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Independent volunteer group. Not officially endorsed or supported.

Join the HPAlumni Google Groups -- via a Gmail account. 

If you are not a current HP Alumni Association member -- or are not sure -- please apply to join. (If you are not sure whether you were a member in the past, it is easiest  for our volunteer team to simply add you as a new member.)

This page is for those who want their HPAA emails to come to a Gmail address.

You will be able to read, reply, and create posts by sending messages. You can also log in to Google Groups to read and post directly -- or to search posts released after December 15, 2020.

(If you want your HPAA emails to come to a non-Gmail address -- go here: https://www.hpalumni.org/groups-other )

Due to variations in how your email may have been set up, be sure to note the instructions highlighted in green. 

Step 1. Ask to join a group.

For each group you want to join, Ctrl-click the link from the list below to open a new tab or window in your browser. (You may have to log in to your Google account.)

When you see "You don't have permission to access this content" just click "try joining the group."

The email address linked to your Google Account will be added to the group's subscription list. The default is that you will be sent an email for every post. Otherwise, use "My membership settings" to choose Digest (one email per day for each group); Abridged (one email with sender and subject for each post); or No email. Be sure to click "Save changes."

Wait five minutes before joining another group. To prevent abuse of their system by spammers, it appears that Google limits the rate at which a given person can join multiple groups.

If you get a Google page that says "You don't have permission to access this content" you are joining groups too quickly. Google thinks that you are a spambot. Wait an hour and try again.

If this procedure doesn't work for you, please try again -- especially watching for the instructions highlighted in green. 

If you do not succeed the second time, send us an email. Please include the text from any error message or rejection email. info@hpalumni.org

Repeat Step 1 for each group you wish to join.

(To follow your progress, you can open the list of your Google groups at https://groups.google.com/my-groups -- and keep refreshing that page.)

Menu of HPAA online groups. (All groups are moderated.)

HP Alumni News. [HPAA News]
Once-a-month emails with links to information for U.S. HP and HPE alumni on topics such as HP-related stock, professional networking, discounts, and local events. (No company news.)
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-news

Benefits Group. [HPAA Benefits]
Updates and Q-and-A forum on U.S. HP and HPE COBRA and retiree health benefits, including Annual Enrollment and transition to Medicare.
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-benefits

Finance Group. [HPAA Finance]
Updates and Q-and-A forum on U.S. pension, employee stock, Social Security, and other personal finance issues from an ex-HP/HPE perspective.
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-finance

Job-Post Group. [HPAA Jobs]
U.S. openings posted by fellow members.
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-jobs

TechTalk Group. [HPAA TechTalk]
Q-and-A forum on personal technology issues from an ex-HP/HPE perspective.
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-techtalk

Memorials Group. [HPAA Memorials]
Obituary and memorial service announcements for current and former U.S. HP and HPE employees.
https://groups.google.com/g/hpalumni-memorials

To see a list of all Google Groups you are a member of -- or to easily change your subscription options: https://groups.google.com/my-groups

Step 3. You may need to adjust your email settings or add us to your safelist.

Each email provider defends against suspicious emails. For example, identical emails sent to many addresses from one source -- such as a groups site -- may be treated as suspicious.

In addition, some email providers attempt to use artificial intelligence to sort your incoming emails for you.

Here's how the HPAA Google Groups emails are handled by various email services.

- Gmail. You may have an "Updates" tab. The Gmail spam folder is hidden from view by default. To make it visible, click the gear icon in top-right > click "See all settings" > under "Labels" click "Show" for "Spam" folder. Perhaps hide some of the Categories. You can use labels or filters to deal with every email with "HPAA" in the subject line. 

- Outlook and Hotmail.  All Google Groups emails -- regardless of content -- are viewed as suspicious and moved to the "Junk Email" folder, which is readily visible. Clicking "Not Junk" only moves the specific messages; does not affect handling of future messages. How to use the "Safe mailing list" or "Rule" features of Outlook and Hotmail: https://hpalumni.org/email-outlook

- Yahoo Mail. No problems reported with our Google groups. You can use filters to move every email with "HPAA" in the subject line to a dedicated folder. Click the gear icon in top-right > click "More Settings" in gray at bottom-right > "Filters" on left.

Questions and comments appreciated: info@hpalumni.org   (Updated Apr 27, 2021.)

Notes:

If you later want to change to a non-Gmail address, rejoin from your non-Gmail account at https://www.hpalumni.org/groups-other -- then ask us to delete your previous address from Google Groups at https://www.hpalumni.org/subs

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