Seven Easy Ways to Integrate Your Google Apps

The information you keep in Google apps like Gmail, GCal, Reader, and Voice doesn't just live in one place. Check out a few easy but non-obvious ways to plug different Google apps together and share their data and features.

Get Your Calendar in Gmail

One of the most useful integrations available for Gmail and GCal users, the Google Calendar gadget puts upcoming events on your email sidebar. To turn it on, just enable the Google Calendar gadget in Gmail Labs. Click on the Options link to configure which calendars you want to display events from, and schedule events directly from Gmail using the gadget's Add link. (Gmail Labs offers lots of other app integrations, like YouTube previews in Gmail, the ability to create a Google Doc from an email conversation, Picasa image previews, Google Docs as well as a Google web search gadget.)

Put Your Gmail Messages on Your Calendar

Gmail Tasks' killer feature is how it can act as a bridge between your email inbox and your calendar. If you add a Gmail message to your Tasks list (just choose 'Add to Tasks' from the 'More Actions' drop-down) and add a due date, that task shows up on your Google Calendar on that date. Even if Gmail's Tasks module isn't your primary to-do list app, this is an easy way to 'schedule' email you don't need to deal with right now but does have a deadline in the future.

Get Google Docs in Your Calendar and Gmail

Courtesy of Google Calendar Labs, you can easily attach Google Docs to any event—like the batting lineup for the company softball game next week. In GCal's Labs area (in Settings), just enable the "Attach Google Docs" feature.

Gmail has had built-in integration with GDocs since back in 2006; any time you have a Word document or spreadsheet email attachment in a message, Gmail gives you an 'Open as a Google Document' link next to it. You can also convert an entire Gmail conversation to a Google Doc by enabling the Gmail Labs' 'Create a Document' feature.

Get Google Profile Feeds in Google Reader

Google's newish Profiles tool offers an interesting integration into Google Reader: the ability to associate people with the feeds they create. When you configure your Google Profile and enter the web sites where you've set up shop, the feeds available for those sites appear on your profile—as well as in Google Reader. When you're following someone in Google Reader, you can easily see their blog and social network feeds alongside their photo and bio thanks to Google Profiles. From the ever-so-specifically-labeled "Browse for Stuff" section in Google Reader, click on the "People You Follow" tab to browse the folks you care about and subscribe to feeds they're creating.

Get Your Google Voice Text Messages via Gmail

Just this morning the Google Voice team added email integration with your text messages. As Kevin reported, you can now get your GV text messages forwarded to your email (Gmail or not) and respond to them from there, without ever touching your Google Voice tab or your phone.

Get All Your Google Apps on iGoogle

You can't mention integrating Google apps without giving iGoogle a nod. GApps addicts' homepage of choice, iGoogle offers Gmail, Google Talk, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Gmail Tasks, and Google Voice gadgets for the ultimate, all-in-one, Google apps jumping-off spot. (In fact, last week during the Gmail outage, iGoogle's Gmail gadget was still working—even when the proper Gmail webapp was down.)

...Not to Mention Integration Add-ons and Your Browser Sidebar

Beyond in-webapp ways to access Google apps data across products, you can also hook up browser extensions like Integrated Gmail or iGoogleBar for Firefox. Alternately, for easy Google apps access no matter what web site you're on, put your browser's sidebar to good use.

What other ways do you use one Google app's data in another? Shout it out in the comments.

Control Where Chrome and Firefox Open Links with Modifier Clicks

The Official Google Chrome Blog highlights three simple but useful shortcuts for controlling exactly what happens when you click a link in Chrome. Incidentally, they also work exactly the same in Firefox, so whichever you prefer, read on for the refresher.

The first, above, opens any link in a new window (not tab) when you hold shift and left-click. (The one modifier click not explicitly mentioned is Ctrl+Click, which opens the link in a new background tab just like middle clicking does.)

Shift+Middle Click (or Shift+Ctrl+Click, since Ctrl+Click is the same as a middle click) will open the link in a new tab, but automatically switch to that tab.

Finally, Alt+Click downloads whatever the link is anchored to directly to your Downloads folder. As I mentioned above, these aren't exactly new—especially if you're a Firefox user (Opera, Safari, and IE all have similar modifier clicks, but they're not all the same)—but it's a good refresher for both the Chrome and Firefox crowd.

Tip: Even more control over opening links [Google Chrome Blog]

Mozilla Releases Firefox 3.5.3 with Security and Stability Fixes

Mozilla pushed Firefox 3.5.3 to servers this afternoon, fixing several security and stability issues. There's nothing terribly exciting in this release, but it's always good to make sure you're using the most stable and secure release, so go to Help -> Check for Updates to upgrade to 3.5.3. If you're really curious, check out the full changelog here. [Mozilla Firefox 3.5.3 Release Notes]

Use a Paper Clip to Power a Remote with One Battery

Easy Remote Control Battery Hack - Funny bloopers are a click away

As commenters at the Metacafe video page point out, using just one battery reduces the range of your remote, and might not work at all with some equipment that requires a certain amount of signal strength to activate. That said, connecting two terminals with an easily-bent paper clip is pretty easy electrical engineering, and it might just save your butt the next time friends are gathered to watch a DVD and your player's remote is one AA short of a full deck.

While you've got your remote open and your DIY cap on, try boosting your remote range with tinfoil, or any of the other remote hacks listed at Wise Bread on the via link.

Google Voice Adds Email Forwarding and Replies to SMS [SMS]

Google Voice's web-based SMS inbox is convenient for frequent texters, but it is, after all, another inbox to tend to. Now, however, you can receive, and even reply to, SMS messages through your email address.

That's convenient on a few different levels. The most obvious is that keeping a Google Voice tab open to track your voice and SMS messages during browsing hours is no longer necessary, as Voice can forward you transcribed voicemail messages with audio attachments and, as of late last night, also forward your SMS messages. The messages arrive from a randomized address at txt.voice.google.com, which makes it nice and easy to set up a new label and filter in Gmail and other mail clients to funnel all your SMS into.

The best part of the SMS emails is that you can reply to them from your email inbox, and they'll appear just as if you'd replied to them from your Google Voice phone number. In Gmail and some other clients, too, that means back-and-forth text messages are wrapped into neat threads, just as they would be on the Google Voice inbox. If you're serious about a single inbox and have regular email access, you could turn off SMS forwarding to your phone and lower, or eliminate, your unlimited texting plan needs.

The one drawback, at least for neatniks, is that the will still sit unarchived in the Google Voice inbox, but if you're devoted to moving your phone messaging life into one inbox, an occasional Select All, Archive isn't too much to ask.

Share some of your clever uses of Voice's SMS-to-email service, or your wishlist for future features (besides, of course, more invites going out) in the comments.

Receive and reply to SMS messages by email [Google Voice Blog]