How to Use Google Buzz

13.02.2010
On Tuesday, , a new social networking service integrated with Gmail. On Wednesday, you probably mashed your F5 key waiting for it to arrive in your Gmail account--and maybe you even tried to . By Thursday, you were likely worried about the . Well, if you're buzzing about Buzz, we have the tips you need to make it work for you. And if you're wishing it would buzz off, we'll show you how to remove it from your Gmail account.

Google Buzz's default settings send you an e-mail notification every time someone mentions you in a post with an @ reference or replies to one of your buzzes. Since all this stuff also shows up in your Buzz stream anyway, the redundant reminders get annoying fast.

Fortunately, Buzz e-mail notifications are easy to eliminate with Gmail's filter tools. Just click the Create a filter link at the top of the page, to the right of the search field. In the 'Has the words' field, type label:buzz and click OK. In the next screen, select Skip the Inbox and Mark as read to ensure that the message doesn't show in the inbox or set off your Gmail notifications (alternatively, you can choose to delete the notifications entirely).

(For more Buzz filtering tips, read ".")