December 19, 2012 | Manitoba

Students who don't have Gmail at this point - especially students in the information technology sector - are part of a small minority, in comparison with other leading free email account providers. The service has a variety of features that cater to all users, whether they have a personal account or sign in for business purposes. However, with all of these functions, Gmail can become slower and may need a revamping to keep it running in tip-top shape.

Here are a few tips that can help students' Gmail accounts run properly without a hitch.

Labs Features
Gmail Labs is a feature that lets tech-savvy computer users try out new functions before they are made available to the public. While some of them are extremely useful and eventually become regular features, others are not so successful. If students are comfortable with receiving these features when the rest of the world does, they can disable this feature and experience a more smoothly running Gmail.

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When students first open their inbox, they may be greeted with dozens of unread mail - some junk, some important. Just seeing all of it in one fell swoop might hinder a student's productivity, but it could make the page more sluggish as well. To fix this issue, users can adjust the number of "conversations" or emails per page to a more manageable number - the figure can be reduced to as few as 10.

Too many filters
Feel more organized when using Gmail filters? They can be a helpful management tool, but using too many can also slow down the service. Chances are, students who are in multiple IT courses, active in extracurricular activities or possess a part-time job have a few filters that they no longer use anymore, and can benefit from a major cleaning-out process. Another method that might be hindering the email service's speed is archiving all messages that are unnecessary or unimportant instead of just deleting them. Make sure to regularly sort through trash, spam and other folders to keep things clean and manageable.

Stick with a Basic Theme
One of Gmail's neat features is its diverse background options that are often interactive or change with the current weather. While these custom themes are fun and exciting to look at, they can make the loading process take an even longer time. When using Gmail for work or school, when time is of the essence, consider changing the theme to "default" or something basic so that the account will respond as quickly as possible.

Students who are interested in brushing up their IT skills will benefit from the help desk training courses in the Help Desk Analyst and Computer Support Technician programs at CDI College. For more information, fill out the form on the right.