If you’ve finally let go of your Outlook calendar and moved to the cloud, specifically Google Calendar, like I have recently then you’ve quickly experienced one no so subtle draw-back – event notifications. Outlook would produce a pop-up window with an auditory tone, however in Google Calendar the notification options are quite simplistic which allows you to easily miss those important Monday morning meetings. Thankfully, using Google Chrome and a select few preference tweaks can introduce a toaster-style pop-up from your desktop tray!

Google Chrome supports desktop notifications natively but first you must ensure it’s been enabled. From the Wrench access the Options dialog and activate the Under the hood tab. Click Content settings under the Privacy section.

Under Notifications select the radio button next to Ask me when  a site wants to show desktop notifications. You should also take the opportunity to verify Google Calendar isn’t already blocked, perhaps by a previous gaffe, under Exceptions.

With Chrome properly configured let’s turn out attention to Google Calendar Settings or more specifically the Labs section.

Locate and enable the feature titled Gentle Reminders.

After saving the change Chrome will make a request for www.google.com to allow access to desktop notifications. Click Allow.

Immediately following the allowing you will see an example toaster-style pop-up of how the desktop notifications will look when they fire. The notification window will stay visible until you’ve actively closed the pop-up ensuring you never miss a meeting again!