While I’m well known for being critical of many of the things Google does, I’m also a power user of site and many of their tools. Being a power user gives me a unique insight to see some areas these tools could be improved. This post is written in the spirit of constructive criticism, since I know my posts sometimes “get around” inside of the plex …
Google Apps for Domains
- A lot of the cool and interesting things that happen in Gmail and Google Docs don’t get released for Google Apps for domains. They have definitely gotten better about this in the past few months but it’s still happening. For example, want the Google Chrome Gmail Checker extension to work on your domain? Be prepared to do some hacking to make it happen.
GMail
- Filters lets expand the number of filters you can have. Right now it maxes out somewhere between 20 to 30 (I’ve hit the limit and had to delete and start from scratch creating multiple ones). Also let me forward a copy to more than one person. For example I want to forward my travel receipts/itinerary to evernote and tripit.
- If I’ve selected/highlighted the subject or body copy and click “filter,” don’t start with the from field filled in; instead, start with the field I have selected filled in.
- Let me send scheduled emails. Right now I use lettermelater. If I forget to BCC a copy to myself, I forget it got sent.
Google Docs
- A lot of people became worried about the announcement of Google Docs becoming publicly indexable because of the possibility of a link from an external website pointing to them. Allow users to see which documents are linked to or, even better, give them a universal “off” switch to block indexing of all of their documents. Allow Google Apps for domains customers the ability to block all documents on the domain.
- Let me create and edit spreadsheets offline. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve wanted to work on a spreadsheet flying from NY to Vegas or California and been unable to.
- How about the ability to export clean HTML? Right now any exports are as bad as a Microsoft word HTML document with tons of unnecessary tags adding to the “weight” of a document.
- Let me specify a default font/size for my account. Maybe I’m just a snob but anything other than arial or verdana irritates me. The fact that you force me to start with new times roman or some other serif font every time is like an annoying roommate who leaves the toilet seat up.
Google Reader
- Allow Google reader to work with the Google apps for domains address book not just the Google contacts address book
- Allow me to temporarily suspend updating of all the feeds in a folder for a specified time. Maybe I’m working on a big project or going away on vacation. Some feeds I need to keep up with; others not so much.
- Allow me to connect more than one twitter account for sharing. I run multiple accounts and want to forward it to different places depending on subject matter.
Google Contacts
- Allow Google contacts to work with Google Apps for domains. Right now they are separate which means sometimes you have access to them in Google offerings and sometimes you don’t.
- If I have pictures tied to a contact and I’m using Google Sync, pull in the picture and match it to the account.
- Allow people to opt into a profile/contact sharing program. If someone changes emails, phone numbers, or whatever and changes it in the centralized shared profile, everyone who is a contact has the information automatically updated
Google Chrome
- Multi browser password sync – we need it. I know I’m not the only one who has a laptop and netbook, and I need my passwords to travel with me. Lastpass kinda works and Roboform wants to make it work–let’s help move that forward.
- Multi browser extension sync. Allow me to move extensions, settings, and customizations between browsers.
- Copy and paste as plain text. So many things like wordpress and google docs will let the font, color, size, and style persist. I’d like to be able paste with no formatting. CTRL+SHIFT+V thanks @mattcutts
- Give me the ability to set the cache size to zero. I know you don’t like to speed things up, but my ISP gets a little wonky and I’ve found that clearing the cache solves the problem 99% of the time.
Google Voice
- OK I know you want this too, but lets figure out a way to get this thing on the iPhone. This buerocracy quagmire helps no one.
Feedburner
- Let me specify an order for posts in the email if I’m using it. Last out First in (lifo) isn’t always optimal. Give me the option for first in first out (fifo) in the email.
YouTube & Universal Search
- I understand that you only show videos from sites that have a high reliability in universal search. However, having the YouTube page rank doesn’t do much for conversions. Why not have something like rel=canonical to allow us to point to the page we really want to rank with the YouTube video?
Google Search
- Allow me to turn off any and all new things you introduce into search. The &PWS=0 flag works to turn off personalized search but everything else is hit or miss. I know that you think all of these things are your POD, but sometimes I’d like to not have to see them. In fact, like Matt, I’d really just like clean URL’s all the time.
Google Tasks
- Let me have recurring tasks. I have some things that need to get done every week or month, and this saves me the trouble of having to reschedule them.
Google Alerts
- For any notification that’s not “as it happens,” let me specify the time of day I’d like to to come. Right now if I choose once a day it comes 24 hours from the time I created or last modified/updated the filter.
Picasa Web
- You offer the right settings to share and protect pictures as needed, but the language/terminology used to explain it doesn’t make it at all easy to understand. The only reason I figured it out was by trial and error. Pretend you are explaining it to your grandma who isn’t at all computer savvy. You’ll do everyone a favor.
Comments are open. Feel free to drop your suggestions in as well. Meander off topic and I will purge your comments without mercy.
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{ 21 comments }
Gmail: I’d like some basic controls (like sorting) in folders, SPECIALLY in the spam folder. I get around 90-110 spams per day, and every once in a while a non-spam message get thrown in the mix… so I do check them every 2-3 days for false positives…
Also, group the spam messages together… sometimes I get 20-30 with ALMOST the same subject, only with 2 or 3 letter variations, and they appear as individual emails… by grouping them, it would be much easier to examine them in just one swoop…
This wuld b a valuable article if auther would ever us a spell checkers and pruf reed it! Its’ bearly lejible! Totallly horribull!
Additions to the Google Wishlist: (1) Google Apps Contacts needs to be fully vCard-compliant, exportable as a vCard, attachable to an email as a vCard, and allow a connection with Plaxo; (2) integrate Google Voice into Google Apps; (3) integrate Google Blogging/RSS into Google Apps; (4) Google Sites needs a spreadsheet import tool to quickly create pages for a website pages with the title tag, keyword tag, description tag, H1 header, and page file name all determined per the columns in the spreadsheet (similar to how ProStores allows importing of all items into a store with 55+ columns allowable per item).
; and (5) need to be able to completely backup one’s entire Google Apps account to a local hard drive.
you should be on their payroll for that type of breakdown.
Wow! Before i read your article, i not ever heard about some of the services Google provided. I used Feedburner. I wish to send a full article to my email subscribers but i do not know how to set it. This is what i think the Feedburner need to be fixed. Thanks for sharing!
Google wants to keep its leading position in the search field, it should listen to others to improve in different aspects. These are good suggestions for Google.
What I particularly dislike about Google Apps is that you can’t buy extra space. I know they have a Premier edition, which I have, but I need more than 25 GB of space for my email (or, more precisely, will need more in about 2.5 months).
And as far as Google Contacts is concerned, it doesn’t do Nickname sync with Snow Leopard. That means that if you have nicknames in your address book, Snow Leopard thinks it pushes them up to Gmail, and come next sync, they come down from Gmail without the nicknames and change all Address Book contacts and remove the nicknames…
And positively the worst thing about Google lately has been that it stopped responding to complaints or requests from information, even from Premier customers. You used to be able to send them a request and get it answered (questionably, of course) via email, now they just never reply. (I have a sales support request from 2009-05-04 they haven’t yet replied to…)
You missed a big one that the SEO team around here is always griping about… Google Local. They continue to change, complicate, and add rules to local listings, but do not weed out ones (ever!) that do not follow the new rules. Edits do not always take, either. Google Local and the LBC is just frustrating in general!
Now I know who uses all these Google spyware tools (now add the recaptcha to the list)! On one hand you complain about them, on the other you are equally slaved by them and their system, it’s a bit two-faced and silly, isn’t it.
@igor well if you never try them it’s kinda hard to say if they are good or bad doncha think?
“Copy and paste as plain text.” This is already built-in. Instead of -v type –v to paste with no formatting.
Michael, you should censor or completely ban Matt Cutts (who sniffed another opportunity to whore Google services thanks to your post), not me..
I saw the new developing Google homepage with rich colors and stuff, I did like it, but that’s only limited to the Google.com page. The search results page was looking stuffed with stuff towards left, like Bing. Ugg, hate that ‘always present’ left sidebar menus.
In regards to Google Docs, I believe you can set a default font/size for all new documents. Go to “Format” > “Document Settings…”. Choose your font & size from the dropdowns. Check the box in the bottom-right corner that says, “Make these the default styles for all new documents.”
Unfortunately, it only works for Documents. I don’t see it for Spreadsheets, Presentations or Forms.
Just trying to help,
Dave
These are really constructive criticisms that Google can benefit from. I am so for turning off all new things introduced into search.
A few items on your wish list are already there.
System administrators can set parameters that prevent users from sharing documents publicly. Do so prevents them for being indexed by Google’s search engine.
Contact sharing is available as an administrative function through the APIs. Third party apps — such as SherpaTools (free!) — provide an interface.
Regards,
Allen
Hi,
Seems like everything Google comes out with is in perpetual “beta”…for a least a couple years.
Peace!
Dan
These Google suggestions would improve user-ability and functionality. I like the idea of sharing contacts too.
Great post!! I think there is a lot Google can fix myself, and you hit a lot of them right on the head. I love Chrome but they really need to work those bugs out. I would take Chrome over IE and FF any day. I also love Google Docs and the other apps they offer. Being the the SEM Management arena, I find it very beneficial when I can boggle between Google docs and the calendar and my gmail. It’s really nice to have it all in one spot, but they do need to fix a few issues. I would love see on the Google calendar the option to highlight a task(s) in a different color(s) and not have to have everyone the same color. Loved this post!
Be interesting to see an updated version of this with Google Wave. Not all sentiment has been positive I feel. But then I may be positive post ‘blind’(!)
Michael your comment about scheduling email in Gmail is something I was thinking about the other week. I can’t believe that we’re where we are now and we still don’t have a feature like this. If I think back – there have been loads of times when this scheduling feature would have been very useful. Here’s hoping.
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