Google Chat provides various features for effective communication, and managing notifications is key to staying productive.

Key Features in Google Chat: #

• Direct Messaging (1:1 and Group): Send private messages to individuals or small groups within your organisation.
• Spaces: Create dedicated areas for teams, projects, or topics with threaded conversations, file sharing, and task assignments.
• File Sharing:
  • Easily share files from your computer or Google Drive directly into chats and Spaces.
  • Click the + icon in the message compose area and choose “Google Drive file” or “Upload file.”
  • Permissions for Google Drive files are respected; you may be prompted to adjust sharing settings when sharing a Drive file to ensure recipients in the chat/Space have access.
• @mentions: Get someone’s attention in a Space or group chat by typing @ followed by their name (e.g., @John Smith). They will usually receive a specific notification.
• Search: Search for past conversations, people, files, and Spaces.
• Emoji and GIFs: Add visual expression to your messages.
• Google Meet Integration: Quickly start or join a Google Meet video call directly from a Chat conversation or Space. Look for the video camera icon.
• Tasks (in Spaces): Assign tasks to members of a Space, set due dates, and mark them as complete.
• Smart Reply: Get suggested quick replies based on the message content.
• Status Updates: Set your availability status (e.g., Active, Do Not Disturb, Away) and custom status messages.

Managing Notifications in Google Chat: #

Customising notifications can help you stay focused and reduce distractions while ensuring you don’t miss important messages.

1. Global Notification Settings:
   • Open Google Chat (chat.google.com or in the Gmail interface).
   • Click the Gear icon (Settings) usually found in the top right corner.
   • Under the “Notifications” section (or a similar heading), you can set your general preferences:
     • Desktop notifications: Choose if and how you want to be notified on your computer (e.g., “All messages,” “Only @mentions and direct messages,” or “Off”).
     • Mobile notifications: Similar options if you use the Chat mobile app.
     • Email notifications: Configure if you want to receive email summaries for unread messages.
     • Notification sounds.
2. Per Conversation (DM or Space) Notification Settings:
   • Open the specific Direct Message or Space.
   • Click on the name of the person or Space at the top of the chat window.
   • A menu or options panel will appear. Look for an option like “Notifications,” “Turn off notifications,” or click the three vertical dots (More options) for notification settings.
   • You can typically choose from options like:
     • Notify always: Get notified for every new message.
     • Notify less: Get notified primarily for @mentions or direct replies in threads you’re following.
     • Off: Mute notifications for that specific chat or Space (you’ll still see an unread indicator).
3. Thread-Specific Notifications (in Spaces):
   • Within a Space that uses threaded conversations, you can manage notifications for individual threads.
   • If you start a thread or reply to one, you typically “follow” it and get notifications for new replies in that thread.
   • You can usually click on a thread and find an option to “Unfollow” it if you no longer need to be notified about that specific discussion, even if you still want notifications for other activity in the Space. Conversely, you can choose to “Follow” threads you’re interested in.
4. Do Not Disturb (DND) / Focus Time:
   • Set your overall status to “Do Not Disturb” to temporarily pause all notifications.
   • Google Calendar’s “Focus time” blocks can also automatically set your Chat status to DND.

Regularly reviewing and adjusting your notification settings can help you balance staying informed with maintaining focus on your work.