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Frequently Asked Questions


General

Signing up for a service

Subscribing to channels

Creating channels and inviting others

Managing channels Managing your Preferences

SMS commands

Troubleshooting

Privacy policy







A. General

What are Google SMS Channels?

How do I use Google SMS Channels

Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?

Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?

If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?

What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?

How do I change my nickname?

How many SMS can I receive per day?

What are 'Editor's picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?

What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editor's Picks?

Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?

Can I send messages in Indian languages?

How do I contact the channel owner?

How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?

I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?

Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?

Do Not Disturb (DND) feature







B. Signing up for the service

Do I pay anything for using the service?

How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?

What is the verification code?

How do I receive the verification code?

How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?

What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?







C. Subscribing to channels

How do I find channels?

How do I subscribe to a channel?

How do I find out the channels I have subscribed to?

How many users can subscribe to a channel?

Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?

Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?









D. Creating channels and inviting others

How do I invite users using email or IM?

Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?

Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?

Can I send messages to a channel?

How do I invite others to a channel?

I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?

If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?









E. Managing channels

Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?

How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?

How do I see invitations and delete them?

How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?

Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?

How many message can I post to a channel?

Can I rename my channel?

Are channel names case sensitive?

Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?

How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?

How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?

I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?

How do I publish my site via SMS?

How do I promote my channel?

How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?

Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?

How do I find out the channels that I've created?

How do I delete a channel?







F. Managing your Preferences

I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?

How do I unsubscribe from a channel?

How do I change my registered mobile number?

How do I unregister from this service?

I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?







G. SMS commands







H. Troubleshooting

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?

I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?

I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.

I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.

I receive the same message more than once.

I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.

I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.

I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.

I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.

I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.

I. Privacy policy







A. General

What are Google SMS Channels?



Google SMS Channels is a service that enables channels/groups on SMS. It's a free service that enables you to get premium content published by Google publishing partners, Google popular products (Google News, Blogger and Google Groups) and websites with RSS/Atom support for free. SMS Channels allows you to create your own channel(s) to publish content that other users can subscribe to. You can also create groups over SMS to communicate with your friends, family, and co-workers.





How do I use SMS Channels?



You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.





Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?



No, this service is currently available to users in India and requires an Indian mobile number. We are working towards making this service available to international numbers.









Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?



This is dependent on your service provider.





If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?



All mobile numbers are treated with the highest confidentiality and are not displayed to anyone. You can read more about confidentiality at: http://www.google.com/mobile/privacy.html





What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?



Nickname is the name we'll use to refer to you when you invite someone to a channel. Your nickname will appear in the invite SMS. You can set your nickname while signing up for the service.





How do I change my nickname?



You can go to the 'Settings' page to change your nickname at any time.





How many SMS can I receive per day?



By default, you will receive 10 messages each day. You can increase this limit, by going to the 'Settings' link and entering a number you are comfortable with against 'Maximum messages per day:'





What are 'Editor's Picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?



Editor's Picks are channels selected by our editors based on quality of content, popularity of a channel and various other criteria. You can find 'Editor's Picks' by going to 'Narrow by Category' on the left side of the main page and clicking 'Editor's Picks.'





What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editors Pick?



You do not need to do anything. Our Editors review content from time to time and will promote your channel to the Editor's Pick section once it meets certain criteria.





Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?



Yes, you can see all messages that have been posted to a channel online.





Can I send messages in Indian languages?



Yes, you can post messages in Indian languages (Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam). The only caveat is that the mobile handset of the subscribers should support Unicode and ASCII characters.





How do I contact the channel owner?



Sorry, but at this point in time, the functionality to contact the channel owner does not exist.





How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?



You can report abuse Online by clicking the 'report as inappropriate' button next to a channel. You can also report violation of policy by simply replying 'flag <channel name>' via SMS to a message you received from the channel.





I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?



To share your thoughts with us, please post them to Discussion Group. Google SMS Channels is part of Google India Labs, so we're still in the early stages of development. Your feedback is important and will help us improve the product. You can also email your comments to indialabs+smschannels@google.com.





Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?



No, unfortunately at this time we do not support any APIs. We will work to add this in the future.





Do Not Disturb (DND) feature



If you do not wish to receive SMS then send one of the following commands 'dndon' OR 'donotdisturb' OR 'nodisturb' to 9870807070.

If you want to start receiving SMS and had previously set the DND on, then send a SMS with 'dndoff' to 9870807070.









B. Signing up for the service

Do I pay anything for using the service?



No, you don't pay anything to send or receive messages using Google SMS Channels. When you post a message to your channel, all the members of your channel get the message forwarded for free. SMS tariff charges may apply when you configure the service or publish to a channel using a mobile phone.





How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?



You will be charged the standard tariff charged by your mobile operator when you send a message. The message is treated as a single message even though your message might be reaching multiple users.

On SMS you can just send REGISTER to 9870807070 to sign up for the service. You will receive a reply 'You've accepted the Terms of Service at http://labs.google.co.in/smschannels/termsofuse. To subscribe, reply ON channel name. eg. ON GoogleNews. For more commands reply HELP'



The website as well as SMS commands on the phone allow you to configure settings, create and subscribe to channels and even view past messages on a channel (keep reading for detailed instructions).



What is the verification code?



To make sure we do not send messages to anyone who has not registered to our service, we need you to verify your phone number while signing up with SMS Channels service from the web front end. We send the verification code via SMS to the phone number you have entered. You'll need to type in the verification code on our web front end to complete the sign up process.





How do I receive the verification code?



After you sign in to our web front end using your Google account you can input your phone number to receive the verification code via SMS.





How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?



Usually it takes few minutes to receive the verification code. However, network delays may cause the verification code to be delivered at a later time.





What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?



You will need to send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number and a preferred time where we can call you and help you with the verification code.







C. Subscribing to channels

How do I find channels?



You can either browse or search for channels on the Browse channels page.

When browsing, you can narrow the list by selecting a category, or sort the channels by Most users (default), Recent channels and Recent posts.



To search on the website, enter your keyword in the search box on the Browse channels page and click 'Search'



To search using your phone, SMS 'SEARCH <keyword(s)>' to 9870807070. For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to search for channels that contain the keywords 'hyderabad weather' in channel's title or description: SEARCH hyderabad weather



You'll be sent up to 3 channels matching your keyword(s) over SMS.



To see more channels, you can reply 'MORE <keyword(s)>'.



How do I subscribe to a channel?



To subscribe to a channel, click the 'Subscribe' button below the channel description on the Browse channels page or on the Channels detail page. You can also click the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.

To subscribe using your phone, SMS 'ON <channel name>' to 9870807070. <channel name> is the name of the channel.



For example, if you wanted to subscribe to the GoogleNews channel, you will need to send the following SMS to 9870807070: ON GoogleNews



You'll receive a confirmation message and the last message posted on the channel to confirm your subscription.



How do I find out channels that I have subscribed to?



Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:



a) Invited - the channels you've been invited to join by other members.



b) Created - the channels you created.



c) Subscribed - the channels that you have subscribed to.





How many users can subscribe to a channel?



There is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.





Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?



No. Only you can subscribe to a channel using your phone or the website. Your friends/contacts can invite you to join a channel but you have to accept their invitation using the phone or website to join a channel. By default you are subscribed to channels that you create.





Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?



If the channel owner has set the group posting to 'Allow publishing by: Any subscriber' then you can post to such a channel.







D. Creating channels and inviting others

How do I invite users using email or IM?



All public channels (channels that anyone can subscribe to) have a subscription URL link that users can use to subscribe to that channel. Paste this URL in an email or on a blog and any user who clicks on this link will be taken to the channel. This link is available to owners and subscribers of a Public channel and they can pass this on to other users.

For Invitation-only channels, owners can generate an invitation URL and send it to users they wish to invite to the channel. When the invitation URL is no longer needed you can expire the URL. Once an invitation URL expires, it cannot be used for subscribing to the private channel. If the old URL has been expired, the owner of the channel can choose to generate a new invitation URL whenever they need to invite others.



Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?



Yes, you can accept invitations to channels Online. To accept invitations Online: login to your account and click on the 'My Channels' tab. You can then click on the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.





Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?



Yes, others can invite users to a channel. For public channels, anyone can invite friends by sharing the channel name or emailing the subscription link.

For private channels, only users subscribed to the channel can invite others provided the channel owner has set the 'Allow publishing by:' field to 'Any subscriber'.



Can I send messages to a channel?



You can only send messages to a channel under the following conditions:



a) You created the channel.



b) You are subscribed to a channel which allows all its subscribers to publish.

To send a message through the website simply click on the channel name and type in the text box below 'New SMS Message'.



To send a message to a channel through your phone, reply 'send <channel_name> <message>' to 9870807070.



How do I invite others to a channel?



You can invite friends to a channel created or subscribed by you. To invite someone you need to know his/her phone number.

To invite from the website, click the 'invite others' link for the channel and enter the phone number (or a list of up to 5 phone numbers separated by commas) of the people you wish to invite to join the channel.



To invite through your phone, simply send an SMS with the format 'invite < channel name > < phone number>' to 9870807070.



We'll send an SMS to the number specified by you and the receiver needs to respond with 'ON {channel name}' message to complete the subscription.



I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?



Someone you know has probably invited you to join their channel. You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.





If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?



Private channels are not searchable and hence, they will not appear in search results even if words from the description are searched on. Non members will not be able to see messages for private channels.







E. Managing channels

Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?



If your channel is a private channel, then yes, you can see the list of subscribers.





How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?



This feature is available only for Private channels.

To see a list of subscribers:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'



To see a list of subscribers via SMS send a message show <channel name> members to 9870807070.



To Delete subscribers:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'

4. Click on the 'Trash' icon



To delete a list of subscribers via SMS send a message remove <channel name> members <+country code> <phone number> to 9870807070.



How do I see invitations and delete them?



This feature is available only for Private channels.



To see a list of invitations:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'



To see a list of invitations via SMS send a message show <channel name> invitations to 9870807070.



To Delete invitations:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'

4. Click on the 'Trash' icon



To delete a list of invitations via SMS send a message remove <channel name> invitations <+country code> <phone number> to 9870807070.



How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?



To create a channel on the website, click the 'Create channel' link on the right hand side on the main page.



You need to specify the following information to create a channel:



Name: Name of the channel.

Description: A brief description of the channel in less than 100 characters

Category: Channel category.

Location: If a channel is specific to a city, you can specify the city name

Source (optional): You can get your channel updates from Blogger or Google Groups or Google News or RSS/Atom feeds from any supporting web site. This field is optional. You can post messages via the web front end or the phone with or without a source selection.



Blogger: Enter the blog name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates. For example: To get updates from the Official Google Blog ( http://googleblog.blogspot.com/ ), enter googleblog in the text box after selecting Blogger as the source.



Google Groups: Enter the Google group name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates.For example: To get updates from Google Maps Group (http://groups.google.com/group/Google-Maps), enter Google-Maps in the text box after selecting Google Groups as the source.



Google News: Enter one or more keywords of interest for Google News based updates for the entered keywords. For example: to get Google News based updates for keywords 'global warming", enter global warming in the text box after selecting Google News as the source.



RSS/Atom feed: Enter the RSS/Atom URL address in the text box. For example: to get Google News RSS based updates, enter the RSS feed URL 'http://news.google.com/?output=rss' in the text box.



You can preview your channel content by clicking on the 'preview' button. The content should appear inside the image of the phone on the right.



Allow publishing by: This stores the preference around who can publish posts to the channel. By default, only the channel creator is allowed to publish to a channel. You can also select the 'Any subscriber' option that permits publishing by any subscriber of the channel (not just the creator).



Who can subscribe: By default, a created channel is open for subscription by any registered user and hence is also referred to as a public channel. If you want to allow subscription to your channel only via invitations sent by you, you can select 'By invitation only' option. Note: 'By invitation only' channels are also referred to as private channels because they do not appear in search results. No one can join a private channel on their own.



To create a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'CREATE <channel name> <description>'



For example you can create a channel for traffic information in Bangalore with the following command: CREATE TrafficBangalore traffic information for Bangalore.



This will create a 'public' channel (anyone can subscribe to a public channel) with name TrafficBangalore.



You can change the properties by using the MODIFY command as below:



To make channel publish privilege limited (only the owner can publish), send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'MODIFY <channel name> PRISEND'



To allow all subscribers to publish to a channel send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'MODIFY <channel name> PUBSEND'



Please note you are automatically subscribed to every channel that you create.



Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?



Yes, you can. To set the delivery schedule:



1. Login to your account



2. Click on the 'Manage channel' button against the channel you want to set a delivery schedule for



3. Against 'Delviery Schedule' select an option from the drop-down



4. Click on 'Update channel' button





How many message can I post to a channel?



The number of messages a user can post to a channel is high enough. The number is in place to prevent spam and ensure all channels receive high quality posts.





Can I rename my channel?



This feature is currently unavailable.





Are channel names case sensitive?



No, channel names are not case sensitive. You can use any case when trying to use various commands via your mobile.





Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?



No, public channels cannot be converted to private and private channels cannot be converted to public.





How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?



We support extraction of title, body, and both title and body for RSS feeds. By default we pick up only the title. If you want only the body of your RSS to show up in messages, then check the box that says body on the manage channel page.

If you want the title and body of your feed to appear, then check both the boxes (title and body) on the manage channel page under data source RSS/Atom feeds.



I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?



This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Please check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the discussion group to request help.





Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?



This may happen when you have implemented the 'Body' for your RSS feed and are posting all the messages at the same time. Each message has a character limit of 160 and therefore, only your last message is posted as it takes up the entire message limit.

You will need to space out your posts. Sending post at different time intervals should solve the problem. The alternate is to change from 'Body' to just 'Title'.



How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?



1. Go to your channel and click on the 'Manage channel' button.



2. Click the 'Reset' link (Next to the Preview button)



3. Click the 'Update channel' button





I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?



You will need to change your channel posting setting 'Allow publishing by:" to 'Only me". The only other time the nick name does not appear is when the channel posts a message via a RSS feed. For all other instances, the nick name of the user who posted the message will appear.





How do I publish my site via SMS?



You can use any Google property to publish your site. Either create a Blog or RSS feed for your Blog/Google Group and use it as a feed for your Channel.





How do I promote my channel?



You can promote your channel by emailing or IM'ing your channel's subscription link to your friends. You can also invite users to your channel.





How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?



When you create a channel, select 'By invitation only' in the 'Who can subscribe' option. Once you select this option, no one can subscribe to this channel unless explicitly invited by you. If you select 'Any user,' anyone can subscribe to it.

If you've already created a channel, you can always change its settings. Just click the 'My Channel' tab to see a list of all the channels you've created. Next to each channel you own you'll see a 'Manage Channel' button. Click the button to change channel settings.









Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?



No, there is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.





How do I find out the channels that I've created?



Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:



a) the ones you're subscribed to



b) the ones you created and



c) the ones that you've been invited to join by other members of a channel.





How do I delete a channel?



You can only delete channels that you create.

On the website, you'll see a 'Delete channel' button below the channels that you created.



To delete a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'DELETE <channel name> '



Please be aware that once you delete a channel you can't 'undo' it.









F. Managing your Preferences

I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?



You can specify the maximum number of messages along with the time interval when you wish to receive them in a day. To specify these on the website, click the 'Settings' link.

To do so using your phone, SMS 'SET max <maximum number of messages per day> start <start time> end <end time>" to 9870807070.



<start time> <end time> to be specified in hh:mm:am(or pm)format.



For example, to limit the number of messages to 5 per day and to only receive them between 10:00am and 6:00pm , send the following SMS to 9870807070:



SET MAX 5 START 10:00:am END 6:00:pm



If the number of messages posted across your subscribed channels exceeds the maximum limit, you'll receive an alert along with instructions to retrieve the extra messages, if you'd like.



Note: Operator-related fluctuations in delivery times of messages are beyond our control



How do I unsubscribe from a channel?



To unsubscribe from a channel, go to the 'My Channels' tab on the web front end. For the channel you'd like to unsubscribe from, simply click the 'Unsubscribe' button.

To unsubscribe using your phone, SMS 'OFF <channel name>', to 9870807070 where <channel name> is the name of the channel.



For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to unsubscribe from GoogleNews channel: OFF GoogleNews



How do I change my registered mobile number?



To change your number for this service, follow the steps below:



1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels



2. Click on the 'Settings' tab



3. Next, beside your mobile number, click on the link that says 'Remove phone number'



4. Fill in your new number and submit it



5. You will receive a verification code on the new number. Enter the code on the web page, click the 'I Accept' terms box, and then, click the button 'Save changes'





How do I unregister from this service?



To unregister your number from this service, follow the steps below:



1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels



2. Click on the 'Settings' tab



3. Next, click on 'Remove phone number'



4. Click on 'Save changes'







This will unregister you from this service.





I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?



You can try to retrieve your email address by:



1. Click 'I Can't access my account' on Gmail login page



2. Click 'I have forgotten my username'



3. Enter your secondary email address in email field and submit



4. Type the letters (CAPTCHA) in picture and submit



5. A list of any username associated with that secondary email will be sent to the email address provided by you







If you didn't enter a secondary email when you created your Gmail account, but you were invited to Gmail, you may be able to retrieve your user name by clicking the link in your Gmail invitation.







As an alternative, you can email indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.





G. SMS Commands

Almost everything that you can do on the website can be done over SMS. Detailed in the table below is the list of SMS commands and what they do.







create <channel_name> <description> Create channel <channel_name> with optional description <description>.

By default anyone can join & all subscribers can send.

To change properties, use MODIFY

modify <channel_name> prisend

modify <channel_name> pubsend

Allow only the owner to publish to the channel

Allow any subscriber to publish to the channel

delete <channel_name> Delete a channel that you created

on <channel_name> Start receiving messages posted on channel <channel_name>

off <channel_name> Stop receiving messages posted on channel <channel_name>

register Register with SMS Channels service from your phone

send <channel_name> <message> Send message <message> to channel <channel_name>

Message is forwarded to all subscribers

poke <channel_name>

poke <channel_name> #number

poke <channel_name> <query> Retrieve nth last message of channel or message in the channel satisfying given query

invite <channel_name> <phone_number> Send invitation to <phone_number> to join channel <channel_name>

flag <channel_name> Report spam, illegal, or inappropriate content on a channel

pref

pref <max_msg> <start_time> <end_time> Retrieve current maximum_number_of_messages and time settings

Set maximum_number_of_messages and message receiving start and end times

set <pref> <value>

set <pref> <value> <pref> <value> Sets the user preferences. The command can be used to set the following preferences

name - sets the nickname

max - the maximum number of messages you want to receive in a day



start - time of day when you want to start receiving messages end - time of day when you want to stop receiving messages

Users can set multiple preferences at a time by specifying preference name and preference value

one after other.

ch on

ch create

ch send Receive list of channels you have joined

Receive list of channels you have created

Receive list of channels to which you can publish

search <query> Retrieve list of channels satisfying <query> in name or description

more <query> Retrieve more channels from this query

show <channel name> members Private Channels owners can see a list of subscribed members

show <channel name> invitations Private Channels owners can see a list of invitations sent

remove <channel name> members <+country code> <phone number> Private Channels owners can remove subscribers

remove <channel name> invitations <+country code> <phone number> Private Channels owners can delete invitations

dndon OR donotdisturb OR nodisturb You will not receive any SMS from SMS Channels

dndoff You will start receiving SMS from SMS Channels

about Learn more about this product from Google

tos Get link to online Terms of service

accept Acknowledge having read the Google SMS Channels Terms of Service and agree to abide by them

help

help <channel_name>

help <command> See list of important supported commands

Get information about a channel

Get help about a command











H. Troubleshooting

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?



This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.





I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?



By default you should receive only 10 messages per day across all the channels. You can change this setting by going to the Settings page. If you are receiving too many messages please check the settings and input the appropriate number of messages that you would like to receive per day.





I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?



Please make sure that you are subscribed to at least a few channels that are posting messages, your SMS Center number is correct, your mobile SMS Inbox is empty, you have not blocked or screened the Google SMS Channels number, you are not subscribed to the 'Do not Disturb' facility, your maximum message per day is not set to '0', and your "Start Time:" is less than the "End Time:" on your 'Settings' tab. If you still do not receive messages, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.





I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.



Usually messages are delivered within minutes. However, there is no guarantee that a message will get delivered within a reasonable time limit or will get delivered at all. Sometimes issues with SMS Aggregators or Telecom Operators could prevent us from delivering your message on time.





I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.



Sometimes it may take a while before the channel you created appears in 'My Channels' tab. Please be patient and check back later.





I receive the same message more than once.



This can happen at times due to issues with the SMS Aggregator or Telecom Operator. Send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number, the Channel name, the time you received the original message, the time you received the duplicate message, the contents of the message.





I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.



There is a limit to the number of channels you can subscribe to or create.





I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.



This will happen when you have reached the maximum limit of messages you can send in a day. When this happens, just post 24 hours from the time you sent your first message. If your channel is set to have set the 'Allow publishing by:' option to 'Only me', your channel limits will be automatically reset once a day and you will not be restricted by the previous 24 hour limit.





I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.



You may receive this error message due to Operator issues. When you encounter this error, send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.





I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.



You will receive this message when you have already registered your mobile number with another email address. You should try logging in with an alternate email address. You can also register with a new/alternate email address and request for a verification code. Note: You will however, lose access to all your settings, subscribed channels, and channels you have created. If you continue to face issues or cannot remember your email address registered, send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com .





I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.



You will receive this message when you send out invites and the invitees have not yet accepted or rejected your invitation. You will need to wait for a certain amount of time after which, the invitations will expire automatically

google sms help links

Frequently Asked Questions


General

Signing up for a service

Subscribing to channels

Creating channels and inviting others

Managing channels Managing your Preferences

SMS commands

Troubleshooting

Privacy policy







A. General

What are Google SMS Channels?

How do I use Google SMS Channels

Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?

Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?

If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?

What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?

How do I change my nickname?

How many SMS can I receive per day?

What are 'Editor's picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?

What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editor's Picks?

Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?

Can I send messages in Indian languages?

How do I contact the channel owner?

How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?

I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?

Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?

Do Not Disturb (DND) feature







B. Signing up for the service

Do I pay anything for using the service?

How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?

What is the verification code?

How do I receive the verification code?

How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?

What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?







C. Subscribing to channels

How do I find channels?

How do I subscribe to a channel?

How do I find out the channels I have subscribed to?

How many users can subscribe to a channel?

Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?

Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?









D. Creating channels and inviting others

How do I invite users using email or IM?

Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?

Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?

Can I send messages to a channel?

How do I invite others to a channel?

I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?

If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?









E. Managing channels

Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?

How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?

How do I see invitations and delete them?

How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?

Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?

How many message can I post to a channel?

Can I rename my channel?

Are channel names case sensitive?

Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?

How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?

How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?

I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?

How do I publish my site via SMS?

How do I promote my channel?

How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?

Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?

How do I find out the channels that I've created?

How do I delete a channel?







F. Managing your Preferences

I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?

How do I unsubscribe from a channel?

How do I change my registered mobile number?

How do I unregister from this service?

I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?







G. SMS commands







H. Troubleshooting

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?

I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?

I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.

I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.

I receive the same message more than once.

I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.

I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.

I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.

I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.

I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.

I. Privacy policy







A. General

What are Google SMS Channels?



Google SMS Channels is a service that enables channels/groups on SMS. It's a free service that enables you to get premium content published by Google publishing partners, Google popular products (Google News, Blogger and Google Groups) and websites with RSS/Atom support for free. SMS Channels allows you to create your own channel(s) to publish content that other users can subscribe to. You can also create groups over SMS to communicate with your friends, family, and co-workers.





How do I use SMS Channels?



You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.





Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?



No, this service is currently available to users in India and requires an Indian mobile number. We are working towards making this service available to international numbers.









Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?



This is dependent on your service provider.





If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?



All mobile numbers are treated with the highest confidentiality and are not displayed to anyone. You can read more about confidentiality at: http://www.google.com/mobile/privacy.html





What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?



Nickname is the name we'll use to refer to you when you invite someone to a channel. Your nickname will appear in the invite SMS. You can set your nickname while signing up for the service.





How do I change my nickname?



You can go to the 'Settings' page to change your nickname at any time.





How many SMS can I receive per day?



By default, you will receive 10 messages each day. You can increase this limit, by going to the 'Settings' link and entering a number you are comfortable with against 'Maximum messages per day:'





What are 'Editor's Picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?



Editor's Picks are channels selected by our editors based on quality of content, popularity of a channel and various other criteria. You can find 'Editor's Picks' by going to 'Narrow by Category' on the left side of the main page and clicking 'Editor's Picks.'





What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editors Pick?



You do not need to do anything. Our Editors review content from time to time and will promote your channel to the Editor's Pick section once it meets certain criteria.





Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?



Yes, you can see all messages that have been posted to a channel online.





Can I send messages in Indian languages?



Yes, you can post messages in Indian languages (Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam). The only caveat is that the mobile handset of the subscribers should support Unicode and ASCII characters.





How do I contact the channel owner?



Sorry, but at this point in time, the functionality to contact the channel owner does not exist.





How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?



You can report abuse Online by clicking the 'report as inappropriate' button next to a channel. You can also report violation of policy by simply replying 'flag ' via SMS to a message you received from the channel.





I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?



To share your thoughts with us, please post them to Discussion Group. Google SMS Channels is part of Google India Labs, so we're still in the early stages of development. Your feedback is important and will help us improve the product. You can also email your comments to indialabs+smschannels@google.com.





Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?



No, unfortunately at this time we do not support any APIs. We will work to add this in the future.





Do Not Disturb (DND) feature



If you do not wish to receive SMS then send one of the following commands 'dndon' OR 'donotdisturb' OR 'nodisturb' to 9870807070.

If you want to start receiving SMS and had previously set the DND on, then send a SMS with 'dndoff' to 9870807070.









B. Signing up for the service

Do I pay anything for using the service?



No, you don't pay anything to send or receive messages using Google SMS Channels. When you post a message to your channel, all the members of your channel get the message forwarded for free. SMS tariff charges may apply when you configure the service or publish to a channel using a mobile phone.





How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?



You will be charged the standard tariff charged by your mobile operator when you send a message. The message is treated as a single message even though your message might be reaching multiple users.

On SMS you can just send REGISTER to 9870807070 to sign up for the service. You will receive a reply 'You've accepted the Terms of Service at http://labs.google.co.in/smschannels/termsofuse. To subscribe, reply ON channel name. eg. ON GoogleNews. For more commands reply HELP'



The website as well as SMS commands on the phone allow you to configure settings, create and subscribe to channels and even view past messages on a channel (keep reading for detailed instructions).



What is the verification code?



To make sure we do not send messages to anyone who has not registered to our service, we need you to verify your phone number while signing up with SMS Channels service from the web front end. We send the verification code via SMS to the phone number you have entered. You'll need to type in the verification code on our web front end to complete the sign up process.





How do I receive the verification code?



After you sign in to our web front end using your Google account you can input your phone number to receive the verification code via SMS.





How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?



Usually it takes few minutes to receive the verification code. However, network delays may cause the verification code to be delivered at a later time.





What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?



You will need to send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number and a preferred time where we can call you and help you with the verification code.







C. Subscribing to channels

How do I find channels?



You can either browse or search for channels on the Browse channels page.

When browsing, you can narrow the list by selecting a category, or sort the channels by Most users (default), Recent channels and Recent posts.



To search on the website, enter your keyword in the search box on the Browse channels page and click 'Search'



To search using your phone, SMS 'SEARCH ' to 9870807070. For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to search for channels that contain the keywords 'hyderabad weather' in channel's title or description: SEARCH hyderabad weather



You'll be sent up to 3 channels matching your keyword(s) over SMS.



To see more channels, you can reply 'MORE '.



How do I subscribe to a channel?



To subscribe to a channel, click the 'Subscribe' button below the channel description on the Browse channels page or on the Channels detail page. You can also click the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.

To subscribe using your phone, SMS 'ON ' to 9870807070. is the name of the channel.



For example, if you wanted to subscribe to the GoogleNews channel, you will need to send the following SMS to 9870807070: ON GoogleNews



You'll receive a confirmation message and the last message posted on the channel to confirm your subscription.



How do I find out channels that I have subscribed to?



Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:



a) Invited - the channels you've been invited to join by other members.



b) Created - the channels you created.



c) Subscribed - the channels that you have subscribed to.





How many users can subscribe to a channel?



There is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.





Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?



No. Only you can subscribe to a channel using your phone or the website. Your friends/contacts can invite you to join a channel but you have to accept their invitation using the phone or website to join a channel. By default you are subscribed to channels that you create.





Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?



If the channel owner has set the group posting to 'Allow publishing by: Any subscriber' then you can post to such a channel.







D. Creating channels and inviting others

How do I invite users using email or IM?



All public channels (channels that anyone can subscribe to) have a subscription URL link that users can use to subscribe to that channel. Paste this URL in an email or on a blog and any user who clicks on this link will be taken to the channel. This link is available to owners and subscribers of a Public channel and they can pass this on to other users.

For Invitation-only channels, owners can generate an invitation URL and send it to users they wish to invite to the channel. When the invitation URL is no longer needed you can expire the URL. Once an invitation URL expires, it cannot be used for subscribing to the private channel. If the old URL has been expired, the owner of the channel can choose to generate a new invitation URL whenever they need to invite others.



Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?



Yes, you can accept invitations to channels Online. To accept invitations Online: login to your account and click on the 'My Channels' tab. You can then click on the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.





Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?



Yes, others can invite users to a channel. For public channels, anyone can invite friends by sharing the channel name or emailing the subscription link.

For private channels, only users subscribed to the channel can invite others provided the channel owner has set the 'Allow publishing by:' field to 'Any subscriber'.



Can I send messages to a channel?



You can only send messages to a channel under the following conditions:



a) You created the channel.



b) You are subscribed to a channel which allows all its subscribers to publish.

To send a message through the website simply click on the channel name and type in the text box below 'New SMS Message'.



To send a message to a channel through your phone, reply 'send ' to 9870807070.



How do I invite others to a channel?



You can invite friends to a channel created or subscribed by you. To invite someone you need to know his/her phone number.

To invite from the website, click the 'invite others' link for the channel and enter the phone number (or a list of up to 5 phone numbers separated by commas) of the people you wish to invite to join the channel.



To invite through your phone, simply send an SMS with the format 'invite < channel name > < phone number>' to 9870807070.



We'll send an SMS to the number specified by you and the receiver needs to respond with 'ON {channel name}' message to complete the subscription.



I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?



Someone you know has probably invited you to join their channel. You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.





If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?



Private channels are not searchable and hence, they will not appear in search results even if words from the description are searched on. Non members will not be able to see messages for private channels.







E. Managing channels

Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?



If your channel is a private channel, then yes, you can see the list of subscribers.





How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?



This feature is available only for Private channels.

To see a list of subscribers:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'



To see a list of subscribers via SMS send a message show members to 9870807070.



To Delete subscribers:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'

4. Click on the 'Trash' icon



To delete a list of subscribers via SMS send a message remove members <+country code> to 9870807070.



How do I see invitations and delete them?



This feature is available only for Private channels.



To see a list of invitations:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'



To see a list of invitations via SMS send a message show invitations to 9870807070.



To Delete invitations:



1. Login to your account

2. Click on the channel name

3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'

4. Click on the 'Trash' icon



To delete a list of invitations via SMS send a message remove invitations <+country code> to 9870807070.



How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?



To create a channel on the website, click the 'Create channel' link on the right hand side on the main page.



You need to specify the following information to create a channel:



Name: Name of the channel.

Description: A brief description of the channel in less than 100 characters

Category: Channel category.

Location: If a channel is specific to a city, you can specify the city name

Source (optional): You can get your channel updates from Blogger or Google Groups or Google News or RSS/Atom feeds from any supporting web site. This field is optional. You can post messages via the web front end or the phone with or without a source selection.



Blogger: Enter the blog name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates. For example: To get updates from the Official Google Blog ( http://googleblog.blogspot.com/ ), enter googleblog in the text box after selecting Blogger as the source.



Google Groups: Enter the Google group name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates.For example: To get updates from Google Maps Group (http://groups.google.com/group/Google-Maps), enter Google-Maps in the text box after selecting Google Groups as the source.



Google News: Enter one or more keywords of interest for Google News based updates for the entered keywords. For example: to get Google News based updates for keywords 'global warming", enter global warming in the text box after selecting Google News as the source.



RSS/Atom feed: Enter the RSS/Atom URL address in the text box. For example: to get Google News RSS based updates, enter the RSS feed URL 'http://news.google.com/?output=rss' in the text box.



You can preview your channel content by clicking on the 'preview' button. The content should appear inside the image of the phone on the right.



Allow publishing by: This stores the preference around who can publish posts to the channel. By default, only the channel creator is allowed to publish to a channel. You can also select the 'Any subscriber' option that permits publishing by any subscriber of the channel (not just the creator).



Who can subscribe: By default, a created channel is open for subscription by any registered user and hence is also referred to as a public channel. If you want to allow subscription to your channel only via invitations sent by you, you can select 'By invitation only' option. Note: 'By invitation only' channels are also referred to as private channels because they do not appear in search results. No one can join a private channel on their own.



To create a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'CREATE '



For example you can create a channel for traffic information in Bangalore with the following command: CREATE TrafficBangalore traffic information for Bangalore.



This will create a 'public' channel (anyone can subscribe to a public channel) with name TrafficBangalore.



You can change the properties by using the MODIFY command as below:



To make channel publish privilege limited (only the owner can publish), send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'MODIFY PRISEND'



To allow all subscribers to publish to a channel send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'MODIFY PUBSEND'



Please note you are automatically subscribed to every channel that you create.



Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?



Yes, you can. To set the delivery schedule:



1. Login to your account



2. Click on the 'Manage channel' button against the channel you want to set a delivery schedule for



3. Against 'Delviery Schedule' select an option from the drop-down



4. Click on 'Update channel' button





How many message can I post to a channel?



The number of messages a user can post to a channel is high enough. The number is in place to prevent spam and ensure all channels receive high quality posts.





Can I rename my channel?



This feature is currently unavailable.





Are channel names case sensitive?



No, channel names are not case sensitive. You can use any case when trying to use various commands via your mobile.





Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?



No, public channels cannot be converted to private and private channels cannot be converted to public.





How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?



We support extraction of title, body, and both title and body for RSS feeds. By default we pick up only the title. If you want only the body of your RSS to show up in messages, then check the box that says body on the manage channel page.

If you want the title and body of your feed to appear, then check both the boxes (title and body) on the manage channel page under data source RSS/Atom feeds.



I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?



This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Please check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the discussion group to request help.





Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?



This may happen when you have implemented the 'Body' for your RSS feed and are posting all the messages at the same time. Each message has a character limit of 160 and therefore, only your last message is posted as it takes up the entire message limit.

You will need to space out your posts. Sending post at different time intervals should solve the problem. The alternate is to change from 'Body' to just 'Title'.



How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?



1. Go to your channel and click on the 'Manage channel' button.



2. Click the 'Reset' link (Next to the Preview button)



3. Click the 'Update channel' button





I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?



You will need to change your channel posting setting 'Allow publishing by:" to 'Only me". The only other time the nick name does not appear is when the channel posts a message via a RSS feed. For all other instances, the nick name of the user who posted the message will appear.





How do I publish my site via SMS?



You can use any Google property to publish your site. Either create a Blog or RSS feed for your Blog/Google Group and use it as a feed for your Channel.





How do I promote my channel?



You can promote your channel by emailing or IM'ing your channel's subscription link to your friends. You can also invite users to your channel.





How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?



When you create a channel, select 'By invitation only' in the 'Who can subscribe' option. Once you select this option, no one can subscribe to this channel unless explicitly invited by you. If you select 'Any user,' anyone can subscribe to it.

If you've already created a channel, you can always change its settings. Just click the 'My Channel' tab to see a list of all the channels you've created. Next to each channel you own you'll see a 'Manage Channel' button. Click the button to change channel settings.









Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?



No, there is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.





How do I find out the channels that I've created?



Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:



a) the ones you're subscribed to



b) the ones you created and



c) the ones that you've been invited to join by other members of a channel.





How do I delete a channel?



You can only delete channels that you create.

On the website, you'll see a 'Delete channel' button below the channels that you created.



To delete a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:



'DELETE '



Please be aware that once you delete a channel you can't 'undo' it.









F. Managing your Preferences

I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?



You can specify the maximum number of messages along with the time interval when you wish to receive them in a day. To specify these on the website, click the 'Settings' link.

To do so using your phone, SMS 'SET max start end " to 9870807070.



to be specified in hh:mm:am(or pm)format.



For example, to limit the number of messages to 5 per day and to only receive them between 10:00am and 6:00pm , send the following SMS to 9870807070:



SET MAX 5 START 10:00:am END 6:00:pm



If the number of messages posted across your subscribed channels exceeds the maximum limit, you'll receive an alert along with instructions to retrieve the extra messages, if you'd like.



Note: Operator-related fluctuations in delivery times of messages are beyond our control



How do I unsubscribe from a channel?



To unsubscribe from a channel, go to the 'My Channels' tab on the web front end. For the channel you'd like to unsubscribe from, simply click the 'Unsubscribe' button.

To unsubscribe using your phone, SMS 'OFF ', to 9870807070 where is the name of the channel.



For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to unsubscribe from GoogleNews channel: OFF GoogleNews



How do I change my registered mobile number?



To change your number for this service, follow the steps below:



1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels



2. Click on the 'Settings' tab



3. Next, beside your mobile number, click on the link that says 'Remove phone number'



4. Fill in your new number and submit it



5. You will receive a verification code on the new number. Enter the code on the web page, click the 'I Accept' terms box, and then, click the button 'Save changes'





How do I unregister from this service?



To unregister your number from this service, follow the steps below:



1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels



2. Click on the 'Settings' tab



3. Next, click on 'Remove phone number'



4. Click on 'Save changes'







This will unregister you from this service.





I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?



You can try to retrieve your email address by:



1. Click 'I Can't access my account' on Gmail login page



2. Click 'I have forgotten my username'



3. Enter your secondary email address in email field and submit



4. Type the letters (CAPTCHA) in picture and submit



5. A list of any username associated with that secondary email will be sent to the email address provided by you







If you didn't enter a secondary email when you created your Gmail account, but you were invited to Gmail, you may be able to retrieve your user name by clicking the link in your Gmail invitation.







As an alternative, you can email indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.





G. SMS Commands

Almost everything that you can do on the website can be done over SMS. Detailed in the table below is the list of SMS commands and what they do.







create Create channel with optional description .

By default anyone can join & all subscribers can send.

To change properties, use MODIFY

modify prisend

modify pubsend

Allow only the owner to publish to the channel

Allow any subscriber to publish to the channel

delete Delete a channel that you created

on Start receiving messages posted on channel

off Stop receiving messages posted on channel

register Register with SMS Channels service from your phone

send Send message to channel

Message is forwarded to all subscribers

poke

poke #number

poke Retrieve nth last message of channel or message in the channel satisfying given query

invite Send invitation to to join channel

flag Report spam, illegal, or inappropriate content on a channel

pref

pref Retrieve current maximum_number_of_messages and time settings

Set maximum_number_of_messages and message receiving start and end times

set

set Sets the user preferences. The command can be used to set the following preferences

name - sets the nickname

max - the maximum number of messages you want to receive in a day



start - time of day when you want to start receiving messages end - time of day when you want to stop receiving messages

Users can set multiple preferences at a time by specifying preference name and preference value

one after other.

ch on

ch create

ch send Receive list of channels you have joined

Receive list of channels you have created

Receive list of channels to which you can publish

search Retrieve list of channels satisfying in name or description

more Retrieve more channels from this query

show members Private Channels owners can see a list of subscribed members

show invitations Private Channels owners can see a list of invitations sent

remove members <+country code> Private Channels owners can remove subscribers

remove invitations <+country code> Private Channels owners can delete invitations

dndon OR donotdisturb OR nodisturb You will not receive any SMS from SMS Channels

dndoff You will start receiving SMS from SMS Channels

about Learn more about this product from Google

tos Get link to online Terms of service

accept Acknowledge having read the Google SMS Channels Terms of Service and agree to abide by them

help

help

help See list of important supported commands

Get information about a channel

Get help about a command











H. Troubleshooting

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?



This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.





I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?



By default you should receive only 10 messages per day across all the channels. You can change this setting by going to the Settings page. If you are receiving too many messages please check the settings and input the appropriate number of messages that you would like to receive per day.





I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?



Please make sure that you are subscribed to at least a few channels that are posting messages, your SMS Center number is correct, your mobile SMS Inbox is empty, you have not blocked or screened the Google SMS Channels number, you are not subscribed to the 'Do not Disturb' facility, your maximum message per day is not set to '0', and your "Start Time:" is less than the "End Time:" on your 'Settings' tab. If you still do not receive messages, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.





I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.



Usually messages are delivered within minutes. However, there is no guarantee that a message will get delivered within a reasonable time limit or will get delivered at all. Sometimes issues with SMS Aggregators or Telecom Operators could prevent us from delivering your message on time.





I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.



Sometimes it may take a while before the channel you created appears in 'My Channels' tab. Please be patient and check back later.





I receive the same message more than once.



This can happen at times due to issues with the SMS Aggregator or Telecom Operator. Send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number, the Channel name, the time you received the original message, the time you received the duplicate message, the contents of the message.





I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.



There is a limit to the number of channels you can subscribe to or create.





I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.



This will happen when you have reached the maximum limit of messages you can send in a day. When this happens, just post 24 hours from the time you sent your first message. If your channel is set to have set the 'Allow publishing by:' option to 'Only me', your channel limits will be automatically reset once a day and you will not be restricted by the previous 24 hour limit.





I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.



You may receive this error message due to Operator issues. When you encounter this error, send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.





I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.



You will receive this message when you have already registered your mobile number with another email address. You should try logging in with an alternate email address. You can also register with a new/alternate email address and request for a verification code. Note: You will however, lose access to all your settings, subscribed channels, and channels you have created. If you continue to face issues or cannot remember your email address registered, send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com .





I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.



You will receive this message when you send out invites and the invitees have not yet accepted or rejected your invitation. You will need to wait for a certain amount of time after which, the invitations will expire automatically

google sms channel

Frequently Asked Questions
General
Signing up for a service
Subscribing to channels
Creating channels and inviting others
Managing channels Managing your Preferences
SMS commands
Troubleshooting
Privacy policy



A. General
What are Google SMS Channels?
How do I use Google SMS Channels
Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?
Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?
If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?
What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?
How do I change my nickname?
How many SMS can I receive per day?
What are 'Editor's picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?
What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editor's Picks?
Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?
Can I send messages in Indian languages?
How do I contact the channel owner?
How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?
I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?
Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?
Do Not Disturb (DND) feature



B. Signing up for the service
Do I pay anything for using the service?
How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?
What is the verification code?
How do I receive the verification code?
How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?
What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?



C. Subscribing to channels
How do I find channels?
How do I subscribe to a channel?
How do I find out the channels I have subscribed to?
How many users can subscribe to a channel?
Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?
Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?




D. Creating channels and inviting others
How do I invite users using email or IM?
Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?
Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?
Can I send messages to a channel?
How do I invite others to a channel?
I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?
If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?




E. Managing channels
Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?
How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?
How do I see invitations and delete them?
How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?
Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?
How many message can I post to a channel?
Can I rename my channel?
Are channel names case sensitive?
Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?
How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?
I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?
Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?
How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?
I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?
How do I publish my site via SMS?
How do I promote my channel?
How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?
Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?
How do I find out the channels that I've created?
How do I delete a channel?



F. Managing your Preferences
I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?
How do I unsubscribe from a channel?
How do I change my registered mobile number?
How do I unregister from this service?
I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?



G. SMS commands



H. Troubleshooting
I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?
I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?
I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?
I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.
I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.
I receive the same message more than once.
I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.
I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.
I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.
I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.
I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.
I. Privacy policy



A. General
What are Google SMS Channels?

Google SMS Channels is a service that enables channels/groups on SMS. It's a free service that enables you to get premium content published by Google publishing partners, Google popular products (Google News, Blogger and Google Groups) and websites with RSS/Atom support for free. SMS Channels allows you to create your own channel(s) to publish content that other users can subscribe to. You can also create groups over SMS to communicate with your friends, family, and co-workers.


How do I use SMS Channels?

You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.


Can I use this service even if I do not have an Indian number?

No, this service is currently available to users in India and requires an Indian mobile number. We are working towards making this service available to international numbers.




Will I receive messages if I am on International roaming?

This is dependent on your service provider.


If I post messages via my mobile, will subscribers be able to view my mobile number?

All mobile numbers are treated with the highest confidentiality and are not displayed to anyone. You can read more about confidentiality at: http://www.google.com/mobile/privacy.html


What is the nickname? How do I set my nickname?

Nickname is the name we'll use to refer to you when you invite someone to a channel. Your nickname will appear in the invite SMS. You can set your nickname while signing up for the service.


How do I change my nickname?

You can go to the 'Settings' page to change your nickname at any time.


How many SMS can I receive per day?

By default, you will receive 10 messages each day. You can increase this limit, by going to the 'Settings' link and entering a number you are comfortable with against 'Maximum messages per day:'


What are 'Editor's Picks'? How can I find 'Editor's Picks'?

Editor's Picks are channels selected by our editors based on quality of content, popularity of a channel and various other criteria. You can find 'Editor's Picks' by going to 'Narrow by Category' on the left side of the main page and clicking 'Editor's Picks.'


What do I need to do for my channel to show in Editors Pick?

You do not need to do anything. Our Editors review content from time to time and will promote your channel to the Editor's Pick section once it meets certain criteria.


Can I see what messages I have posted via mobile on my Channel when I login?

Yes, you can see all messages that have been posted to a channel online.


Can I send messages in Indian languages?

Yes, you can post messages in Indian languages (Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam). The only caveat is that the mobile handset of the subscribers should support Unicode and ASCII characters.


How do I contact the channel owner?

Sorry, but at this point in time, the functionality to contact the channel owner does not exist.


How can I report abuse or spam in a channel?

You can report abuse Online by clicking the 'report as inappropriate' button next to a channel. You can also report violation of policy by simply replying 'flag ' via SMS to a message you received from the channel.


I have suggestions for product improvements or I've found a bug. How do I let you know?

To share your thoughts with us, please post them to Discussion Group. Google SMS Channels is part of Google India Labs, so we're still in the early stages of development. Your feedback is important and will help us improve the product. You can also email your comments to indialabs+smschannels@google.com.


Do you have APIs that I can create to add cool features?

No, unfortunately at this time we do not support any APIs. We will work to add this in the future.


Do Not Disturb (DND) feature

If you do not wish to receive SMS then send one of the following commands 'dndon' OR 'donotdisturb' OR 'nodisturb' to 9870807070.
If you want to start receiving SMS and had previously set the DND on, then send a SMS with 'dndoff' to 9870807070.




B. Signing up for the service
Do I pay anything for using the service?

No, you don't pay anything to send or receive messages using Google SMS Channels. When you post a message to your channel, all the members of your channel get the message forwarded for free. SMS tariff charges may apply when you configure the service or publish to a channel using a mobile phone.


How much am I charged when I send a message to multiple users through my channel from my mobile?

You will be charged the standard tariff charged by your mobile operator when you send a message. The message is treated as a single message even though your message might be reaching multiple users.
On SMS you can just send REGISTER to 9870807070 to sign up for the service. You will receive a reply 'You've accepted the Terms of Service at http://labs.google.co.in/smschannels/termsofuse. To subscribe, reply ON channel name. eg. ON GoogleNews. For more commands reply HELP'

The website as well as SMS commands on the phone allow you to configure settings, create and subscribe to channels and even view past messages on a channel (keep reading for detailed instructions).

What is the verification code?

To make sure we do not send messages to anyone who has not registered to our service, we need you to verify your phone number while signing up with SMS Channels service from the web front end. We send the verification code via SMS to the phone number you have entered. You'll need to type in the verification code on our web front end to complete the sign up process.


How do I receive the verification code?

After you sign in to our web front end using your Google account you can input your phone number to receive the verification code via SMS.


How long will it take for the verification code to be sent?

Usually it takes few minutes to receive the verification code. However, network delays may cause the verification code to be delivered at a later time.


What do I do if I haven't received the verification code?

You will need to send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number and a preferred time where we can call you and help you with the verification code.



C. Subscribing to channels
How do I find channels?

You can either browse or search for channels on the Browse channels page.
When browsing, you can narrow the list by selecting a category, or sort the channels by Most users (default), Recent channels and Recent posts.

To search on the website, enter your keyword in the search box on the Browse channels page and click 'Search'

To search using your phone, SMS 'SEARCH ' to 9870807070. For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to search for channels that contain the keywords 'hyderabad weather' in channel's title or description: SEARCH hyderabad weather

You'll be sent up to 3 channels matching your keyword(s) over SMS.

To see more channels, you can reply 'MORE '.

How do I subscribe to a channel?

To subscribe to a channel, click the 'Subscribe' button below the channel description on the Browse channels page or on the Channels detail page. You can also click the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.
To subscribe using your phone, SMS 'ON ' to 9870807070. is the name of the channel.

For example, if you wanted to subscribe to the GoogleNews channel, you will need to send the following SMS to 9870807070: ON GoogleNews

You'll receive a confirmation message and the last message posted on the channel to confirm your subscription.

How do I find out channels that I have subscribed to?

Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:

a) Invited - the channels you've been invited to join by other members.

b) Created - the channels you created.

c) Subscribed - the channels that you have subscribed to.


How many users can subscribe to a channel?

There is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.


Can someone else subscribe me to a channel?

No. Only you can subscribe to a channel using your phone or the website. Your friends/contacts can invite you to join a channel but you have to accept their invitation using the phone or website to join a channel. By default you are subscribed to channels that you create.


Can I post a message to a group which I do not own, but I am subscribed to?

If the channel owner has set the group posting to 'Allow publishing by: Any subscriber' then you can post to such a channel.



D. Creating channels and inviting others
How do I invite users using email or IM?

All public channels (channels that anyone can subscribe to) have a subscription URL link that users can use to subscribe to that channel. Paste this URL in an email or on a blog and any user who clicks on this link will be taken to the channel. This link is available to owners and subscribers of a Public channel and they can pass this on to other users.
For Invitation-only channels, owners can generate an invitation URL and send it to users they wish to invite to the channel. When the invitation URL is no longer needed you can expire the URL. Once an invitation URL expires, it cannot be used for subscribing to the private channel. If the old URL has been expired, the owner of the channel can choose to generate a new invitation URL whenever they need to invite others.

Can I accept the invitation to a channel Online?

Yes, you can accept invitations to channels Online. To accept invitations Online: login to your account and click on the 'My Channels' tab. You can then click on the 'Accept invitation' button below the channel description to subscribe to a channel that you've been invited to.


Can a user other than the channel owner invite others by invitation?

Yes, others can invite users to a channel. For public channels, anyone can invite friends by sharing the channel name or emailing the subscription link.
For private channels, only users subscribed to the channel can invite others provided the channel owner has set the 'Allow publishing by:' field to 'Any subscriber'.

Can I send messages to a channel?

You can only send messages to a channel under the following conditions:

a) You created the channel.

b) You are subscribed to a channel which allows all its subscribers to publish.
To send a message through the website simply click on the channel name and type in the text box below 'New SMS Message'.

To send a message to a channel through your phone, reply 'send ' to 9870807070.

How do I invite others to a channel?

You can invite friends to a channel created or subscribed by you. To invite someone you need to know his/her phone number.
To invite from the website, click the 'invite others' link for the channel and enter the phone number (or a list of up to 5 phone numbers separated by commas) of the people you wish to invite to join the channel.

To invite through your phone, simply send an SMS with the format 'invite < channel name > < phone number>' to 9870807070.

We'll send an SMS to the number specified by you and the receiver needs to respond with 'ON {channel name}' message to complete the subscription.

I received an invite to a channel. What do I need to do?

Someone you know has probably invited you to join their channel. You can use the service by going to the Google SMS Channels site or via your mobile phone. On the web you can sign up using your Google account. You'll need to input your phone number while signing up. We'll send a verification code via SMS to your phone. You'll need to input the verification code you received to complete the sign up process.


If my channel is a private channel, can users searching for keywords with my description find my channel and will they be able to see my messages?

Private channels are not searchable and hence, they will not appear in search results even if words from the description are searched on. Non members will not be able to see messages for private channels.



E. Managing channels
Can I see the list of users subscribed to my channel?

If your channel is a private channel, then yes, you can see the list of subscribers.


How do I see and delete users subscribed to my channel?

This feature is available only for Private channels.
To see a list of subscribers:

1. Login to your account
2. Click on the channel name
3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'

To see a list of subscribers via SMS send a message show members to 9870807070.

To Delete subscribers:

1. Login to your account
2. Click on the channel name
3. Click on the 'Members' link available next to 'Posts'
4. Click on the 'Trash' icon

To delete a list of subscribers via SMS send a message remove members <+country code> to 9870807070.

How do I see invitations and delete them?

This feature is available only for Private channels.

To see a list of invitations:

1. Login to your account
2. Click on the channel name
3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'

To see a list of invitations via SMS send a message show invitations to 9870807070.

To Delete invitations:

1. Login to your account
2. Click on the channel name
3. Click on the 'Invitations' link available next to 'Members'
4. Click on the 'Trash' icon

To delete a list of invitations via SMS send a message remove invitations <+country code> to 9870807070.

How do I create a channel? What are the different ways to publish content to a channel?

To create a channel on the website, click the 'Create channel' link on the right hand side on the main page.

You need to specify the following information to create a channel:

Name: Name of the channel.
Description: A brief description of the channel in less than 100 characters
Category: Channel category.
Location: If a channel is specific to a city, you can specify the city name
Source (optional): You can get your channel updates from Blogger or Google Groups or Google News or RSS/Atom feeds from any supporting web site. This field is optional. You can post messages via the web front end or the phone with or without a source selection.

Blogger: Enter the blog name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates. For example: To get updates from the Official Google Blog ( http://googleblog.blogspot.com/ ), enter googleblog in the text box after selecting Blogger as the source.

Google Groups: Enter the Google group name that you want to use as a source for channel posts/updates.For example: To get updates from Google Maps Group (http://groups.google.com/group/Google-Maps), enter Google-Maps in the text box after selecting Google Groups as the source.

Google News: Enter one or more keywords of interest for Google News based updates for the entered keywords. For example: to get Google News based updates for keywords 'global warming", enter global warming in the text box after selecting Google News as the source.

RSS/Atom feed: Enter the RSS/Atom URL address in the text box. For example: to get Google News RSS based updates, enter the RSS feed URL 'http://news.google.com/?output=rss' in the text box.

You can preview your channel content by clicking on the 'preview' button. The content should appear inside the image of the phone on the right.

Allow publishing by: This stores the preference around who can publish posts to the channel. By default, only the channel creator is allowed to publish to a channel. You can also select the 'Any subscriber' option that permits publishing by any subscriber of the channel (not just the creator).

Who can subscribe: By default, a created channel is open for subscription by any registered user and hence is also referred to as a public channel. If you want to allow subscription to your channel only via invitations sent by you, you can select 'By invitation only' option. Note: 'By invitation only' channels are also referred to as private channels because they do not appear in search results. No one can join a private channel on their own.

To create a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:

'CREATE '

For example you can create a channel for traffic information in Bangalore with the following command: CREATE TrafficBangalore traffic information for Bangalore.

This will create a 'public' channel (anyone can subscribe to a public channel) with name TrafficBangalore.

You can change the properties by using the MODIFY command as below:

To make channel publish privilege limited (only the owner can publish), send the following SMS to 9870807070:

'MODIFY PRISEND'

To allow all subscribers to publish to a channel send the following SMS to 9870807070:

'MODIFY PUBSEND'

Please note you are automatically subscribed to every channel that you create.

Can I choose when my channel should deliver posts?

Yes, you can. To set the delivery schedule:

1. Login to your account

2. Click on the 'Manage channel' button against the channel you want to set a delivery schedule for

3. Against 'Delviery Schedule' select an option from the drop-down

4. Click on 'Update channel' button


How many message can I post to a channel?

The number of messages a user can post to a channel is high enough. The number is in place to prevent spam and ensure all channels receive high quality posts.


Can I rename my channel?

This feature is currently unavailable.


Are channel names case sensitive?

No, channel names are not case sensitive. You can use any case when trying to use various commands via your mobile.


Can I convert a public channel to a private and vice versa?

No, public channels cannot be converted to private and private channels cannot be converted to public.


How do I add additional information from RSS feeds in addition to the title?

We support extraction of title, body, and both title and body for RSS feeds. By default we pick up only the title. If you want only the body of your RSS to show up in messages, then check the box that says body on the manage channel page.
If you want the title and body of your feed to appear, then check both the boxes (title and body) on the manage channel page under data source RSS/Atom feeds.

I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Please check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the discussion group to request help.


Why does the last RSS feed only get posted to my channel?

This may happen when you have implemented the 'Body' for your RSS feed and are posting all the messages at the same time. Each message has a character limit of 160 and therefore, only your last message is posted as it takes up the entire message limit.
You will need to space out your posts. Sending post at different time intervals should solve the problem. The alternate is to change from 'Body' to just 'Title'.

How do I remove feeds or other URLs from my channel?

1. Go to your channel and click on the 'Manage channel' button.

2. Click the 'Reset' link (Next to the Preview button)

3. Click the 'Update channel' button


I do not want my nickname to appear before every message. What do I do?

You will need to change your channel posting setting 'Allow publishing by:" to 'Only me". The only other time the nick name does not appear is when the channel posts a message via a RSS feed. For all other instances, the nick name of the user who posted the message will appear.


How do I publish my site via SMS?

You can use any Google property to publish your site. Either create a Blog or RSS feed for your Blog/Google Group and use it as a feed for your Channel.


How do I promote my channel?

You can promote your channel by emailing or IM'ing your channel's subscription link to your friends. You can also invite users to your channel.


How do I control who can subscribe to the channels I create?

When you create a channel, select 'By invitation only' in the 'Who can subscribe' option. Once you select this option, no one can subscribe to this channel unless explicitly invited by you. If you select 'Any user,' anyone can subscribe to it.
If you've already created a channel, you can always change its settings. Just click the 'My Channel' tab to see a list of all the channels you've created. Next to each channel you own you'll see a 'Manage Channel' button. Click the button to change channel settings.




Is there a limit to the number of users who can subscribe to a channel?

No, there is no limit to the number of users that can subscribe to a channel.


How do I find out the channels that I've created?

Go to the My Channels tab. This tab lists three kinds of channels:

a) the ones you're subscribed to

b) the ones you created and

c) the ones that you've been invited to join by other members of a channel.


How do I delete a channel?

You can only delete channels that you create.
On the website, you'll see a 'Delete channel' button below the channels that you created.

To delete a channel using phone, send the following SMS to 9870807070:

'DELETE '

Please be aware that once you delete a channel you can't 'undo' it.




F. Managing your Preferences
I don't want to be spammed by a lot of messages during busy hours. How can I control the number of messages I receive? Can I specify when I receive the messages?

You can specify the maximum number of messages along with the time interval when you wish to receive them in a day. To specify these on the website, click the 'Settings' link.
To do so using your phone, SMS 'SET max start end " to 9870807070.

to be specified in hh:mm:am(or pm)format.

For example, to limit the number of messages to 5 per day and to only receive them between 10:00am and 6:00pm , send the following SMS to 9870807070:

SET MAX 5 START 10:00:am END 6:00:pm

If the number of messages posted across your subscribed channels exceeds the maximum limit, you'll receive an alert along with instructions to retrieve the extra messages, if you'd like.

Note: Operator-related fluctuations in delivery times of messages are beyond our control

How do I unsubscribe from a channel?

To unsubscribe from a channel, go to the 'My Channels' tab on the web front end. For the channel you'd like to unsubscribe from, simply click the 'Unsubscribe' button.
To unsubscribe using your phone, SMS 'OFF ', to 9870807070 where is the name of the channel.

For example, send the following SMS to 9870807070 to unsubscribe from GoogleNews channel: OFF GoogleNews

How do I change my registered mobile number?

To change your number for this service, follow the steps below:

1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels

2. Click on the 'Settings' tab

3. Next, beside your mobile number, click on the link that says 'Remove phone number'

4. Fill in your new number and submit it

5. You will receive a verification code on the new number. Enter the code on the web page, click the 'I Accept' terms box, and then, click the button 'Save changes'


How do I unregister from this service?

To unregister your number from this service, follow the steps below:

1. Login with your gmail ID to labs.google.co.in/smschannels

2. Click on the 'Settings' tab

3. Next, click on 'Remove phone number'

4. Click on 'Save changes'



This will unregister you from this service.


I forgot the email I registered. What do I do?

You can try to retrieve your email address by:

1. Click 'I Can't access my account' on Gmail login page

2. Click 'I have forgotten my username'

3. Enter your secondary email address in email field and submit

4. Type the letters (CAPTCHA) in picture and submit

5. A list of any username associated with that secondary email will be sent to the email address provided by you



If you didn't enter a secondary email when you created your Gmail account, but you were invited to Gmail, you may be able to retrieve your user name by clicking the link in your Gmail invitation.



As an alternative, you can email indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.


G. SMS Commands
Almost everything that you can do on the website can be done over SMS. Detailed in the table below is the list of SMS commands and what they do.



create Create channel with optional description .
By default anyone can join & all subscribers can send.
To change properties, use MODIFY
modify prisend
modify pubsend
Allow only the owner to publish to the channel
Allow any subscriber to publish to the channel
delete Delete a channel that you created
on Start receiving messages posted on channel
off Stop receiving messages posted on channel
register Register with SMS Channels service from your phone
send Send message to channel
Message is forwarded to all subscribers
poke
poke #number
poke Retrieve nth last message of channel or message in the channel satisfying given query
invite Send invitation to to join channel
flag Report spam, illegal, or inappropriate content on a channel
pref
pref Retrieve current maximum_number_of_messages and time settings
Set maximum_number_of_messages and message receiving start and end times
set
set Sets the user preferences. The command can be used to set the following preferences
name - sets the nickname
max - the maximum number of messages you want to receive in a day

start - time of day when you want to start receiving messages end - time of day when you want to stop receiving messages
Users can set multiple preferences at a time by specifying preference name and preference value
one after other.
ch on
ch create
ch send Receive list of channels you have joined
Receive list of channels you have created
Receive list of channels to which you can publish
search Retrieve list of channels satisfying in name or description
more Retrieve more channels from this query
show members Private Channels owners can see a list of subscribed members
show invitations Private Channels owners can see a list of invitations sent
remove members <+country code> Private Channels owners can remove subscribers
remove invitations <+country code> Private Channels owners can delete invitations
dndon OR donotdisturb OR nodisturb You will not receive any SMS from SMS Channels
dndoff You will start receiving SMS from SMS Channels
about Learn more about this product from Google
tos Get link to online Terms of service
accept Acknowledge having read the Google SMS Channels Terms of Service and agree to abide by them
help
help
help See list of important supported commands
Get information about a channel
Get help about a command





H. Troubleshooting
I've created a channel using a RSS feed, but I get no messages. What do I do?

This could be because there are no new posts on the channel. Check the source RSS feed to make sure there are regular posts. If the feed is working fine and you're still having difficulties, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.


I've registered to SMS Channels, but I receive too many messages per day. What do I do?

By default you should receive only 10 messages per day across all the channels. You can change this setting by going to the Settings page. If you are receiving too many messages please check the settings and input the appropriate number of messages that you would like to receive per day.


I'm a registered user, but I don't receive any messages. What do I do?

Please make sure that you are subscribed to at least a few channels that are posting messages, your SMS Center number is correct, your mobile SMS Inbox is empty, you have not blocked or screened the Google SMS Channels number, you are not subscribed to the 'Do not Disturb' facility, your maximum message per day is not set to '0', and your "Start Time:" is less than the "End Time:" on your 'Settings' tab. If you still do not receive messages, please post a message to the Google SMS Channels Discussion Group to request help.


I sent a message to a channel I created and it did not get published for a long time.

Usually messages are delivered within minutes. However, there is no guarantee that a message will get delivered within a reasonable time limit or will get delivered at all. Sometimes issues with SMS Aggregators or Telecom Operators could prevent us from delivering your message on time.


I've created a channel, but I don't see it in 'My Channels' tab.

Sometimes it may take a while before the channel you created appears in 'My Channels' tab. Please be patient and check back later.


I receive the same message more than once.

This can happen at times due to issues with the SMS Aggregator or Telecom Operator. Send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number, the Channel name, the time you received the original message, the time you received the duplicate message, the contents of the message.


I am unable to subscribe to or create additional channels.

There is a limit to the number of channels you can subscribe to or create.


I receive the following error message when I try to post to a channel 'Post failed: Too many posts on this channel in last 24 hrs'.

This will happen when you have reached the maximum limit of messages you can send in a day. When this happens, just post 24 hours from the time you sent your first message. If your channel is set to have set the 'Allow publishing by:' option to 'Only me', your channel limits will be automatically reset once a day and you will not be restricted by the previous 24 hour limit.


I receive the error message 'You seem to be having problems with the verification code. Please contact us so that we may assist you'.

You may receive this error message due to Operator issues. When you encounter this error, send an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com with your mobile number.


I receive the error message 'Phone registered to another user'.

You will receive this message when you have already registered your mobile number with another email address. You should try logging in with an alternate email address. You can also register with a new/alternate email address and request for a verification code. Note: You will however, lose access to all your settings, subscribed channels, and channels you have created. If you continue to face issues or cannot remember your email address registered, send in an email to indialabs+smschannels@google.com .


I receive the error message: 'Inviter has too many open invitations already'.

You will receive this message when you send out invites and the invitees have not yet accepted or rejected your invitation. You will need to wait for a certain amount of time after which, the invitations will expire automatically