Google Sites: The (slightly odd) signup process

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I went to sign up for Google Sites just now and got this error message:

Here's part of the error message in detail:

What the? :)

Here's what the help text says:

Why can't I use my email address with Google Apps Team Edition?

Print

Google Apps Team Edition is designed to help users easily collaborate with colleagues and classmates within their organizations. Because the service is intended for use within schools and businesses, you won't be able to sign up using an individual email address, such as:

• user@gmail.com


• user@yahoo.com


• user@hotmail.com


• user@aol.com

If you wish to use Google services with your personal email address, we recommend creating a Google Account. Please note that if you're using Gmail, you already have a Google Account and can add other services to this account. Google Accounts currently include all the services offered in Google Apps except for Google Sites - at this time Sites can only be used in Google Apps.

If you want to use Google Apps instead of a Google Account and you don't have an email address issued by a school or business, you may wish to try Google Apps with domain registration.

It looks like they are after people with their own domain names, such that they can create multiple accounts under the same domain.

Good thing I own a domain or two :)

It is a little scary that Gmail accounts don't work for Sites - to have full collaboration it would be good to have GoogleChat (which works nicely - I have it open more often than any other IM platform). Google are planning to have GoogleChat available to Sites users sometime soon, but this will not be as easy to use as a separate widget - at the moment, I open it by default whenever I have Gmail open.

Posted by AndrewBoyd on April 07, 2008 | Permalink
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