How to send mail from your own domain using Gmail and your iPhone

In my blog post yesterday I showed you how to configure Google Sync to keep your Gmail, Google Calendar, and Contacts in sync with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.  Those steps work great if you use your Gmail address as your primary email address but they won’t let you send mail from your own domain.

I have several different email addresses with different domains names all forwarding mail to Gmail and thanks to it’s flexibility I was able to configure Gmail so that I can send or reply from any of them (with one being the default address for new messages).  For example even though I use Gmail as my email program I rarely use my Gmail address – instead my FROM address is phil@theanywhereoffice.com.

Although Gmail handles this perfectly I was disappointed when first configured my iPod Touch a few years back using Google Sync that it ignored these settings and always sent mail from my Gmail address.  This was unacceptable to me as I wanted emails I sent to come from my business address and didn’t want to confuse my clients, customers, and colleagues.  I hunted and searched and tested and finally found out how to get this to work. You can still use the steps I shared in yesterday’s post/video to sync your Google Calendars and contacts with your iPhone but you need to turn off the mail option there and follow some special (and somewhat convoluted) steps to get the mail to sync with Gmail AND send from your own domain.

No worries – I’m here to help.  I recorded 2 videos for you below walking you step-by-step through the entire process. The first step would be to have mail from your other domain forward to your Gmail account. I assume you’re probably already doing this but if not you’ll need to go into your current email settings for your domain and set it to forward your mail to your Gmail account. The steps for this will vary depending on how you currently get your email – most likely these settings can be controlled in the control panel of your web or email host.

The next step is to configure Gmail to send mail from your own domain rather than using your Gmail address.  Watch this video to learn how to do this:

The final step is the tricky part – how to get your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch to sync with Gmail and use your own domain.  Make sure to follow all the steps in the next video – there are a few gotcha’s (like one part where you have to set it up with your Gmail address, back out, then go back in and Read more

How to sync your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch with Gmail, Google Calendar and Contacts

If you have an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch and you use Google’s services (Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts) the video below will walk you step-by-step through the best way to sync all your data seamlessly with your Apple Device. Although these devices have a built in Gmail option it has some major limitations – specifically it doesn’t offer the ability to sync contacts over the air and limits you to one primary calendar.

I have tried several different ways and found  Google Sync (which acts like a Microsoft Exchange connector) works great.  I used it for years on my iPod Touch and now that I’m the proud owner of a new Verizon iPhone 4 (I am stoked) I used this same method to keep my iPhone and Google services perfectly in sync. One of the great features is that it lets you sync multiple Google Calendars (up to 25). That means when you create a new appointment in the calendar on your iPhone you can add it to any of the Google calendars you have access to (your own or any shared calendars).

Watch my video below and follow along with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch as I show you how to sync your mail, contacts, and multiple Google calendars with your Apple device so you can send/receive mail, schedule appointments, and call any of your contacts from anywhere – instantly.  Now that’s The Anywhere Office in action!

Note that Google Sync is only supported on iOS versions 3.0 and above. You can check your current version by going to Settings > General > About > Version. If your business, school, or organization uses Google Apps, your administrator will first need to enable Google Sync before you can take advantage of this feature.

If you prefer written instructions Google provides them here but I figured it would be easier to follow along as you watch the steps in this video.

These steps work great if you are using your Gmail address as your primary email address.  If you prefer to send mail from your Gmail account (and your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch) using your own domain (ie I send email from @theanywhereoffice.com) then you will want to check out my next article and video where I’ll walk you through how to change the mail setup.  It’s tricky but I found a way to get it to work so stay tuned!

(BTW all the video of me configuring the iPhone was actually shot with the video camera on another iPhone – how cool is that!)

iPhone OS 4.0: Big Productivity Benefits

I love my iPod Touch! I got it over a year and a half ago and it is still my favorite piece of technology (along with my Flip video camera).

In fact, it’s probably one of the main reasons for me planning to switch from a PC to a Mac soon.  I don’t have to troubleshoot it, almost never reboot it, it doesn’t get hung up or give me dll errors – the damn thing just works – and it’s FUN!

When they released the 3.0 OS upgrade for it last year I was really stoked for a few of the features – but mostly for the copy and paste.  That was a huge productivity booster.  Well this summer I have OS 4.0 to look forward too and once again there will be some big time savers. Here is a look at some of the main new features:

iPhone OS 4.0: The Web Working Benefits

This time around I think it’s the folders to group my apps into that will bring me the biggest boost.  I download lots of apps to test (which I’ll be reviewing soon here on the blog) and tons of games for my son.  The quick search they introduced in 3.0 made finding things a lot easier – but being able to group related apps together will be sweet! Also the new multitasking looks great but I will have to see how it’s implemented.

Are you an iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad user? What are you most looking forward to in the new OS or what features/functions do you wish Apple would add? Post a comment below and let me know.

4 Easy Ways to Share Large Files

It’s not unusual in these days of webworking and remote collaboration to have the need to share large files with colleagues, clients, or even family members.  Not only do we have large reports but there are also the ever growing collection of photos, audio, and video files.

While Gmail allows you to send attachment up to a generous 25 MB in size – there are times where that just isn’t large enough as you may have files that are 100 or more MB to send. Here are 4 great services I’ve found that will let you easily send large files to others:

YouSendIt – The free version of this service will let you send files up to 100 MB with a 1 GB monthly download limit. The file will remain available for 7 days to download.  Simply go to their website, fill out a short form (with your email address, the address of who you want to send the file to, a subject line, and short message), then click the browse button and choose which file you want to send.  It upload the file to their servers and emails a link to the person you are sending the file to. If you want additional features including the ability to send files up to 2GB in size you can choose one of their paid services (including pay per use if you only need to do this once in a while).

Dropbox – Dropbox not only lets you easily share files with others but it also allows you to sync your files online and across your computers automatically. They give you 2GB of online storage for free and you can pay for up to 100 GB. You need to download a small program but it’s free and work on Windows, Mac, or Linux systems. It creates a dropbox folder on your computer where you can easily copy files to upload them or share them with others.  What I love about Dropbox is that you can share an entire folder and make it public or just share it with a group of people. There are some other great features: Read more

The Mystery of Multitasking: Productivity Tips for Busy Entrepreneurs

Today I’m psyched to share a guest video post by my friend and colleague Chris Ducker. I met Chris through Twitter and it was immediately obvious we shared a passion for working virtually and living a flexible lifestyle.

Chris is the CEO of the Live2Sell Group of Companies, a thriving Total Business Outsourcing corporation based in the Philippines where he lives.

Chris has developed systems and ideas to manage his time and make his business life easier and more productive. Watch this short video where he explains why multitasking actually makes you less productive and shares tips for staying focused and growing your business:

Read more

3 Tech Tools to Help You Travel Lighter

During this past holiday season I spent about 18 days in Syracuse NY visiting family and friends.  I decided for the first time ever to travel for an extended holiday vacation without my laptop – having to walk through several airports lugging heave luggage I figured the less tech gear I had to take with me the better!  Thanks to two small pieces of technology (that fit in my pocket) and one service I use I was able to stay connected, entertained, and when needed – productive.

Watch this short video to learn more about how I took The Anywhere Office with me and was able to work from anywhere while traveling lighter than ever before!

Two things I forgot to mention in the video . . . The reason I have an iPod Touch and not an iPhone is because I refuse to switch from Verizon to AT&T as my cellphone provider.  I have been a loyal Verizon customer for years for two main reasons – excellent signal (I can make and receive calls from just about anywhere and almost never have a dropped call) and great customer service (sadly almost unheard of today).  The minute Apple gets smart and moves away from their exclusive deal with AT&T and brings the iPhone (or some variation of it) to Verizon I will be the first one in line to get one!

Also one additional app I use on my iPod Touch that really helped me stay in touch was Yahoo Messenger.  Yahoo is the main IM service I use and I was able to seamlessly stay connected using my iPod Touch so I didn’t miss any messages from my family, friends, and colleagues – simply awesome.

BTW – I shot this video using my new Flip UltraHD camcorder and the Gorilla Tripod – 2 more great portable pieces of technology I have!

Comment below and let me know what is the key technology you use to stay connected when on the road.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (15.5MB)

Smartphones and Work Life Balance

A couple of days ago in the Making Flexibility Work group on LinkedIn a question was asked
about the positives and negatives of smartphones on work/life balance.

In my experience when it comes to smartphones and work/life balance I think a lot of the pros/cons are about how a person uses a tool such as this. Like any technology you have to know when to turn it off and setup personal guidelines for how to use it.

These communication guidelines should be clearly explained to others you work with as well. Sometimes people think because you have a smartphone that gives you almost instant access to email you should be replying to every message within minutes regardless of what time of day it is.

I am a proponent of “work/life integration” as I believe balance can be difficult to achieve at times – but tools such as smartphones and other new communication tools make it easier to integrate work into your life. So if that means you have to do a bit of work on your vacation – but instead you get to take vacations you couldn’t take before – in my opinion that is a win.

That being said I still think it’s important to block out dedicated time away from work where you can focus on family, friends, relaxation, and personal development without the distractions.

I often joke about our company website being YouCanWorkFromAnywhere.com NOT “You Should Work From Everywhere”. That’s how I weigh in on this issue. Please share your comments below as I am eager to see your thoughts on this topic.

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