#google apps deployment

Last week Google announced another offline capability for Docs and Drive.  In addition to Documents users can now create and edit Presentation Slides.  One-by-one big G is creating a total offline experience for Drive.  They have a lot of resources directed towards this functionality because the competition is a legacy software based application instead of being in the cloud.  This gives Microsoft an advantage in the disconnected world but not in the highly connected world we live and work in.   There are a couple features that aren’t available while offline but you could put together 90% of your composition and then finish up next time connectivity allows.  You lose the ability to insert images or wordart.  Being offline renders you unable to export as or import slides as well as make a copy.  There is a bit of setup involved before using Docs and Drive offline but it takes a few minutes and you are ready to work once you get on that plane or travel through data dead zones.  You must be using Google Chrome or Chrome OS to use Docs and Drive offline.  In the Demo I go through the setup for using Docs and Drive offline as well as creating and editing Documents and Presentations.

Google Apps has been setup for either user based routing or domain-wide routing for a few years now.  This has allowed for flexibility of routing mail during deployment scenarios such as dual-delivery and split-delivery.  Many organizations have wanted to “pilot” Google Apps for short period of time to accustom themselves to the changes and plan on re-configuration of current systems in place.  Over the past 6 months, Google has released a much more granular set of routing controls that allows for extra flexibility in working with dual-delivery and other pre-deployment scenarios.  It also allows for special routing post-deployment as well that can be controlled by admins when needed.  Recently we worked with a company that was using an email system circa 1990’s and had no retention policy in place.  After the arduous task of trying to get as much of their email data into the cloud we were able to setup forwarding so that email was delivered the same as it was before we introduced them to Google Apps.  Most of their staff are from a much older generation that aren’t able to adopt any of Google’s interfaces in such a short period of time.  One really key feature of these new routing controls is the ability to run a granular dual delivery environment and turn users “on” one-by-one.  This is important for organizations that don’t have that IT staff or support system and need that one on one deployment support.  In the following screencast I will be going through and explaining the new Google Apps mail routing controls.  Google will be taking away the old routing controls eventually so this will be important moving forward.

After saving $10k + licensing fees to upgrade their Exchange server and hours of Ian’s time everyday, PMI has not only realized the financial benefits from the decision to “Go Google”.  The staff has taken the initiative and fully accepted the Google Apps method of collaboration and communication.  Before going Google, PMI never really used shared calendars.  Sharing is normal office procedure now and will only increase when Docs and Sites are turned on.  One reason their email quota was fast approaching was because users were constantly emailing attachments back and forth.  Some of these were large technical engineering documents that took up a lot of hard drive space on the mail server each time they were passed on.  Being able to store these documents and any important files in the cloud is catamount to PMI’s mission of eliminating data servers along with the mail server.  Ian’s application development ideas can be brought to life since Google is an open source advocate and even provides hosting for this development.  ValleyApps opened the door and helped PMI walk through it, now Ian and the whole staff are making their way to the cloud with Google Apps for Business providing the lift.

Organization profile The American Frontier Culture Foundation, incorporated in 1982 as a 501(c)3 organization, was formed to raise the funds necessary to acquire, move and reassemble historic farm structures from Germany, England and Ireland to the Frontier Culture Museum of Staunton, Virginia. Today, the Foundation supports current, permanent and temporary exhibits; the acquisition and reconstruction of historic buildings; the reproduction of historic buildings and the preservation of these buildings and artifacts for the Museum. The Foundation provides the museum with educational programs, lectures, workshops, special programs and field trip organization. Business situation In 2011, after years of successful support of the Museum, the Foundation had grown to a size where they needed to procure their own IT services. The team at the Foundation, led by Administrator Fran Carrington, solicited proposals for both a traditional, hosted, legacy-based infrastructure and a cloud-based infrastructure. When they compared the costs, the cloud-based infrastructure was much less expensive, but the promise of cloud computing seemed almost too good to be true. The Foundation, as well as the Museum, had long been experiencing frustration over frequent e-mail disruptions and the constant risk of losing important files and Museum store data that was kept onsite. The Foundation wanted a solution that would provide better reliability and disaster recovery, all at a lower cost. Technical situation The Museum’s Foundation was utilizing a third party IT provider that managed and retained control over all of their hardware and software assets. They relied on Microsoft Outlook as their e-mail platform and were backing up their important files to an on site server. But unreliable systems and almost daily issues made it nearly impossible for the staff at the Foundation to accomplish their strategic goals and even as the budget for the Foundation faced cuts, the costs to their IT provider were growing increasingly expensive. Solution ValleyApps, a Google Apps authorized partner, was chosen to implement a managed cloud services (MCS) solution for the Foundation. ValleyApps provided Enterprise level, cloud based, IT services including messaging and collaboration tools through the Google Apps suite of cloud products. ValleyApps managed the set up, migration and training necessary to transition the American Frontier Culture Foundation to the cloud. Benefits Now safely and securely in the cloud, the Foundation is experiencing unparalleled reliability and zero down time since engaging ValleyApps. All files are backed up automatically and in real time so the Foundation no longer has to worry about losing valuable data. Updates are also done automatically, from the cloud, with no disruption to their daily operations. Most importantly, the Foundation has saved thousands of dollars that can now be used to support their mission. Foundation Administrator Fran Carrington puts it simply, “Now we can come in and just work!” Carrington continues, “At first it seemed too good to be true, to expect more for less, but the promise of the cloud has turned out to be a reality and we could not be happier.” Fran also appreciates the fact that she can call on ValleyApps whenever she needs assistance and they respond quickly and come on site as needed. “Some of us are more computer savvy than others and if I can’t solve an issue I am having, I know I can count on ValleyApps to help out.” Products and services used Google Apps, Jungle Disk, Logmein, Cisco, Google Cloud Connect, and Trend Micro About ValleyApps Managing your business in the cloud is our business. ValleyApps, a woman owned business, specializes in the ability to recommend, deliver and support resilient, secure, cost effective cloud based IT applications and services for any size organization. As a Google Apps authorized partner, we pride ourselves in helping businesses, non-profits and schools realize the reduced costs and improved collaboration that comes with a move to the cloud.

By: Andrew Royer, Vice President, ValleyApps Yesterday Google announced that 14 million students were using Google Apps Education Edition.  They also announced that 61 of the Top 100 Universities rated by US News & World Report were using Google Apps.  Over the summer ValleyApps worked with Mathews County Public Schools in Eastern Virginia to move away from the Legacy Microsoft Exchange email server and into the cloud.  Mathews County IT team, a staff of one, needed guidance and advice on this transition and we were proud to serve Virginia’s schools by providing solutions.  At first the plan was to migrate data to Google Apps and continue to work with Outlook using Google Apps Sync.  We strongly urged MCPS to reconsider this plan and move to the web.  After much thought they made the decision to use Google Apps the way it was meant to be used, on the web.  ValleyApps worked with Bill Vrooman at MCPS to setup dual-delivery for users that remained over the summer and migrate their email, contacts, and calendars so they could continue to work during the summer change-over.  We then focused on teachers and staff that would be returning at summer’s end.  After migrating data for over 200 users and introducing them to their new accounts we went live during the first week of school.  We continue to provide consulting and are planning to deploy accounts for hundreds of students in the coming weeks.  MCPS is also planning on integrating Moodle with Google Apps as well.  We think that after this school year MCPS will fully realize the power of Google Apps and be more collaborative and productive in 2012.  Schools all over the nation are realizing that Google Apps is the premier product for communication, collaboration, and curriculum transparency.  It is also the most economical way for schools to provide this learning environment since licensing is free and administrative cost is so much lower.  Google introduced Chromebooks to us over the summer as well.  ValleyApps sees these as the premier tool for today’s classroom.  If your school has gone Google the decision to deploy Chromebooks in classrooms should be without thought.  Every price point of this device is better than a PC or Mac, from up-front cost to administrative expenses, you could deploy 3 Chromebooks w/ admin support for the price of one deployed PC.  If your child attends a school that has “Gone Google”, as a parent, you should seriously consider a Chromebook as a Christmas gift this year.  If you are an educational institution please contact ValleyApps to learn more about Google Apps for schools and Chromebooks for schools.  Our team is ready and willing to go that extra mile to make sure your students and teachers realize the benefits and advantages of Google Apps for schools.  We provide a wide range of services that cover every aspect of the transition to the cloud.  Do it today, Google is improving and developing new features every minute of every day.