Forbes Reviews Google's Gmail [updated]

An anonymous reader submits "Forbes.com has what looks to be the first hands-on review of Google's forthcoming Gmail service. Aside from the 1-gigabyte storage, the searching features sound pretty useful for what the writer calls 'email packrats' which I think fits me pretty well. But I can't say I agree with the writer's opinion that privacy fears, as discussed this Slashdot thread, about the Gmail service are 'overblown.' Still and all, I'm curious to try it myself and see what I think." Update: 04/13 00:55 GMT by T : notEA writes "A California state senator is drafting legislation to block Google from releasing Gmail. Seems kind of silly, since all anti-spam filters read your messages anyway."

Privacy?

[DeadBugs]

They can go ahead and search my 1 Gigabyte encrypted zip file all they want.

Re:1GB free e-mail already available

[theAedileDecimus]

Spymac already offers free 1GB e-mail accounts without all the privacy issues of GMail. However, not everyone wants their email address to have the word 'mac' in it.
Hmm... though maybe someone would interpret that as spying on the macs in some sinister conspiracy against Apple...

Re:In Google We Trust

[silvaran]

If your tin foil hat is firmly on, you can't use e-mail at all.

My tin foil hat doesn't impede my ability to use E-Mail at all. My tin foil body suit, on the other hand...

Hmmm money to be made here...

[Gilesx]

Wonder how much I could sell a gmail account loaded with mp3s for on eBay?

Re:Still and all

[dont_think_twice]

"Still and all" - what does that mean? It means the submitter is a moron.

Re:Viagra, It isn't forced on us....

[Anonymous Coward]

Doesn't this mean my spam will contain spam?

Yay!

[Gilesx]

Now I can archive years of spam and show my grandkids just how easy it used to be to get

a) Viagra
b) Vicodin
c) A degree
d) A loan
e) Laid

Re:It isn't forced on us....

[nizo]

if you're against having them sort your mail and deliver ads based on content

I can't wait to see all the viagra, penis enlargment, and nekkid cheerleader ads that my spam laden email would generate.

Re:Hmmm money to be made here...

[krumms]

>>> 1024/3
341
>>> 341*0.99
337.58999999999997

Python tells me, about $337.60, 341 songs at current iTunes prices.

Or about $1000 at future iTunes prices.

1 gig of storage is too much email

[jjeffries]

personally, my "current" email, that which is important and timely, stays under 10MB or so just about all the time. Not so with "bobb", my boss. I have altered "bobb's" name slightly to protect his identity.

Bobb has every email he's been sent since 1996. It might be thousands of messages, maybe hundreds of thousands by now. His Eudora mailbox has been transplanted to two different computers and that's only in the time I've been here. He hates having to reboot his machine because it takes 20 minutes for Eudora rebuild the index. And worst of all, it's mostly useless, out-of-date crap!!! Every old, unimportant thing you could imagine--network monitoring alarms from the late '90's, 'see you in five minutes' type stuff, bounces, and spam, spam, spam... maybe 1% of this stuff has enough content to bother with. The rest? A distraction if not a hinderance.

please don't end up like bobb. prune that mailbox regularly! don't forget to wash behind your home directory, either.

Re:Google Backups!

[Anonymous Coward]

How much of that is porn?

Re:Name Grabbing-rush

[SnappleMaster]

This is slashdot, remember? ;)

You shouldn't be worried about privacy...

[raehl]

I've read all your email and you've got nothing to hide.

Re:Google Backups!

[Kenja]

YOU'RE LOOKING AT MY DISK AREN'T YOU! FREAKING HACKERS........

Ahem, I mean none of it my good man. What pray tell is this "porn" I keep hearing about?

In truth its all video files, some of it mine, some of it other peoples, but a lot of it's anime. Its suprising how much disk space Mpeg4 chews up.

Re:Gunit vs Gmail?

[dekashizl]

holla g-UNIT!

got 20s on my bentley

and 1000 for my mail.
feds subpoenad google,
dat's why i rap from jail!

Re:gmail discriminates against the blind

[jalefkowit]

Yes, definitely - Pilgrim does an excellent job taking Gmail apart from an accessibility standpoint. I especially liked this observation:

Furthermore, the most innovative feature of Gmail--the global keyboard shortcuts--appears to have been designed by vi users (j moves down, k moves up, and we are expected to memorize multi-key sequences for navigation).

Wow, a Web application with keyboard shortcuts as intuitive and general-public friendly as vi??? Sign me up! :-)

No, I'm New Here

[New Here]

No, I'm New Here

Re:Google Backups!

[wheresdrew]

"Ever consider that the rocket surgeons at Google have already thought of that?"

"rocket sugeon?" Is that anything like an "in-flight missle repair technician?"

Re:1GB email isn't that unique

[Moofie]

I wonder if Google gets better rates for co-lo than you do. Hmmm...

Do you want to protect your data?

[coopaq]

Since gmail provides so much space upload an image with your text on it with a random obfuscation background.

Of course the recipient would need a lot of space too :)

Ggigantic corporations need the masses to be asses to succeed.