Google Apps – IT in the clouds

1. GoogleApps – IT intheclouds IMAGINE, Croatia Marijan Juresic Memberof: Association of youth information centers Croatia &

2. Imagine The organization was established in May of year 2005 with a goal of promoting quality education for young people with disabilities. The organization make people who work on projects for young people with disabilities and young individuals with disabilities between 15 and 29 as well, the organization operates all across Croatia.

3. Thedelegationof ZAMISLI organization Zamisli organization is an association for young people which is acting on promoting possibilities for young people with disabilities and influences on providing quality to their life and education through programs of educating, informing and counseling, technical support, international cooperation and pointing at different needs of young people with disabilities

4. We are developingthroughfiveprograms: • 1. Technical support for young people with disabilities • Organized transportation for educational needs of young people with disabilities in Zagreb and its district • Adaptation of literature for blind (or people with sight disability)people in schooling • Assistants for students with disabilities • 2. Informingand counseling throughout the project • YouthInformationCenter • Office for young people with disabilities • 3. Program of non-formal education through projects • Club for young people with disabilities in Zagreb and Rijeka • Summer camp for young people with disabilities • Social actions of young people with disabilities • 4. I listen, therefore I see is a program of adjusting drama art for blind people • Adjustment of movie theater projections for blind people • 5. Program of advocacy is being developed through social actions

5. Background Young organisation with motivated young people needed platform for developing projects, sharing informations, opportunities and collaborating. The platform needed to be accessible for all, from everywhere 24/7 There was no fundings to implement expensive small bussiness systems

6. Mission impossible Blindpeople are using Internet? Professional platformfreeofcharge? Withouthaving IT team? Impossible

7. Google Apps Beta program • 2008. weentered beta program • Becauseofthatwe are allowed to haveupto 200 accounts for free (normally 50 accounts) • 2009. westarted to actually use thisplatform • Decisionsthatwemadebeforewestarted to use platform: • Who willbe administrator? • Sharingpolicy • Who willgetaccountfromthebeginning? • Do weunderstand how itworks? • Namingofaccounts

8. Sharing policy This is one ofthe most importantstepsintoimplementingcloudapplications First rule: do notshareifit is notnecessary Secondrule: Project documents are sharedonly to peoplewithinthatproject, noteveryone Third rule: do notshareoutsideoforganisationdomain General informationaboutorganisation are sharedwitheveryone (tillnowthereare 3 documentsthat are sharedwithwholedomain)

9. What is it? Google Apps is a collection of web-based programs and file storage that run in a web browser, without requiring users to buy or install software. Users can simply log in to the service to access their files and the tools to manipulate them.

10. What is it? (2) • Theofferingsincludecommunicationtools • Gmail, • GoogleTalk, • andGoogleCalendar • Productivitytools • GoogleDocs: textfiles, spreadsheets, formsandpresentations, • a customizable start page (iGoogle), • GoogleSites (to develop web pages)

11. How does it work? All of the applications in Google Apps work through a web browser. Users must have a Google account and, once logged in, can access familiar—if scaled-down—functionality for word-processing,calendaring, chat, and other tools.

12. Why is it significant? Google Apps is significant particularly for non-profit organizations, and higher education, the notion of providing software as services rather than as products offers several key benefits. Such an approach transfers responsibility for software updates and maintenance away from the institutional IT department, freeing IT staff from a considerable amount of software support.

13. GMail • Commonquestion: „I havealreadyGmail, I do notneedsecondgmailaccount” • GmailBusinessalsoincludes: • chat/callinsideorganisation • Sharingcontacts • Branding • Available to havenicknames for example: James.Bond@yourdomain.comandagent007@yourdomain.com

14. Mailing groups There is availability to make allias for group of accounts, so the communicating would be easier

15. Starting page (customizable)

16. Calendar • Creating: • private events, • public events • events visible to organisation members only • Inviting others (inside and outside of organisation) to some event and most important of all collect information if they accepted or not.

17. Calendar (creating event)

18. Calendar • Reminders on events: • Via e-mail • Via SMS (free!) • Via pop-up on screen

19. Calendar (creating event)

20. Google Docs Allowbasicformattingoftextdocuments but withouthigher-levelfunctionsfoundintraditionalsoftware. Spreadsheetssupportformulasandsimplefunctions. Presentationallow to presentdirectlyto web, whereit is available to restrictpresentation for organisation or makeitpublicavailable Forms are here to collectinformationandsaveitintospreadsheet Eachfile has a creator/owner, whodetermineswho is allowed to accessthe file either as a viewer (withread-onlyrights) or a collaborator (whocan change the file).

21. Google Docs BecauseGooglestores all ofthefilesandcontentcentrally, collaborationanddocumentmanagementbecome far simplerthanwhendistributingfiles to multiplepeopleandkeepingtrackofdifferentversions. For a textdocument, for example, theapplicationmaintainsthe file, allowingauthorizedusers to see or editthetextwhilekeepingtrackof all thechangesandwhomakesthem. Thisversionhistory is availableandallowscomparinganytwoversionsofthedocument.

22. Google Docs

23. Collecting information 2 3 1 4

24. Collecting information (2)

25. Google Forms • Easy to create (aprox. 5-15 min) • 7 typesofquestionsavailable • Storing dana intospreadhseetswherewecananalyzedata • Notifications on collected dana • Notificationwhen dana is entered • Notificationperanalysis • Accessible for blindpeople!

26. Google Forms

27. Google Sites • Easy to make with WYSIWYG desing mode • Available gadgeds like • Google Calendar, Google Docs, dynamic google spreadsheets… • We didn’t yet implemented into our projects google sites, planned for 2011.

28. Google Sites

29. Google Apps Mobile • Available on smarthphones • Two way sync of: • contacts, • private calendar and • e-mail

30. Downsides? ThegreatestconcernaboutGoogleAppsandsimilar services is thelossofcontrol Becauseaccessrights are sharedacrosstheservice, usersrely—to some extent—on how carefullyothersprotecttheirlogincredentials. For users, themenusandtools are notconsistentfrom one application to another, andapplicationsrunningoverthe web do not work as smoothlyandpredictably as thoserunninglocally

31. Different approach • To implement google apps as a second domain for working with: • volonteers, • youth workers not closely related to organisation or • people that won’t be in organisation for a long time

32. Movie time 

33. Cloud computing

34. ThankYou !Questions?

35. Contact IMAGINE: UDRUGA ZAMISLI Ulica grada Vukovara 68 CRO-10000 Zagreb e-mail: ured@zamisli.hr www.zamisli.hr