Google Chat FAQ

Google Chat is a communication software developed by Google that provides direct and group messaging and team chat rooms, similar to Slack and Microsoft Teams. This FAQ will answer the most common questions about using Chat.  

How do I access Google Chat? 

You can access Google Chat by logging into you New School Gmail account or by going to chat.google.com and logging in with your New School credentials. 

What features does Google Chat offer? 

• Rooms where teams can collaborate and hold multiple threaded conversations 

• Share documents and files from your Drive, computer, or mobile device 

• Search for people and rooms, with filtering 

• Rich previews for web links 

• Improved accessibility and compliance 

• Expand rooms and direct messages to use full Gmail window 

What's the difference between Google Hangouts and Google Chat? 

• Group messaging in Chat can be in group chats or rooms. New group chats and unthreaded rooms in Chat appear in classic Hangouts, but older group chats and threaded rooms in Chat do not. Learn more about Chat and classic Hangouts interoperability. 

• Phone calls and text messages using Google Voice aren't available in Chat. Users can make calls and send text messages using Google Voice at voice.google.com or through the Google Voice mobile apps. 

• Some classic Hangouts features aren’t currently available in Chat, such as custom status messages. 

• The default Chat notification is new threads, threads I'm following, and direct messages, which is different than classic Hangouts. To change their notifications, users can go to chat.google.com/settings. 

Why can't I see a group chat in hangouts? 

Groups in Hangouts and Chat are different. If you create a group chat in Google Chat you will not be able to see that chat in Hangouts and vice versa. 

How do I create a chat room? 

On a desktop or laptop computer, when using Google Chat in gmail, click on the "+" icon beside the Room's section in the left-hand sidebar. If you are using chat.google.com you can click on the search box labeled "Find people, rooms, and bots" and then click on create a room.  

On mobile, open the Google Chat or Gmail app and tap on the "Rooms" icon. Then tap "New Room". 

Once the room is set up you will then be able to name the room and invite others. 

How do I manage notifications? 

On a desktop or laptop computer, notifications settings can be changed by clicking on your status dropdown and selecting "Notification Settings". To mute all notifications for a specific amount of time click on the status dropdown and select how long you want to mute notifications. You can also mute notifications of chat rooms by hovering over the chat room name and clicking on the three dot icon beside the room name and selecting "turn off notifications". 

On mobile, click on the three-line icon at the top of the Google Chat app and selecting settings. You can then adjust mobile notifications or set to do not disturb for a designated timeframe. 

How do you share images and files in Google Chat? 

You can upload or share files and images via Google Chat by either clicking on the upload icon and selecting the file or image you would like to upload to the chat or by clicking the Google Drive icon and selecting the file you would like to share. 

Why doesn't my Google Hangouts app work? 

Google Chat has replaced Google Hangouts and the Hangouts app will no longer work with New School Google accounts. Please download the Google Chat app for Android and iOS or the Gmail app for Android and iOS which will include Google Chat functionality.