Google+ Hangout and Android

This post is for my friends, family, and people in cyberspace who ask me about Google Hangouts using their Android phones.  Google+ Hangout help and F1 are always your other options.
To have a Hangout, your Android device will need:

• Android 2.3+
• A front-facing camera
• Hangouts will work best if you are connected to a high speed or wifi network. For the best audio quality, try using Hangouts with headphones.

1. If you haven't downloaded the Google+ app, download the Google+ app. For more information and additional options (iOS & web) click through the image.

2. Find your app, however YOU set up your apps. You can select the Google+ App or Messenger. Messenger is an option available on your Android device vice the computer. 

3. Select the option to start your hangout.  This screen capture displays one of many options for you to access Google+ hangouts depending on your device. Tap your expansion arrow next to your Stream and the drop down menu should display the options for you.

If you are using Android Apps in a learning environment or if you are an autodidact, check out Richard Byrne's, author of the Free Technology for Teachers blog, other blog Android 4 Schools where you can learn and tinker with the latest Android apps and devices that Mr. Byrne provides information about.

How do you help friends and family with stuff you have been using?

Comments, recommendations, +1s, and reaction box checks are welcome.

Sometimes you have to do what you have to do...

For those who noticed my lack of participation in the online world, it is simply a hiatus. I am in a transition period...job, school, family for a variety of reasons.


I won't go into all the details but sometimes you have to do what you have to do for the sake of family. This time it meant disconnecting digitally and reconnecting F2F. While I was in the military sometimes family took a sideline for the sake of the mission and at this point I had to make the tough decisions in support of my family.


But on a high note, the library director at Diamond Lakes library welcomed me back and I will return to the library computer lab to teach Google products (November) and scholarship searches and workshops (December). Since I last volunteered to give these workshops in 2008, the library has wireless access and I am going to give 2 BYOT (Bring Your Own Tech) workshops with Twitter. Thanks Mr. Lee.


The new career position is challenging but keeps me busy and connecting with military leaders in one phase of their Professional Military Education (PME) is great.


School - I had to take a short leave of absence. Another tough decision but some issues require one to sacrifice personal and professional goals to ensure the health and happiness of family.


But I am thankful for the opportunities to share what I have learned with a variety of people, from techno-phobes to techno-geeks.


So thanks to those who continue to subscribe, support, and virtually connect. The thoughts, prayers, and emails are great tidbits of support.

Out with the old and in with the new

Happy 2010!

As many people are bringing in the new year in a variety of methods, some people are resolving to downsize by getting rid of things and supporting the old adage "out with the old and in with the new". One way to help others get rid of the old without removing the memory or the personal history is to integrate technology. Capture the personal memories, experiences, and history with the technology available today. This can be an individual, family, or community project and become a shared learning experience for all participants.

Maybe grandparents or parents are not the techsperts, but every family has at least one gadget girl or guy or self proclaimed social networking geek. Where do you start? Wherever you want. Tomorrow is not promised...so if you lost everything and everyone tomorrow, are there certain things you would want to share?

The knick knacks on the shelves...where did they come from? Why are they on the shelf? Do the knick knacks have more family history than what can be seen on the shelf? Why not spend some quality family time and capture the memories for the future?

Not everyone is ready to go public...so why not start a family blog? Not ready to share with the whole family? Start on the home computer. Use the KISS (Keep It Short and Sweet) method to empower the participants. Model or demonstrate your favorite sites or how you have created a piece of cyberspace for your personal history.

I broke 3 of my own picture frames and took it as a sign to scan the pictures. I moved many things that my mother has collected over the years. While I could explain some of the pictures to my daughter, I wondered...What if some of these knick knacks were displayed digitally with the history and personal memories associated with it?

I know my mother is not ready to be a public blogger...yet, she subscribes to blogs using RSS and even posts a comment when the mood strikes. She still journals with pen and paper. I know this blog post won't get her started but it may plant a seed.

If you do this with items for tax donations or high value items for insurance purposes...why not store the high value memories for posterity before a significant emotional event (SEE)? Turn the event into a significant emotional educational event (SEEE) for everyone.

If you have helped a family or community member downsize their things by integrating technology, please share your ideas, successes, and lessons learned.

Who is the family communication collaborator in your family?

Who is your family communications collaborator? When was the last time you updated your contact info?

Early this morning my mother was in a car accident. Not her fault and she was not scheduled to work today...just required to attend a mandatory meeting. First message was at 6 AM I could hear noises in the background but figured she was at her workplace and accidentally hit the phone to call me. The first words of the message were, "Do not drive home, just call J, I am OK, car is totaled." When I did speak to her for a minute, I could tell the pain medication was working.

I started with messages to family and friends telling them I would keep everyone updated but keep the calls to the minimum because she was in the emergency room. Thankfully, I have some awesome neighbors in Augusta (Thanks Ron and Dot). They went to visit my mother in the hospital, where she had been admitted but was out of the room for a cat scan. After she returned, they called me from her room and I could hear her in good spirits in the background. DD showed up later and took a picture. As promised, I did not post the picture for the world to see but did share it with a few family members who have data plans on their phones and email for those who do not.

So it turns out, she has a broken leg and a possible fracture in the C2 vertebrate. My mother is also the oldest of 14 children, so you can only imagine the number of family members. Using a variety of tools, we all seem to connect when one family member or another needs thoughts, prayers, recognition, and/or thanks...but you can imagine the diversity of options to contact everyone. Thankfully I have two proactive aunts (Thanks Aunt Laura & Aunt Lois) geographically separated but keep connected to multiple family members primarily through email or voice calls.

So between GMail w/Gchat and video, Twitter, blip.fm, Facebook, and minimum number of voice phone calls the message was distributed. When I looked at the various tools used I wondered, "Who is the family communications collaborator in your network? Who would have been left out of the information loop if only one method of communication was used? When was the last time you updated your family contact information with family, school, or place of employment?"