Accounts

"RVUUF Member Account Introduction" for:

Rogue Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship

... RVUUF.org

Your account @rvuuf,org is effectively the same as a standard Gmail Account (except that it is a different "Domain", rvuuf.org vs. gmail.com). For anything you want to do, you can usually find an easy answer by searching it on Google, as in the following example:

Log In

It is recommended that you review: Creating a Strong Password

You may log into your RVUUF User Account with:

Or simply go to:

https://www.google.com/

… and “Sign In”

  • Look for the blue "Sign In" button near the upper-right portion of the browser window.
    • You will need to use your complete RVUUF e-Mail address [including the Domain Name] as the User ID for the log-in process.
  • For handheld devices see:

Getting Started

For Help with the system in general try starting with:

Using Google Apps at Work or School

http://learn.googleapps.com/

How to Change Your Password

You can change your password by accessing Your Account Settings.

It is suggested that you review the "Password Requirements" section there. It is really good advice in general for creating strong passwords.

Why do I need this?

Using a RVUUF.org Account will help folks to "own" more of the responsibility for improved communications at RVUUF.

As more folks who are actively interested in furthering the Mission & Goals at RVUUF start using their RVUUF.org accounts, the more effective we will be as a whole with our documentation and communication.

There are very significant Safety & Security benefits to the Congregation as a whole if everyone online at RVUUF uses the RVUUF.org "G Suite" (formally "Google Apps") system, which is controlled by this "RVUUF User Account / ID".

How it Works...

The format for issuing accounts by name is:

first.last@rvuuf.org

The key resource for getting the most out of the "G Suite" (formally "Google Apps for Work") system as it applies to RVUUF.org is to issue a User ID (an "Account") to all qualified persons. All Staff and Active Volunteers at RVUUF instantly qualify to get a RVUUF.org Account. For the time being, additional accounts will be issued on an "as needed" basis, upon review.

There are settings in your RVUUF Account that allow you to "automatically forward emails to another account" such as your personal account. Then you only need to login as needed to your RVUUF account. This is the simplest solution, and highly recommended!

Use of this RVUUF ID is currently an option. In the future however, management of "Digital Resources & Communications" for RVUUF may become more dependent on your "RVUUF User Account".

This "Google Apps System" is available to RVUUF at no cost, due to our nonprofit organization status.

User Account Introduction

Please log into your new account as soon as possible.

You should be prompted to change your password on your first login (or for a "reset"). You may use any password that you like (see: "Password Requirements"). Tech-Admin cannot see your password, but we can issue you a new (temporary) one if you should forget yours. Because of this, it is OK (though not ideal) if you want to use the same password for your RVUUF Account as you use for another of your own personal accounts, which can help simplify things a bit.

Your RVUUF User Account gives you access to a number of "Cloud Based" productivity tools, which are specific to the "RVUUF Organization". This system can be very useful for communication between individuals and groups, as well as the creation and collaboration of documents. The biggest advantage of this cloud-based system is that everything is managed online, which simplifies maintenance, and access to sensitive data at RVUUF.

Online help for this system is available through Google at:

All products are web-based, either through your web-browser on your PC (laptop or desktop), or an "App" on your handheld device (Tablet to Smartphone"). All major Operating System (OS) platforms are supported, including: Windows, Mac OS, Linux, and all popular handheld OS's (iOS, Android, Windows).

Visit the manufacturer's web for these suggested browsers (In order):

    • Chrome - by Google
      • This will give you the best performance.
      • All major OS platforms are supported.
    • Firefox - by Mozilla
    • Opera - By Opera.com
    • Safari - by Apple ... for use with Mac OS and iOS

Suggested apps (for your handheld device) are those developed by Google. You will get the best performance by installing an App for each product you use.

While handheld devices (Tablets PC's, etc.) are nifty, and can be useful for quick changes, you will probably get better long-term productivity out of a desktop or laptop style Personal Computing (PC) system.

The most significant "products" (applications) that the "Google Apps" system employs are:

    • G-Mail
      • Using the Google Mail System
      • This is an extremely powerful and feature-rich e-mail client system.
    • Documents
      • The "Sharing" feature here is a very powerful tool.
      • "Google Drive" includes a complete office suite, Google Docs, including:
        • Text Documents
        • Spreadsheets
        • Presentations
        • Drawings
        • Forms
    • Groups
      • A web-based "e-Group" or "List-serve" type system used for group communications.
      • The two main formats are "discussion" and "announcement".
      • Many additional benefits to this system are available when used with a user account that ends in "@rvuuf.org".
      • "Google Group" sites can be setup similar to a Blog if you like.
      • There are not a lot of formatting options to "fancy up the look" of it however. It is fairly utilitarian, but very effective.
    • Calendar
      • Allows easy sharing of events and dated information.
    • "Hangouts"
      • Virtual Conferencing ... Audio and Video
      • Includes a "Screen-Share" feature
      • Requirements:
        • A webcam ... but you do not always need to show yourself.
        • Signup with Google+
    • Google+
      • ... is a social networking service, similar to Facebook.
      • Signing up for this is needed to use Google Hangouts on your PC, but you do not actually have to participate in it.
      • It is perfectly OK if you sign-up for Google+ just to get the video conferencing capability, and then ignore it.
  • Sites
    • Easy creation and management of web sites.
    • Many customization features are available.
    • Sites can be assigned a subdomain name through RVUUF.org

You are welcome to contact Tech-Admin with questions about your account.

You are encouraged to seek out answers yourself, starting with the help & information links given on this page.

Account Associations

Note... These "association" rules apply to accounts ending in @gmail.com (or any Google Suite / Gmail type account) as well as @rvuuf.org (a RVUUF Account).

There are several ways to manage your RVUUF Account... including options to associate it with your current personal account (which can be under ANY domain, not just @rvuuf.org, @gmail.com, etc.). Several suggestions are listed below.

It is possible to associate your RVUUF User Account to your current personal account, which can make access to this RVUUF Account easier. You are welcome to attempt this on your own. Otherwise it is suggested that you simply log into this account as needed, or by using the "multiple account" sign-in process. Testing on the process of "combining accounts" by RVUUF Tech-Admin has been very limited.

Managing Account Associations & Multiple Accounts

G-mail Help Center

https://support.google.com/mail/

In the Help Center see:

Automatically Forward e-Mails to Another Account

https://support.google.com/mail/answer/10957?hl=en

  • This is by far the simplest solution.
  • All mail sent to a RVUUF Account can automatically be forwarded to any e-mail account, in any domain.
  • You can then decide when you want to access your RVUUF Account, to accomplish specific tasks related to RVUUF.

Sign in to Multiple Accounts at Once

https://support.google.com/mail/answer/1721977?hl=en

  • This is an extremely effective solution.
  • Be aware that within the same browser, while using multiple accounts with the same domain (rvuuf.org or gmail.com for example), only the first account that you login with will be able to access Google Drive.
    • An easy "fix" to this is to use different browsers. Recommended browsers (in order) are: Chrome, Firefox, Opera, and Safari for Apple (Mac OC and iOS) devices.
  • You can however log into two (or more) accounts in the same browser (e.g. Chrome), each from a different domain (rvuuf.org, gmail.com, sou.org, etc.), and the first one in each domain will have full access to Google Drive.

Sending e-Mail From a Different Address or Alias

https://support.google.com/mail/answer/22370?hl=en

  • Follow the instructions for your situation.
  • Testing on this process within RVUUF has been very limited.

Adding "People" to your Google Chrome Browser

This feature is especially handy if you do not want to setup any Account Associations.

If you have multiple "Gmail style" accounts (all relevant domains: rvuuf.org, gmail.com, sou.org, etc.), this is an ideal way to use them. By creating a "Person" for each account you can access all the features of that account within the same browser... even within the same domain. This only works in Google Chrome browser, and the Chromium browser.

Note: Chromium is not the same as Chrome, and is not supported as well as Chrome. Chromium is found most often in Linux installations. You can still install Chrome to your Linux OS.

RVUUF Tech Admin will always suggest the Google Chrome Browser as your first choice.

BTW... Adding "People" to your Chrome Browser also can work with managing any e-mail account, from any domain.

Adjust the Theme for "People" and Accounts

If you adjust the Chrome Browser theme for each "person", it can make it a lot easier to identify which account you are working with.

You will also see the name of the person near the upper-right corner of the Chrome Browser window. (A right-click on that name allows you to open a new browser window with a new "person".)

You can also set a theme in each e-mail account settings (solid colors are suggested)... which can make it easier to identify which e-mail account you are working with.

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Tech-Admin Ref's

The official URL for this page is:

http://tech-admin.rvuuf.org/g-apps/accounts

Name and Password Guidelines - G-Apps Admin-Help

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