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So I set them up with outlook looking exactly the same but now with a Gmail account. Soon my grandparents discovered they could check their email at mail.google.com and fell in love with the interface. I had to teach my grandpa how to use outlook and it took a while; but he picked up the Gmail web interface without any help. Now they even use Gmail chat!
Then my mother saw how much better it was and realized that if we stopped using our ISP she'd be stuck in the same situation so she switched to Gmail. And now the world is a better place :)
I don't really recommend people use their own domain only because it's one more thing to worry about; Gmail just works.
Where in comparison hotmail and co is like stating your myspace page is your homepage. ;)
So, if you have web service, BE SURE to transfer the domains before cancelling your service. :)
- a you@yourdomain.com Gmail account
- a you@yourdomain.com Jabber account
- Google docs
- Google calendar
- limited Web hosting
It's totally free, and you can actually hook it up to existing domains you own after twiddling with DNS.
I gave out that address too frequently as it was so simple (marie@...) but now that I'm gone I wonder how many people are looking for me.
With the way we change careers more often than we change socks, having our own domains or handing out the gmail accounts just makes sense.
The other thing I did was get a phone number from Skype along with voice mail. This is turning out to be very handy since that number appears on my business cards. Now that we are moving across the state, at least gmail and the phone will make the trip with no interruptions. If only the rest would be that easy!
I bought my own domain name.
Think about it. A year ago, who what have thought that there could possibly be a change regarding Yahoo. Not saying there will be, but even the most solid looking things do change.
I use a Google account for storage of file backups that are emailed to me each week. The email is forwarded to my day-to-day email account so that I see that it succeeded. Then I just delete it from my day-to-day account, leaving the first email w/ the b/u sitting in the Google account.
On a separate note, Google has some of the best email spam protection.
I have just preferred to advertise my own business with every email that I send, rather than someone else's business. Fundamental marketing. Now they offer the domain masking.
Some day, I may go all Google, especially as my desire to go more mobile intensifies.
I guess as a former sys admin, I will have to get over the desire to have my mail stored locally, where is it "safe" - well sort of.
There are not a lot of arguments against GMail that hold much water. I guess the privacy concerns or ads are personal, rather than technical reasons.
There's my multi-email backup plan.
I have my own domain(s) for identity/reputation purposes.
They forward to GMail because it's the best solution I've found for all-round usability.
The other way round - all mail is sent through Gmail, but goes out with my domain on it. (GMail has a great "send as").
And anyone smart enough to work out that I'm using GMail for a domain probably knows how good a solution it is :-)
I know it will happen just don't know when.
However, the most important reason I haven't switched providers is because they are based in New Orleans. Therefore, every time I spend $15 on a domain, I know i'm contributing something to the rebuilding effort.
1. I register at GoDaddy (inexpensive, all domains in one account, etc.)
2. I prefer having a separate DNS provider from my domain host (and I prefer separating my registrar for the same reason: distribute the services so a single point of failure doesn't completely kill you off. Not that one couldn't ;) )
Started using EveryDNS a long time ago, and with very minimal outage, they have been great. Key with them is to make the donation and gain control of your TTL. This allows me to get domains up and running from registration to live in minutes, not hours or days.
3. Like you Chris, I use 1&1, but not for registration or DNS. I rent a complete box from them and run all my sites on that hosted box. Clearly, this will be outside the scope for most people, but if you're at this level, it's the best way to go (IMO). Once the domain is set up with a website directory, I have the live site accessible.
4. Now I head over to Google and sign up for their business services. Oh, forgot to mention that when I set up the DNS records I just pump out all of the Google business service records as well, for that new domain. So by the time I get to the Google set up, DNS has propagated.
From that point, I now have most of the yummy goodness that gmail users have with that new domain, and am able to access my mail anywhere by hitting http://mail.newDomain.com.
Really works out nicely, actually. I'd be happy to help anyone that really wanted to learn more about this process (and needs the help!) Drop me a line.
Had mine set up for some time, and its pretty important to go and register your identity, be it .com .co.uk .info or name, quick. In fact if you haven't go and DO IT RIGHT NOW!
I have been waiting for GAFYD to set up Jot and also blogspot for some time, so I can go and manage everything in one spot! I want a homepage.. a blog .. a public calendar.. and my public photos all stored at one place. My friends and family know thats me.. and it always will be!
So Google did jot the other day but it still needs some blog love! I know its getting tested, as the recent author of 'The Google Apps Administrators Guide' has been testing it for over a year now..
come on google!!
What I like to do is give out my personal Gmail address to people at work after I leave a job so they can continue to get in touch with me--but only after, mostly. Why? Because due to auto-fill, if people have my Gmail I start getting work email in my personal Gmail account. :-)
I would also agree with what many other commenters already said here, which is to route a domain email address through Gmail--Gmail is like cheese, it just makes everything better! I've become so used to the interface and logic of Gmail that I can't stand using anything else for email! I created a new Gmail account for work and route my work email through that. That way I also have separate Google docs, calendar and the like just for work.
Google Apps really is a great solution for using Gmail/Google Accounts for work or a custom domain, also.
Splendid article - once again!
I have my own domain (and many others). I also register my name/email address with all popular services JIC anyone ever looks for me somewhere. I should go through one day and see how many accounts I have scattered through cyberspace.
I also create a few specific email accounts for specific purposes which help identify phishing attempts.
While I do have gmail/yahoo/aol/aim/hotmail/etc accounts, I prefer my own domain based email b/c I rent a dedicated box for a server. This way I don't have to worry about third party TOS/Privacy/etc as I know who has access to what whenever.
Along with this - I've registered several domains along the same lines as my name. I have .com, .net, .tv, and more and even a domain with my first name as it is commonly misspelled.
1) register the domain at a registrar.
2) use a custom DNS service that allows email forwarding like www.easydns.com. You simply create an MX record, change the DNS for your site on the registrar and wait a bit. By a bit, we are talking a few hours at the most.
3) enter the address you wish to have email forwarded to so now when someone emails you at the address the DNS and MX mix at easydns.com grabs that email and sends it off to the so-called "mailmap" you wrote.
I chose gmail and then I purchased more disk space. You could also find a hosting service that offers more like fastmail.fm or a real hosting company. I have a new deal with lunarpages.com that was gonna hold my mail; but it became too complex to have all those steps and stops.
In the end, you want something that you can manage and have it adapt and adopt to your life style. Gmail may become bad. Easy to change.