New Google Groups: Mashup of Gmail/Reader/Wave

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Google has released a revamped Groups today. On first glance it looks pretty similar to Google Wave and offers functionalities like that of Gmail and Reader.

Google Groups

Of the many improvements in the newer Google Groups user interface, the first thing to note is the left sidebar.

Google Groups Left Sidebar

Here you can organize groups in custom folders, bookmark them and quickly find unread posts from a selected Google Group or from all the groups where you have joined as a member. You can arrange the folders/groups alphabetically or simply drag and drop them in the order you want. It also has a “Mark all as Read” button, which allows you to mark all posts as read.

The main topics area has been revamped too, making it easier to browse and reply to threads. It has a new “Overview” section which displays the topic summary, links used as references in the post and the conversation thread. And from the “Discussion” section you can view all the threads in full view.

Google Groups Thread-view

With the introduction of a new richer Post Editor, you can now add hyperlinks, attach files, add a “Cc:” field and create web pages directly from the new post editor of Google groups.

Google Groups Post Editor

The interface now supports keyboard shortcuts, which helps you in navigating faster through posts. Hit “?” to see the full list of shortcuts.

From the “My Membership” tab, you can easily manage a group membership and also view additional details about it such as its description and group email.

And finally, there’s also a new mobile interface that keeps you updated with everything while you are on the move.

Google Groups Mobile

Overall, the new Google Groups UI is pretty easy to navigate and is fast. To try out the new Google Groups UI hit the link at the end of the post and click on the “Switch to new Groups” button.

Here’s a video preview of all the new Google Groups features:

Visit: Google Groups