Cubicle Warrior Tutorial #1: Email Like A Boss

Turn Outlook Into Your Gmail Client
You might be on corporate lockdown but most likely it’s nothing more than an illusion. This tutorial will walk you through adding Gmail to your Outlook email client. The end result will be an email environment where you are 100% safe emailing comments about the boss or forwarding email executive management wants under lock & key.

Step 1: Turn On IMAP Access
To make this possible, you will need to turn on IMAP access by logging in to your Gmail account. You’ll find this under Settings in the top right of the screen.

Don’t worry if your page looks different than mine, the links will work the same. After getting into the Settings go to Forwarding and POP/IMAP. The last option on the bottom is to Enable IMAP. Select this and then press the Save Changes button.

You’re now ready to setup IMAP in Outlook. I’ll be doing this from the Office 2007 version of Outlook which might be slightly different from what you’re using. The setup is very similar amongst all versions though. If you get stumped somewhere, feel free to email me or leave a comment.

Step 2: Configure Gmail in Outlook
From Outlook, go to Tools/Account Settings. You will see your work account already added. Click on the New button.

Leave the default selected in the next window and press Next.

Select Manually configure server settings on the bottom of the next screen and press Next.

Select Internet Mail and press Next.

This is where you enter your Gmail account information. One could also have a lot of fun with this area. For example, you could change the name (this is how it is displayed in a recipient’s email client) and email address to someone else entirely. Fun for moments when you want to send an email to the Governor from the boss…

Dear Gov,

People look like ants from the window at my desk. Sometimes I spend all day watching them walk by. Little ant people. I pretend to smash them all up with my giant thumb. Would you like to join me? We can order pizza and I’ll tell you all about how I got this really cool moustache. I don’t even use wax. Not on my moustache but I wax my legs so I’m a more aerodynamic swimmer.

Love you babe!

Dr. Commissioner Goldmark

A setup like that looks something like this.If this was sent from your office, the IP address would be that of the boss. This is the beauty of a shared network environment. The reply address would also belong to the boss. Unfortunately you wouldn’t get to see the Gov’s reply but you can probably imagine how much fun this could be.

The previous information was provided for educational purposes only. Spoofing another person’s email address is illegal and violates the terms of service with Gmail.

We’re setting up your email address though, so what you really want in those boxes is your account information. This is the server information for Gmail:
Incoming mail server: imap.gmail.com
Outgoing mail server: smtp.gmail.com

The User Name will be your entire Gmail address. Once you have the information entered, press the More Settings button on the lower right of the window. Go to the tab for Outgoing Server and select the option for My outgoing server requires authentication.Next, select the Advanced tab and choose SSL as the encryption method. Ensure the ports have changed to 993 for incoming and 465 for outgoing.When you’re done press the OK button. Your screen should look similar to this with your account information in place of mine. You can press Test Account Settings to ensure everything is setup correctly or just press Next then Finish.

You will now see your Gmail folders in Outlook. Though they appear on your computer, those folders are actually residing on Google’s servers. This means you can move items from your work email to your Gmail effortlessly. When you get home and log into Gmail, you’ll find anything you’ve moved is still there.

Now when a new email is composed, you’ll find you can select your Gmail account to send from.

Layoff Notices From The Bottom

One of the cruelest things you can do to another person is pretend you care about them more than you really do. –Douglas Coupland

or: Ask For A Free Lunch From The Waterstreet Café and Bar
Today is a turning point for the Chrome Documents. Soon it will be a turning point for those at the Washington State Department of Natural Resources who will receive layoff notices this month. Emails will be sent from the top expressing concern for your future, yet those at the top most likely don’t even know your name. After he sends his heartfelt emails, show up to one of Lenny Young’s restaurants (Acqua Via or Waterstreet Café and Bar) and ask him to pick up the tab for your meal. After all, his financial situation has improved during this financial crisis and a meal is a minuscule sacrifice in comparison to the chaos of a family trying to figure out how their mortgage is going to get paid.

Yet I know Lenny isn’t to blame. He’s a cog in the wheel of a dysfunctional system. However, a cog moves with the system, not against it.

For those of you with impending unemployment ahead, this is what it looks like. We’ll use my girlfriend’s income as an example. While employed at the DNR she made around $1700/mth. She currently receives about $840/mth. Rent in Whatcom County looks something like this…

She pays half of her income to rent, leaving around $440 for food, gas, car insurance, car payment, electric, phone, cable, and whatever else life throws her way. She can no longer afford health insurance even with COBRA.

There’s more good news. According to an October 13 report from  the Labor Market and Economic Analysis, our state now has 331,000 collecting unemployment insurance. This figure is what is known as the U3 number. The U6 number is now up to 580,000 and that includes those no longer eligible for benefits, part-time employees, and those who have given up looking for work in Washington state. The WorkSource website is showing a little under 13,000 jobs to go around.

Layoffs have created an employer’s market where $8.55/hr can buy you an employee with a bachelors degree and 5 years experience who will work as a part time bell ringer.

The cogs are responsible for systemic failure. We have them to thank not only for adding to unemployment and more Americans who are unable to afford health care, but in particular for the creation of a society of working poor.

They can take away our jobs but not our vote!
This remains the strongest course of action for the displaced worker. What Commissioner Goldmark fears more than Peter Goldman pulling the plug on his campaign contributions is a landslide loss in an election. His ability to garner campaign support is tied directly to his chances of winning. This is true for the governor, state representatives, and senators. When they fail the people, they should also fail to receive our support.

I don’t believe it’s too late to change things but it takes getting involved. All you have to do is vote!

This is the last entry about the Department of Natural Resources. I hope no one will be disappointed and I’m sure some cogs will be relieved. More entries will come but geared towards technology. In 2012, I hope to see an end to Goldmark’s career as Commissioner of Public Lands. I’ve written several politicians about changing the state’s constitution so the commissioner of public lands is no longer an elected position. I hope at some point in the future this idea will gain momentum. My biggest hope though is 2012 will be a turnaround, where those on top receive their layoff notices from those of us on the bottom.