Google Voice Now Gives Priority to Students 66
theodp writes "Holy Logan's Run, Batman! Google on Friday began giving students priority access to its Google Voice service, which has remained in a closed beta since its transition from GrandCentral in March of last year. Typically, invites for the service can take anywhere from a few hours to several months to arrive after a user signs up. But Google is now promising students who cough up an .edu e-mail address access to the service within 24 hours. Good thing CMU closes e-mail accounts after graduation, or old fuddy-duddy alums like Brian Reid might try to sneak in!"
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How is this not? (Score:3, Insightful)
One of the biggest IT companies in existance practically introduces a new service (Yeah, it existed before but was pretty unpractical due to those long registering times) for students (A huge amount of us students read this site, you know...)... How is this not exactly the type of news that SlashDot is for? Besides, it is not as if today would have been extraordinarily busy news day or anything. If you don't find it interesting, why waste your time with commenting? Not that you would have spent a lot of tim
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I didn't post for the karma, that's for sure. I've had top-rated karma for years now. I wouldn't care if my karma dropped to nothing. I just don't find this article news worthy. Big corporate entity offers service only to Americans, gives priority to those with .edu addresses (ostensibly students, though faculty have those addresses as well). Whoop-de-whoop.
I generally don't post anonymously because I'm not afraid to put my name where my mouth is.
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So nice of you to decide that for the rest of us.
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obviously I didn't, seeing as how I'm not a /. editor (if I had been, and this came across my virtual desk, I would have put it in the bin).
In other news... (Score:1)
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I'm waiting for that submission to get through.
One of these days!
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Well, I'm not sure, but I'm glad I followed that last link and learned that Google is a motherfucking slimeball who fired somebody for being too old and not staying at work past 7 PM on a regular basis.
If you lose respect for experience, and respect for a work-life balance, your company becomes a ball of pure evil and incompetence. I'm actually completely shocked.
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I stopped caring about Google the moment they decided to support a new world order.
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How is this news worthy?
How is this comment post worthy?
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I'm just curious, and felt the need to ask a question in a manner which would garner feedback.
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And apparently I'm stupid too because I have no idea what the AC is talking about.
Outside of USA (Score:3, Informative)
So much for all the students around the world who don't have email addresses ending in .edu
Well, i guess it is time to check if no-ip.com has hosts ending in .edu and set-up a home mail server :)
Re:Outside of USA (Score:5, Informative)
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Google is the largest datamining company in the world.
I thought that was Wal*Mart or Tesco [ebizq.net]?
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Well, i guess it is time to check if no-ip.com has hosts ending in .edu and set-up a home mail server :)
Even better: Set up your own home degree-program-via-email. Then you can legitimately apply for a .edu domain, and you can make a bunch of money off the suckers.
Of course, if you're a typical /. reader, you'll probably set up an actual online education web site for some topic that you're really interested in (but doesn't pay well). In that case, you're not making money off of "suckers", because they'l
World is not US of A (Score:3, Informative)
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Re:World is not US of A (Score:4, Informative)
The reason that they're restricting it to .edu is because Google Voice is only available in the US for everyone. I mean, it still holds that the world isn't the USA, but if Google Voice is only available in the US, then it makes sense to use .edu. Google Voice happens to be a bit of an odd one when it comes to Google's services because voice services and the regulations that go along with them very from country to country - vs. the internet which is mostly unregulated and the same resource in most locations.
Re:World is not US of A (Score:4, Interesting)
Except that .EDU is open to educational institutions worldwide.
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Yes but most tack on their ccTLD to .edu for freakish things like .edu.uk or some such stupidity.
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The reason that they're restricting it to .edu is because Google Voice is only available in the US for everyone.
There are Canadian Universities that have .edu domains - the University of Toronto has both utoronto.ca and toronto.edu.
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It's actually been quite reliable... (Score:4, Interesting)
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I use it for international calling on my cellphone. Paying only a couple cents vs. a few dollars a minute that I assume all US mobile carriers are charging.
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When you combine GV with a SIP service with free-incoming calls like Gizmo or Sipgate, then it suddenly becomes a lot more useful. I can now make and receive calls at very little cost. In fact it's now so cheap and so reliable that I've canceled my cell plan and only use a prepaid cell for the few times I don't have access to my sip phone. My cell phone is SIP-enabled, so anywhere there's wifi I can call via GV and SIP. Even if GV's outbound calling was a penny a minute, it would still be the cheapest w
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I've been using GC and then GV for at least a few years.
Calling out with Google Voice is quite easy on my Android phone. So is SMS, which is free using the Voice app.
It's handy for me, because by communicating with GV exclusively, folks never know my actual cell phone number, but only my GV number. Which means that it never gets added to their phonebooks. Which means when they call me, they call GV, which is nice for all of the call-management stuff that GV offers. Also by keeping my actual number priva
the first one's always free (Score:5, Insightful)
I guess it's like Facebook: target the young crowds, who then grow up thinking privacy policies unimportant when they enter the workplace.
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Tanstaafl, indeed. And that's the lesson Google doesn't want you to learn.
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I got 140k hits on Google for tanstaafl, and the first was on Wikipedia.
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(1) It's perfectly common in British English to omit "to be" in that instance (not "are"). American? 0/1
(2) No points for trying to simplify what I said then castigating me for not saying something else. I chose "privacy policies" because these contain the chatter people ignore when they see "free stuff!" - especially as students ignorant of workplace law. 0/1
The problem is not that people aren't concerned about their privacy - try walking in on any Facebook user while he/she is taking a shower - the proble
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Re:the first one's always free (Score:4, Insightful)
Actually, I'd rather Google's privacy policy for Voice http://www.google.com/googlevoice/privacy-policy.html [google.com] over Facebook's privacy policy any day of the week.
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You mean like preferring an ass rape to living in a Gulag? ;)
If only they had... (Score:2)
...local numbers where I am, or even number portability. If I want to use Google Voice, I'm stuck with a number in the same area code but long distance, or a number technically "local" but in a different geographical area code.
It's not that my local area code is full; other VoIP wholesalers do have local numbers in the correct area code.
Logan's Run? (Score:2)
Hyperbole much? How is this Logan's Run? My parents believe I'm possessed by a demon, so no help from them to get into college. I got used to waiting until they dropped off my FAFSA, so I'm currently saving up so I don't need massive loans and I'll probably be entering college when I'm 32 or 35 or so. Am I missing something?
Is getting reduced cost meals at some (otherwise) expensive restaurants downtown when one shows a student ID Logan's Run now? I must be missing something.
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Yes, there are full scholarships available for the possessed. Contrary to much popular lore, Satan does not want stupid servants; he needs well-educated minions to fill important positi
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lol
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Basically same story here: Parents were too lazy to submit FAFSA (I wasn't assertive enough to see it through). Accepted to Rose-Hulman, ended up enlisted instead, which lasted 11 years. Completed my BSEE a few years after that, taking on a debt of $11K in 3 years of school including 1 very heavy summer term / 120 or so credits. Total bill was 49.5K (thanks, Montgomery GI Bill). Maybe I should have left after my first enlistment, but I had some great assignments.
Anyways, if what you want to do with you
Gives Priority to _American_ Students (Score:1)
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Great. I have no fewer than three student email addresses, but because they all end in .edu.au, no dice. Thanks, Google.
No, give priority to students studying at American schools. Huge difference, as something like 20% of the US college and university student population are foreign nationals. Americans studying abroad are just as out of luck as you are.
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Google Voice is currently an _American_ service. The phone #s are only available in the USA. So even if they did give you an account, it's not like you'd be able todo much with it down under
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W
GV and Android? (Score:1)
"try again later" (Score:2)
I've been using Google Voice to make calls and last night got a "try again later" for the first time. So maybe all the lines were used by .edu users. I actually have a .edu address that is just forwarded to gmail.. maybe I'll invite myself if I ever get invites.
For some reason GV's systems make my voice more intelligible to my 70yo mom, who has a mild hearing loss. We've decided this is not an illusion...trying multiple calls from both my land line and mobile with and without GV. It always sounds better
CMU .Edu email (Score:2)
Yeah, except their alumni forwarding emails also end in .edu
Not exactly a stumbling block (Score:2)
Hurry up with the Gizmo relaunch! (Score:2)
I've been using GV (since GC days actually) with Gizmo as a landline at home , mostly as a number to give businesses that want my phone number (think cable/gas/credit card companies) and it's been swell. I've got an ATA to handle the SIP so I even got a traditional cordless handset from my landline days hooked up to it.
I want to get friends set up with something similar and want to play around more with GV with a cellphone + SIP as well but since folding Gizmo in, Google has closed off signups (you can find