Ronnie Bincer @ Google+

New Thumbnails for Live Hangouts on Air!

Sat, 18 May 2013 04:57:51 +0000

New Thumbnails for Live Hangouts on Air!

Just noticed new Thumbnails in the stream for our HOA shows! In the not too distant past we had generic thumbnails in the Google Plus Stream (They were Grey/Black with the words Hangouts on Air).

Now we can actually see some of the content of the live show via a thumbnail... Halleluja!

Here is the link to that show from which I grabbed the screenshot below:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/102898672602346817738/posts/jCLot4KnwnY
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Is this the new HOA Interactive model?

Sat, 18 May 2013 02:53:25 +0000

Is this the new HOA Interactive model?

I'm a fan of running HOA shows (Hangouts on Air) packaged inside Google+ Events. +Dan McDermott is running his show this evening and has invited a group of folks to participate in new ways via the new Hangouts Interface shown below.

The HOA is streaming live, if you are on the 'guest list' you can jump into the live HOA video call any time there is an open spot in the HOA's filmstrip via the Green Bar shown here, and add your text comments amongst the 'show guests' at any time as well.

I think the Events' model still is a good one because people (that may not be guests on the 'inside' guest list) can interact and re-visit the show (before, live or after) but this may work well for an "insider's group" as well.

What do you think?
Don't forget the /ponies ;-) - - -

Starting Hangouts on Air with the New Google Plus

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:21:35 +0000

Starting Hangouts on Air with the New Google Plus
HOA Tips

Watch this short video to see how you start HOA (Hangouts on Air) now after the New Google Plus 3.0 has been released.

Things have changed!
HOA and regular Hangouts (video calls) are now separated to their own areas... you don't just check a box now to start one vs. the other.

Helpful tips from The Hangout Helper!
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Starting Hangouts on Air with the New Google Plus

Gmail and Google Calendar Automagical Activity!

Fri, 17 May 2013 13:06:42 +0000

Gmail and Google Calendar Automagical Activity!

Maybe this has been around for a bit, maybe not, but it is Awesome! +MaAnna Stephenson sent me an email about a webinar she is doing... I read the email inside Gmail, that email had a date and time in the text: Wed May 22 at 12:00 noon EDT

Gmail turned that text into a Link, and when I clicked on it, it popped up what you see below. It let me see that time Translated to my local timezone as well as showed me my other appointments in my Google Calendar... PLUS it let me add an entry to my calendar without ever leaving Gmail.

That's what I call Automagical Stuff!
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New Hangout Tips

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:29:18 +0000

New Hangout Tips... Click to see who is in the Hangout

When you start a Hangout (upper right) you can start things out as a Message or a Video Call or Both.

This one shows the message chat going on, and if you click (No. 1) on the person icon, the one with a 2 next to it for the number of folks in the 'hangout', you can see who is involved in the 'Hangout' as shown below (No. 2).

Since I was in the Video Call waiting on +Stephanie Calahan to join me, you can see my thumbnail image (on the right) and my icon in the Green Bar that states "You are in this video call".

BTW, when you check to see who is inside the Hangout (No. 2), the bottom shows a Cancel or Add people button... this lets you add more people to the hangout message area (maybe to the video call too?).. Cancel means bring me back to the No. 1 view.

Question for +Google+ Help or anyone else that knows: If I were to add more people to the Hangout via No. 2, would that also invite them into the Hangout's Video Call?
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What's a Hangout: Started with the Message

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:14:32 +0000

What's a Hangout: Started with the Message... turned into a Video Call

The New Google Plus Terminology has some of us old timers wondering what happened! So here is a tip on what Hangouts can do now (as it relates to the old way).

This screen shot shows myself and +Paul Simbeck-Hampson in a quick meeting... It started out via a Hangout Message and then we decided to ramp it up a bit and continue it inside a Hangout Video Call... what most of us have been calling a "hangout".

I've noticed that if I leave the Video Call (on purpose or by accident) that I can click on the Green Bar up top of the Hangout Window and get back in (looks and feels like Chat)... not the Video Call window, but the "Hangout" Window!

Yes... this will take some time to get used to!
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New Posting Tips: HashTag Focus

Thu, 16 May 2013 23:14:34 +0000

New Posting Tips: HashTag Focus
The New Google Plus treats #Hashtags differently

Google Plus now displays the first 3 hashtags you used in a post as Related Hashtags - they show in the upper right of the post. Click on one of them and the post Flips Around and then shows you other posts that use that same hashtag.

You can scroll through the list of related posts if you like... great way to discover other related postings.

So...
If you use more than 3 of them in your postings, you might want to use the most important ones first as they are the only ones displayed.

I have not tested this enough to see but I'd assume the others you might use in your post could help your post get 'found' as a related post even if they are not one of the first 3 you use... maybe +Google+ Help can confirm if all the hashtags are included in the 'related hashtags search'.
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How to Share Photos & Photo Albums in the new Google Plus

Thu, 16 May 2013 15:42:17 +0000

How to Share Photos & Photo Albums in the new Google Plus
Here is a short explainer video on how you can share photos on Google Plus.

Learn more here: http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/photos
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Google+: Share photo albums

Google Plus Event Graphics require a new size now

Thu, 16 May 2013 04:41:53 +0000

Google Plus Event Graphics require a new size now...
Events Tips
The Event Themes (aka graphics) are now using a new size: 1200 x 300. This means that any custom ones you may have made will need to be resized or recreated.

I have a lot of them I made for Private Hangout meetings that take place inside Events. Since they all need to be 'fixed'. I guess I'll do a couple for now and fix the rest later.

I tried making some animated GIFs to see if I could make lemonade out of lemons but alas I could not make them work. If you figure out how to make your own animated Event Theme/Graphics, please let me know!
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What's a Hangout Now?

Thu, 16 May 2013 03:23:20 +0000

What's a Hangout Now?

Hangouts can be either text (message) or video (video call). In the past we thought of Hangouts as video chats, now we may want to start calling the video ones: video calls... as that is what Google Plus has named them.

How are you doing with the Mind shift.. doing OK?
BTW, you start a Hangout on Air (HOA) from the left sidebar/ribbon now. It has its own Page from which you start them.
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