Google Chat - Spaces image 1080×720 33.7 KB If you haven’t discovered Google Chat, you are missing out. The tech department uses this all the time to communicate with each other and other people on campus. It is like texting, but it is easily accessible within your email. Plus, it works well on mobile. Anyway, we are going to discuss a specific part of Google Chat in this tip. Spaces. Spaces is designed for group collaboration. It allows you to organize conversations into threads, collect shared documents into a common space, collect and assign tasks, and install additional apps for things like polls. Setting Up a Space Create a new space Visit  mail.google.com Click on the “Chat” button in the left menu Click “New chat.” Click on “Create a space” Enter a name, and choose to add an emoji if you want to. image 603×641 42.7 KB Make sure to choose “Collaboration.” Announcements has a purpose as well, but it isn’t what we are currently looking for. image 580×609 40 KB The access settings section should USUALLY be left as it is. Again, there are exceptions, but make sure you think about changing these carefully. Click create. image 555×605 38.7 KB Accessing a Space Visit  mail.google.com Click on the “Chat” button in the left menu On the left, click the name of the space you are looking to participate in. 311×1322 45.3 KB Add People to a Space Inside a space, click the name of the space. image 775×275 22.1 KB Click on “Manage members” image 364×742 31.9 KB Click on the “+Add” button image 1251×294 30.3 KB Type in the names of the people or groups you want to add to the space. image 698×536 37.5 KB When you have everyone added, click on the “Add” button image 699×523 38.1 KB Add an App to the Space (using polls) a Inside a space, click the name of the space. image 775×275 22.1 KB Click “Apps & Integrations.” image 380×692 30.5 KB Click on “Add apps.” image 1241×517 32.7 KB Select the app of your choice from the list. I’m going to select “Absolute Poll” to allow voting on questions in the Space. image 697×538 31.5 KB Click the “Add” button. image 705×543 32.8 KB Once added, you will often get a message from the app that provides instructions on how to use it. For example, since I added the poll app, I can type:  /poll  and then hit enter, I’ll get a form. I can provide the requested information (I don’t have to put 4 options, and scrolling provides more settings), and when I “Submit,” I’ll get a poll for the users.   Using a Space Threaded communication When a message is posted in a space, replies become “threads.” This concept is just organizing a conversation. Think about threads as topics of discussion. To start a thread, it is as easy as sending a message. The magic happens on the replies. image 868×185 12 KB   To reply, I’ll hover my mouse over the message I want to reply to. I’ll then click on the little word bubble icon image 718×119 14 KB You will now see a split screen with the main space on the left, and the thread on the right. image 1569×862 79.4 KB I’ll then type my reply in the RIGHT side reply box. image 792×262 19 KB when I’m finished typing, I’ll hit enter, or I’ll click the airplane icon. image 788×309 20.4 KB This does two things. First, it adds a reply indicator to the original message. Clicking on that will open up the thread. Second, it adds the response under the original message to the right side of the screen. image 729×225 16.7 KB image 1580×917 93.1 KB Viewing All Space Threads To view all of the treads that are in a space, click on “Threads” in the top right corner of the space. image 1521×152 17.7 KB   This will open your screen in a split view, and you will be able to see all of the threads for the space on the right side of the split. Quoting Conversations Sometimes it is helpful to quote a message. Please note that this will NOT create a thread. To quote, I’ll hover my mouse over the message I want to interact with. image 887×191 17 KB You will see the quoted message and a reply box. image 895×160 10.9 KB Press enter or hit the airplane button. This will result in a message with the quoted text above what you sent. Knowing When There is a Message There are two primary indicators to let you know you have a new message in a space. First, like your email, the chat icon will show the number of unread messages you have waiting for you. Second, in the bottom left corner of your email inbox, there will be a stack with the icons of the spaces you have unread messages in. Adding Drive Files to a Space Of course, you can share a file like normal, but it is often helpful to have files in a collective area along with communication. Inside the space, click the circled plus button next to the message box. image 869×79 3.85 KB Click the “Google Drive” option. If the file already exists in your drive, click on “Attach a Drive file.” If you want to create a new file and automatically share it with the members of the space, choose one of the other options. You will then be prompted to pick the file you want to share or to add a name for the new file you are about to create. If you created a new document, that will open in a split view, but whether the document is new or attached, you will get an icon, and in the lower right corner of the icon, it will allow you to open it in split view. image 1536×1822 168 KB   There is plenty more you can do inside of Spaces. Hopefully, this is enough to get your collaboration efforts started though!