your users may want or need to continue using legacy desktop solutions.  The good news: you can store any file type in Google Docs; the bad news: opening up a browser to upload files is an intrusive extra step.

Fortunately, you can choose from several inexpensive third party solutions that provide desktop access to Google Docs.  When working with clients to pick the solution, we look to see if they need drive letter access (DLA) service and/or access via Network Places from Windows desktops and/or desktop drive access from Macs.  The solution we recommend will result from these needs and from the amount of local drive space available to cache online data.

Local Cache / Offline Access

By building a solution with a local cache, you can provide users with robust offline access to documents.  Additionally, a local cache lets desktop applications save locally, as they are designed to do, with the files synchronizing to Google Docs in the background.

Learn More

If you want to learn more about building a file server around Google Docs, please contact us directly, visit our web site, or join us for one of our upcoming events.


CumuluSuite for Libraries Launches with More Features and Savings

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In a move designed to help public libraries address increasing dependence on technology in the face of shrinking budgets, Cumulus Global today launched CumuluSuite for Libraries, an E-Rate eligible, integrated email and collaboration solution designed to lower costs and improve communications and collaboration. Based on Google Apps for Government or Business, CumuluSuite for Libraries includes enhanced administration tools, premium support services, and options for data backup and email archive/discovery services. 

“We understand that libraries are struggling with limited budgets at the same time they are looking to benefit from new technologies”, stated Allen Falcon, CEO of Cumulus Global. “We offer libraries options that simplify their IT infrastructure, enhance capabilities, and lower both direct and indirect costs.”

With  the CumuluSuite for Libraries Basic package Libraries get the email, calendar, document collaboration, intranet, and video services of Google Apps bundled with unlimited support for their IT team.  For libraries required to retain emails under public records laws or policies other packages provide for compliant archiving and e-discovery services, as well as backup services for content in Google Apps and social media sites. Tier 2 end user support is optional with all bundles.

“The options help libraries pick a solution that meets their needs and budget”, added Falcon. “Libraries can select the services they need and deploy them without investing in capital equipment and software.  Libraries can also decide if they need the Business or Government editions of Google Apps.”

The window for libraries to apply for fiscal year 2012 E-Rate funding through the Universal Service Administration Company Schools and Libraries program (www.usac.org/sl) opened on January 9th and closes in March. Through the program, libraries may be eligible for discounts and reimbursements of 40% or more. Information about CumuluSuite for Libraries and package options is available at www.cumulusglobal.com/libraries.

About Cumulus Global
Cumulus Global, formerly Horizon Info Services, helps small and mid-size businesses, non-profits, governments, and educational institutions thrive by delivering cloud computing solutions. Serving clients from 1 to more than 1000 employees across numerous industries, we align technology with our clients’ goals, objectives, and bottom lines. We leverage our expertise, vendor relationships, and a diversified range of best-of-breed cloud services to create custom solutions with tangible value.

Cumulus Global is a member of the American Library Association.

Tuesday Take-Away: Smart Distribution Lists

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One of the challenges many of our customers face is managing contacts and distribution lists.  Organizations want to share contact information to avoid duplicate and incorrect information, but need to control who manages the data.  Similarly, many organizations want to build distribution lists for communicating with contacts, but want each contact to only have one record.

For Google Apps, we work with several tools (i.e. Floreysoft) that help you build and share contact information and groups.

For Distribution Lists, Google Apps for Business (Government, and Education) includes Groups.  Originally built to provide secure discussion forums with optional moderation, Groups has evolved into a robust communication and collaboration tool.  Some of the key features in Groups that create smart distribution lists include:

  • Access Security: Control who can manage, view, and belong to the group in order to receive messages.  Access can be given to individuals outside your organization, a great advantage for project teams.
  • Use Security: Control who can use the group, ie send messages to the group, and whether or not the list can be used by email address only (group1@yourdomain.com) or via a web interface.   Access can range from specific individuals to fully public.
  • Delivery Options: Messages can be forward to members as they arrive or in daily or volume-based digest formats.  Users can elect to change this setting to meet their individual job and communication preferences.
  • Nesting: Groups can be members of other groups.  This lets companies create a distribution list hierarchy.  Place a person in the correct group, and they will receive all message for distribution lists “up the chain”.  Schools can easily create email lists for parents and students by class, and then roll them up into grade, school, and district level lists.

With these features, organizations have the ability to place contacts in distribution lists and maintain a single source for managing contact records.

Cumulus Global Launches Chromebook Services

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Boston, MA – December 12, 2011 – Cumulus Global announced a new suite of Chromebook services for schools, non-profits, businesses, and governments.  As a Authorized Chromebook Reseller, Cumulus Global is better able to help organizations integrate the low cost, maintenance free laptops into cloud and legacy computing environments.  In additional to selling the Chromebooks bundled with a powerful management console, Cumulus Global delivers the planning, implementation, migration, training, and support services that ensure a successful deployment.

“We see growing demand from schools, non-profits, and businesses that have stepped into cloud computing and see greater potential”, noted Allen Falcon, CEO of Cumulus Global.  “Both the WiFi and 3G-enabled Chromebooks provide one of the most cost-effective ways to put real computing power in the hands of students and teachers, employees, volunteers, and other cloud-connected users.”

Cumulus Global is partnering with other solution providers to help customers use Chromebooks for more than Google Apps and access to web-based applications.  Terminal services, Virtual Desktop, and tools like AccessNow and the Citrix Receiver for Chromebooks provide users with easy access to traditional desktop and client-server applications.

“With Chromebooks in play, we expect to see new growth in the use of Virtual Desktop Integration (VDI) services”, added Falcon. “The value proposition that many analysts have found missing with VDI services exists with Chromebooks.  The low entry price, built in 3G option, and policy push address the hardware cost, connectivity cost, and management costs head-on.”

Built for cloud connectivity, Chromebooks clear user data and policies after each user session.  Policies reload with each 10-second boot and user login, dramatically reducing the typical overhead in managing system images.

Cumulus Global has a limited number of demonstration systems currently available for loan and trial to school districts subscribed to Google Apps for Education.

For More Information, contact sales@Cumulus Global.com

Tuesday Take Away: Google Apps Caveats and Solutions

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One of the critiques we often hear when speaking with businesses and non-profits hesitant about a move to Google Apps is that Google Apps does not provide a complete computing environment.  And it appears that there are a couple of key factors behind this perception.

  • Many organizations may be able, but are not comfortable, moving from MS Office to Google Docs.
  • Google Apps provides a range of core and additional services, but does not provide a complete computing environment.
  • Google Apps needs to integrate with internal networks and systems.

The best part of these perceptions?  They are all TRUE!

Google Apps for business is a suite of applications and services.  It is not a complete IT infrastructure.  Knowing this, you can plan to overcome these “caveats” with solutions that work.

You Need Backup / Recovery

As we have written in several blog posts (Protect Your Data in the Cloud, DLP in Google Apps), Google protects you data in Google Apps from loss due to network, system, or software failures.  Google cannot, however, protect your data from you (and your users).

Just like your in-house systems, protect your data in Google Apps with a sound backup/recovery solution.  Costs for these services run $3 per user per month or less and are well worth the protection they provide.

Sharing Contacts & Address Books

While sharing contacts and managing a the Global Address Book in Exchange is no picnic, Google did drop the ball on this common business need.  Most businesses have groups of contacts that they want to share and manage across multiple individuals.  The cloud provides and easy structure to do this, but Google did not build an interface for the capability.

Fortunately, we work with a number of third party solutions with a variety of features and capabilities.  Better than a “one size fits all” solution, we can match the tool to each of our customers’ needs.  The costs for these options range from free to a few dollars per month per user.

Users Need to Learn

The last time your users had to re-learn their email and desktop software probably coincided with your most recent “fork lift upgrade” of your email and file servers.  Even then, how many of your users learned about new capabilities rather than focusing on relearning how to do the features they already used?

Unless you choose to run MS Outlook and miss out on many of the great features of Google Apps, your users will need to learn.  Even those with personal Gmail accounts benefit from fully understanding the capabilities of Google Apps for Business (Education / Government).

Google updates Google Apps constantly — every few weeks — with incremental features and capabilities.  Providing on-going learning to your users helps users evaluate and select the new features and capabilities that will benefit their work.

On-going webinars and office hours require coordination and costs can add up.  Integrated, self-paced training with modules that update as Google Apps changes costs less than $1 per user per month.

You Want or Need a File Service

Switching from your current email service to Google Apps and its business version of Gmail is a great first step.   The migration is relatively fast and painless, and users will be more productive.

Moving your shared files from in-house servers to the cloud, however, opens up many more opportunities for collaboration, efficiency, and cost savings.   Without the need to connect remote and mobile users to centralized file servers saves companies hundreds or thousands of dollars on VPN services and licenses.  The ability to share documents, manage changes, and control permissions, gives co-workers and project teams the ability to work together without “losing track” of changes and versions.

The challenge, is how to integrate your existing desktop applications with your cloud storage.  Fortunately, there are a range of tools that integrate applications and provide “drive letter access” (DLA) to the cloud.  The tools vary from one-time purchases to annual subscription services and can be easily matched to your needs.

Now for the Good News

We understand that when moving to the cloud, you want to make sure that the overall computing environment — your ecosystem — provides the same level of service, security, and reliability as your existing in-house solutions (if not better!).

Through the end of 2011, Cumulus Global is offering free trials and will waive our implementation fees for the value-add services that resolve these concerns.

  • Backupify for Google Apps Backup and Restore
  • Floreysoft Share Groups and Dito Directory for contact and address book sharing
  • Gladinet Desktops Professional Edition and other tools for DLA to Google Docs

 

Tuesday Take-Away: Expanded Support for Google Apps

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On Monday, Nov 14th, Google announced a significant expansion of its support services for Google Apps.

Google now provides 24 x 7 phone support to small, medium, and large Google Apps for Business customers for all issues affecting the core services.  Customers may also receive support from Google Apps experts via Google’s web-based support portal, online help forms, and online help center.

These services further augment and support the customized support, training, and related services offered by Cumulus Global and other Google Apps Authorized Resellers.

The expanded support services is one more in a continuing list of service and product enhancements designed to address business owners’ and IT directors’ concerns about moving to Google Apps and cloud computing.  Other recent changes include  SLA and up-time improvements, as well as enhancements such as unthreaded email and read receipts in Gmail, and a scheduled release process.

Tuesday Take-Away: A Google Apps Overview

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You are busy.  Spending an hour in a webinar to learn about cloud computing and why businesses are moving to Google Apps may work for you.

This 3 and 1/2 minute video, however, is a great introduction and overview.

 

Tuesday Take-Away: Google Apps as a SEO Tool

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Search engine optimization (“SEO”) experts will tell you that to improve your “organic”, or unpaid, standing in search results, search engines need to see you web site as relevant.  A major factor for nearly all search engines is how many authoritative sites link to your web site and the amount of authoritative content is available at your site.

Enter Google Apps for Business

As you may or may not know, within Google Apps for Business, you have the ability share information publicly.  When you do this, you are instructing Google to index the information in the global search engine.  You are giving Google authoritative information.

Taking advantage of this feature can improve your SEO results.

Calendar Events:

If you have public events (webinars, seminars, speaking engagements, etc.), create a company events calendar in Google Apps for Business and create a calendar entry for each event.  You can also embed the calendar in your web site.

For each calendar entry, include links to relevant information on your web site such as data sheets or a more detailed description of the event.

Be sure to mark the event “Public” so that the event is indexed by Google.

Documents:

Many web sites include documents — data sheets, white papers, etc. — in PDF format that visitors can download.

Instead of uploading these to your web server, save these in Google Docs and make them public.  Doing so pushes them into the Google search engine for indexing.

Within these documents, include live HTML links back to related content on you web site.  These can be to a product page, a contact us form, and your home page (of course).  Granted, individual that print the PDF files will not benefit from the links.  But those that view them on-screen, and the search engines, can follow those links to your site.

With URL mapping, your content appears to be under your domain and part of your website (i.e. docs.yourdomain.com),  In reality, the content is actually external to you web site.  Links from public information in Google Docs and Calendar provide are authoritative and will be indexed.

Friday Thought: Maybe the Backup Should Be The Primary

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When Hurricane Irene seemed like a bigger threat to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, I started receiving emails with emergency contact information.  From non-profits I work with, organizations to which I belong, businesses I use, and event customers of Cumulus Global.  While some noted likely or planned closing, most were providing alternate means of communication “just in case” power outages caused their email server and phones to go down or be unreachable.

Every single one of these alternate emails ended in @gmail.com. Go figure!  When businesses and non-profits need an email service that will be available during the storm and that can be accessed from phones and tablets as easily as from computers, they turn to Gmail.

In-house email servers are susceptible to power outages, Internet downtime, and other local or regional crises.  Gmail is not.  Gmail runs redundantly across many geographically dispersed data centers.  And while it is easy to seamlessly connect your iPhone, Android, or Blackberry, all you really need is an Internet connection and a browser.

For all of the organizations that went out of their way to tell me about their backup email service, the backup service is more reliable and effective than their in-house system.   Why then wouldn’t they switch?

I’m not talking about Gmail, either.  I’m talking about businesses and non-profits moving to Google Apps for Business and Google Apps for Education, respectively.

For 501c3 non-profits and schools, Google Apps of Education is free.  You get better service and save money.  And, we can help you migrate your data and your team.  Other non-profits are eligible for discounts, contact me and find out more.

For businesses, our Google Apps for Business packages, with end user support, start at less than the equivalent of $10 per user per month.

Think of the benefits of having your email on the most reliable, most accessible communication and collaboration platform available.  Think of your piece of mind know that your organization, its employees, its customers, and its constituents will be able to communicate without jumping through hoops.

Migration is quick and painless.  Email or call us toll free (866-356-1202).  Let’s discuss how we can help you.