![]() Hangouts isn’t that bad, but if you’re not tech-savvy enough to figure out what went wrong, you’d simply stop using it. If you turned on your computer every day, and the shortcuts to your applications were in a different spot each day, you’d go crazy trying to figure out where they were. ![]() Anyone who’s read even a page of information on usability knows that consistency in experience is key. Overall, the biggest issue with Google Hangouts is that they’re inconsistent. Here’s a list from PC World of their biggest gripes with Hangouts. We’re not the only ones with complaints, though. They know where it is and have used it in the past, but it’s not just showing up for them. I haven’t quite figured out when this happens, but one more than one occasion, clients we’ve hung out with aren’t able to use the screenshare option. When you’re in a Hangout, sometimes the option to use the built-in tools simply don’t appear. I shouldn’t have to lock in my choice if I clicked on the Video Call button for a specific chat user - it should just start the video call with them. Yet when the window opens for the call, it asks me again who I want to invite to the Hangout. For example, when I ring Forrest for a meeting, I click on the “Video Call” button next to his name in Google Chat. If you initiate a Hangout from the Google Chat window in your Gmail account, it’ll ask you who you want to invite to the Hangout. ![]() And if they are enabled, you may be using the wrong account to initiate or receive a Hangout request. Since it’s still tied to a Google account, if you have more than one account - which many of us do (work, personal, etc.), if you’re not logged into the correct account, it’ll tell you Hangouts aren’t enabled for you. You can do shared YouTube video screenings, if everyone wants to watch that funny viral video at the same time.īut there’s also plenty that’s annoying about it, and this is what makes it really painful to use.You can share your screen, from the entire desktop to individual windows or programs.You can have more than two users in a hangout, which was once only available as a premium option for Skype.Google Hangouts are Great, Until They’re Not Having used Hangouts for the better part of two years, there’s a fair amount that I like, and a bunch that’s really annoying. This presents some opportunity but also a fair amount of challenges. We’re often the first people they’ve ever done a hangout with. While some of our clients have used Hangouts in the past, most of them haven’t. ![]() So while we use Hangouts for our internal meetings, we also use it with clients when we’re doing a training, helping them troubleshoot an issue or just checking in to see how things are going. Hangouts started as a core feature of Google+, but they’ve realized that it has a lot of potential on its own, recently adding it to its business suite of apps without needing a Google+ membership. It also lets us have a little fun, whether it’s using the built-in Google effects for funny hats and sunglasses or realizing that we both wore the same shirt to work. It’s a free way to do video calls, and has always been a good alternative to Skype. Since we’re in different offices, Forrest and I use Google Hangouts as our primary means of communication (besides email, instant message and Basecamp, our project management software).
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