Gmail has come a long way in 10 years: it has become the most used online e-mail service in the world and certainly the most complete and full of functions often hidden. It's not perfect, and for some Gmail it can be slow and cumbersome in certain operations, but Google takes great care of its e-mail service and constantly improves it.
Gmail is always a work in progress, with Google adding more and more functions every day, often even without giving communications.
For example, in the Gmail settings there are also Labs, tools being tested and tested, in some cases very useful.
For a complete overview of all the tricks hidden in Gmail, we see here 20 features and options to know, to configure Google mail in an even more personalized way and use it as an expert .
READ FIRST: Complete guide to Gmail to get started and become experts in Google Mail
1) Ultra fast keyboard shortcuts .
For example, pressing the C key opens the window to write a new message while with Shift-C opens the window in a new tab.
To get a graphical representation of all the keys and keyboard shortcuts in Gmail, you can press the combination Shift- "> Visual.ly.
You can also customize the keys used in the Settings.
2) Cancel the sending of an email
With Gmail you can cancel the sending of an email if you were wrong, within 30 seconds.
The function can be activated in the Labs settings as explained in the post on ways to cancel sending an email after sending it.
3) Drag the messages to organize them in the labels
Gmail doesn't use "folders", but "labels" which are practically the same thing.
You can organize the messages in the various labels automatically using filters or in manual mode, by dragging the mails with the mouse and moving them on the corresponding label.
4) Move messages from one Gmail account to another
Only on the Gmail app on iOS, you can move the message received from one Gmail account to another Gmail account or, even, to any other email account set up on the system as an IMAP account.
Displaying the list of messages, click on Edit, check the box next to the message to be moved and then press on Move.
5) Preview messages
Most e-mail programs like Outlook allow you to preview the contents of an e-mail only by selecting it.
In Gmail, this is possible by activating the function in Labs as explained, in its time, in the guide on how to activate the preview pane in Gmail.
6) Gmail address with and without points
The best known and most beautiful secret of Gmail is that it ignores the points put in the email address.
In practice, is equal to or and so on.
Each message sent to each of these addresses arrives at the same mailbox.
7) Gmail alias with the + sign
Another very hidden and very useful Gmail trick is that of aliases in Gmail which are free and automatic.
You can add the + and another word to each Gmail address and the message will still arrive.
For example, you can use or and so on.
This is useful for filtering messages when you sign up for newsletters or when you are forced to leave someone's email address.
READ ALSO: Order the inbox with filters and aliases in Gmail to manage the emails received
8) Search in Gmail
Searching in Gmail, thanks to Google technologies, is as fast and efficient as in no other program or app.
In another article, the guide to advanced search in Gmail.
10) Remove the cards from the inbox
Last year Google introduced the tabbed inbox on Gmail to distinguish messages of a certain type such as those of newsletters, commercial communications, forums etc.
With this categorization, if you are not used to it, it is easy to miss messages if you do not check all the cards.
To disable and remove them from the Inbox, press the gear button at the top right, press on configure mailbox and deactivate the cards by removing the tick.
11) Default answers
predefined replies can be created in Gmail to respond quickly to certain messages that are always the same.
This function is activated in Settings -> Labs (remember to press Save at the bottom of the page when activating or deactivating a Labs function).
To use the predefined replies, when replying to an email, click on the arrow in the lower right corner of the composition pane and select Default replies to create a new one or use an already created one.
12) Don't be found on Google+
If you are not using Google+, go to General Settings, search for Who can send you emails from your Google+ profile? and put on Nobody .
13) Privacy images
When you receive an email with an embedded photo or image from an external site, it is automatically displayed and cached on your computer.
For better privacy, go to General Settings and under Pictures put the check mark on Ask before viewing external images .
14) Remote logout
Gmail can be accessed from multiple computers, smartphones and tablets, all at the same time. Sometimes, you could stay logged in even when you don't want to, for example on a public PC or a friend's.
To disconnect sessions remotely, open Gmail, scroll down the page and, on the right, click on Details where Last account activity is written.
From the window that appears, you can see all the active sessions that can be ended.
15) See the names of the buttons in Gmail
Gmail, by default, shows the buttons as icons that for the less experienced may not be clear.
As seen in the past, you can still see the text buttons in Gmail instead of icons.
16) Send emails from a different address
Gmail can function as a centralized client to send (and receive) with other non-Gmail email accounts.
In Settings, find the Account and Import tab to add other addresses in " Send message as ".
In another article the complete guide to send Mail from Gmail with another email address
17) Select all the messages for real
To select all the messages in a Gmail list, you need to click on the checkbox in the upper left corner.
In this way, however, only those visible on the page are selected and the selection is limited to 50 or 100 messages.
However, you can click on the yellow link Select all messages ... to select all those in a category or all.
READ ALSO: Find Email to be deleted in Gmail
18) Turn a message into an activity and calendar
If you use Gmail, then you can also automatically use Google Calendar and Google Task.
While reading an email, highlight some text, then go to the Other menu at the top and select "Add activity".
To see the list of activities, click on the word Gmail in the upper left corner.
Each activity can then become an event on the calendar indicating a date.
In another article, the guide to Google Tasks.
19) Allow other people to access our Gmail account
You can share control over your Gmail account with someone else.
In another article, all the details on sharing a Gmail address and simultaneous access to two accounts.
20) Blacklist addresses of senders from whom we do not want to be sent mail
As explained in another article, you can block the reception of emails in Gmail from unwanted senders and addresses by creating a special filter.
In other articles I remember:
- Best Gmail Labs to activate to enhance Google Mail
- 10 wrong ways to use Gmail and mistakes to avoid
- The 10 most powerful and unique Gmail features
