Friday, November 12, 2004

POP3 Access to Gmail is Being Rolled Out

Google will roll out POP3 support to its beta Gmail users over the next few weeks. Users with POP3 access will be able to read their Gmail using client-side email applications such as Microsoft Outlook and Qualcomm Eudora.
  • Google Gives Gmail POP3 Support (ComputerWorld.com)
  • GMail should have chosen IMAP Not POP (TechWhack.com)

  • Wednesday, October 27, 2004

    Your Gmail Account Probably Has an Atom Feed

    Google is working on an Atom feed generator that will allow a Gmail user to see a list of their unread messages in their favorite newsfeed reader. Atom newsfeeds are being created now for some - and perhaps all - Gmail accounts, but not all Gmail users know where to find them and the feeds do not yet work with all newsfeed readers.
  • Article: Gmail Atom Feed Coming? (InterNews.com)
  • Article: Gmail Adds Atom Feeds (MicroPersuasion.com)
  • Tutorial: How to Find Your Gmail Atom Feed (Webstractions.com)
  • Definition: What Is Atom? (Blogger.com)
  • Tuesday, October 05, 2004

    New Gmail Features Are Coming Soon

    On October 1 Google officially announced to many Gmail users that "new features are coming soon". Stay tuned...

    Monday, October 04, 2004

    Ability to Save Drafts Coming Soon?

    I keep reading in the online Gmail forums that Google will release additional Gmail features soon, including the one feature I need more than any other - the ability to create draft messages and save them for sending later. Other features that may be coming soon are a more sophisticated editor for the contacts list and an Atom feed for unread Email. I'm not quite sure how that last one would work...

    Thursday, September 23, 2004

    Is Google Developing Its Own Browser?

    There is a strong rumor circulating that Google may be developing its own browser based on the open-source Mozilla code. Adding fuel to that rumor is the fact that Google owns the domain name GBrowser.com and even more so the fact that Google recently recruited and hired four employees away from Microsoft including key Internet Explorer development team member Adam Bosworth.
  • Revolution Magazine Article
  • PC World Article
  • BBC News Article
  • Gallina Turns Gmail Into a Blogging Tool

    Programmer Jonathan Hernandez of Mexico has created a tool that turns Google's Gmail service into a blog. Jonathan named his software "Gallina" and he has posted a demo and the open source code on his Web site at Gluch.org.mx (NOTE: Before you use your Gmail account for a purpose like this I recommend you consider how Google might react...) [Article at Silicon.com]

    Thursday, September 02, 2004

    What I Think About Gmail So Far

    I have been using Gmail for about two months and I am quickly becoming addicted. Here is why Gmail is turning out to be the best email solution I have tried so far [Read Full Article]

    Is Google Developing an Instant Messenger?

    If you believe recent comments in discussion boards and blogs across the Internet, Google is developing an IM product that would allow them to complete a communications platform that includes Gmail (Google's Web-based email system) and Orkut (Google's community networking portal [Article at InternetNews.com]

    Tuesday, August 24, 2004

    How to Add a Gmail Signature

    Step-by-step instructions for creating a personalized signature that will automatically be appended to the end of every Gmail message you send. Also includes questions and answers about Gmail signatures and how they work.

    Google's New Gmail Helper Toolset

    Google appears to be developing an optional multi-purpose toolset that will add features to their new Gmail Web-based electronic mail service that many beta testers have requested. Google's first two (still in beta test) offerings are the the Gmail Notifier tool and its optional "associate mailto links with Gmail" component. For more information about those tools see the two entries below this one.

    New Tool for Associating Mailto Links with Gmail

    The Gmail Notifier tool released this week by Google is primarily a Windows-based Gmail alerting tool but it also allows a user to associate "mailto" links with Gmail. The installer allows a user to select one or both components of the program.

    Sunday, August 22, 2004

    Google Releases Gmail Notifier Tool

    "Gmail Notifier" is a new tool being beta tested by Google that alerts a Gmail user when new Gmail messages have been received. It displays an icon in the system tray that announces new Gmail messages and also displays their subjects, senders and a bit of the message itself, without requiring a user to open their Web browser (note that this beta version was released for Microsoft Windows only)

    Three New Gmail Google Groups

    Thank you to Bill Holmes, editor of the GMusers Blog and founder of the Gmusers Google Newsgroup, for telling us about these 3 new Google groups for discussing Gmail [GMusers Announcement]

    Friday, August 20, 2004

    Meet Me in Sacramento This Weekend

    Today I'm off to the city of Sacramento in Northern California to report on an Aggressive Skaters Association (ASA) Pro Tour event at the California State Fairgrounds. I do expect to have Internet and email access while I'm away so if I come across any interesting Gmail news or information I should still be able to post it. I'll be back home again on Monday...[More Information]

    Wednesday, August 18, 2004

    Does (kathiefry@gmail.com) = (kathie.fry@gmail.com) ?

    Does Gmail consider both of these email addresses to be equivalent? According to this discussion at GmailForums.com, you have to log on to your Gmail account using the exact form you used when you applied, but email for either address will be sent to the same Gmailbox. I'm off to do some experimenting... [Discussion at GmailForums.com]

    Gmail Invites Are Flowing Again

    According to these messages in the Google Groups "Gmail Users" forum, Google has started issuing invitations again. This has been confirmed by some of my friends with Gmail accounts, who tell me the invitations are being doled out 2 or 3 at a time. If you have a Gmail account, look for words like "Invite 2 friends to Gmail" below the far left column of your Gmail account home page [Gmail Users Forum Discussion].

    Tuesday, August 17, 2004

    Quick Reference Guide to Gmail Keyboard Shortcuts

    This handy quick reference guide for Gmail keyboard shortcuts was created by Min-Yen Kan at the National University of Singapore. It is available in four different formats: HTML, PDF, RTF, and Microsoft Word [Keyboard Shortcuts]

    The Complete Playboy Interview

    Here is the complete text of an article in the September 2004 issue
    of Playboy Magazine that was entitled "Playboy Interview: Google Guys". This is a reprint that appears on the Securities and Exchange Commission Web site at SecInfo.com (if you can't see the article when you first connect to this page, see the link "Appendix B September 2004 Magazine Article" at the bottom of the first column of the Table of Contents) [Complete Playboy Interview]

    Google IPO Continues Despite Playboy Boob

    Google's IPO ran into another problem last week. Google's founders will appear in an upcoming issue of Playboy magazine, and although the interview was apparently held before the IPO hype, some reporters are speculating that it *may* have broken US Securities laws about pre-IPO quiet periods.
    [Search Engine Journal Article]

    Monday, August 16, 2004

    180 Gmail Domain Names

    Wow - check out this list of 180 registered domain names that include the string "gmail" (posted by Bill Holmes in the GMusers Forum) [Gmail Domain Name List]

    Six Gmail Trademark Applications

    Here are links to the actual U.S. Patents and Copyrights listings for all 6 of the applications filed to use "Gmail" as a commerce trademark or service mark. So far there have been 6 applications: 5 of them were filed after Google announced their new Gmail service and one was filed in 1999, abandoned in 2000, and refiled in April of 2004 using a different company name [Read Full Article]

    Gmail Tools by Function

    This weekend I reorganized and updated the "Gmail Tools" section of this Web site. I decided it would be more useful if the tools were organized by function, so that's what I did. To see the new, reorganized list of Gmail tools connect to [Gmail Tools]

    Friday, August 13, 2004

    UK Firm Threatens Lawsuit Over Gmail Name

    After the British company "Independent International Investment Research" widely publicized their claim that they own the name Gmail and their intention to vigorously protect that ownership, the value of their company's shares sored 77%. [Full Article at Independent.co.uk]

    A Brief History of Gmail and Other Free Email

    "The idea that there could be a better way to handle email caught the attention of a Google engineer who thought it might be a good '20 per cent time' project (Google requires engineers to spend a day a week on projects that interest them, unrelated to their day jobs). Millions of M&Ms later, Gmail was born..." [Full Article at TheStar.com]

    Thursday, August 12, 2004

    A Gmail Hacking Tool From Australia

    An Australia-based hacking group has announced a new tool called "Gmail Hack" that will supposedly allow a user to perform a brute force dictionary hack against Gmail accounts. Will Gmail's visually oriented anti-robot test protect users from this hack? [Andrew Bonar Article]

    Yahoo Acquires OddPost Email Service

    Yahoo has purchased the San Francisco based Oddpost.com, a provider of Web-based email, photo sharing, and newsfeed aggregation services. The Oddpost email technology functions like a desktop application through a combination of dynamic HTML, XML, and javascript. Effective immediately, Oddpost programmers will begin developing a new, advanced, and more powerful YahooMail technology for Yahoo.com. Oddpost is not taking any new applications for its services and current Oddpost accounts will be migrated to the new YahooMail service when it is launched. Current OddPost account holders will also receive one year of Premium YahooMail service for free [Announcement at OddPost.com]

    Thursday, August 05, 2004

    Gone to the X Games!

    I might not be able to post anything on this Web site August 5-8 because I'm working the X Games at Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, California. If you watch the live broadcast on ESPN look for me standing on top of the halfpipe taking photos and screaming my head off. I will be posting daily reports and photos from the X Games here: 2004 X Games Special Report. See you Monday!

    Wednesday, August 04, 2004

    Gmail Watch Blog by Vivek Gite has Moved

    If you are linking to the Gmail Watch Blog by Vivek Gite of Pune Maharashtra India, note that Vivek has moved it to this URL: http://fearside.org/~vivekgite/gmail-watch.

    Unofficial Index to the Google Web Site

    I added something to the right side of every page at GmailUsers.com. It's an unofficial index to the pages I visit most frequently at Google.com (Google is the provider of Gmail). If you're wondering why I added those little notes next to AdSense and AdWords, its because I keep getting confused about which one is which! For my unofficial index to Google.com see "From Google" on the right side of this page.

    My Gmail Forums Section Has Been Reorganized

    I reorganized my "Gmail Forums" section to separate the general-interest forums from the forums set up only to discussion Gmail tools and Gmail invitations. I think (I hope) this will make it easier for Gmail users to connect quickly to the most important and most active Gmail forums on the Internet. You can go directly to this page at any time by selecting the "Forums" link in the pale green bar at the top of every page of GmailUsers.com [Gmail Forums on the Web]

    Monday, August 02, 2004

    22 Year Old Spammer Drives a Jaguar

    If you have recently received email offering to refinance your mortgage, buy health insurance, install a burglar alarm, or extend your auto warranty, Ryan Pitylak might be the man behind your spam. This 22-year-old college student, is doing very well, with a home valued at $450,000 USD and a late-model Jaguar parked in his driveway [Article at KansasCity.com]

    New Google IPO Web Site

    Because of the massive interest in the Google Initial Public Offering (IPO) a new Web site has been launched by Google at [IPO.Google.com]

    Email Fatigues Workers and Reduces Profits

    The never-ending task of emptying email in-boxes is taking a toll on employees, with 56 percent of those surveyed complaining of mental fatigue from handling and receiving time-wasting messages [Article at UWO.ca]

    Saturday, July 31, 2004

    Microsoft Outlook Alternatives

    "Are you looking for an alternative to Outlook Express for reading and sending email? That Microsoft freebie isn't exactly state-of-the-art, even when compared to email programs that are given away free. Spam, security, and special features are better in many of the non-Outlook email tools..." This article at NewsDay.com includes reviews of PegasusMail, Eudora, Incredimail, Gmail, Mailblocks, and Hushmail [NewsDay Article]

    Friday, July 30, 2004

    Are Gmail Accounts Bought on eBay Being Disabled?

    From GmailForums.com: "I guess buying my invite on eBay was the reason I've been banned. I missed it in the Google Terms of Service that buying an invite to Gmail was against the rules..." [Read More at GmailForums.com]

    Thursday, July 29, 2004

    ZealMail Offers 3 GB for $3 a month

    "The space race in Web-based email continued today when ZealMail unveiled a new $3 USD per month email service that offers 3 MB of space for email. This storage allowance is significantly greater than bigger-name rivals, but users have historically been reluctant to pay for Web-based email systems. For example, Hotmail has both free accounts and fee-based accounts with more space and more options, but Hotmail's free accounts vastly outnumber its fee-based accounts."
  • ZealMail Article at TechWeb.com
  • ZealMail - Official Web Site
  • Should Yahoo Users Switch to Gmail?

    The Radicati Group recommends that Yahoo users not switch over to Gmail because Yahoo is a "life management portal" and Google is primarily a search engine. Radicati however, did note that Google's new service replaces Yahoo's intrusive graphic ads with text-only ads, and Gmail has ten times more free storage than Yahoo Mail, even after Yahoo's recent space upgrade [Internet Week Article]

    Yahoo Offers 1-GB Free Email in China

    Yahoo has increased the storage space available through its free Yahoo email service - ONLY IN CHINA - from 100 megabytes to 1 gigabyte, matching the storage space to be offered by Google's new Gmail service. This article at ZDnet predicts that Yahoo users elsewhere in the world may not get to enjoy the same benefit anytime soon.... [Read Full Article at ZDnet.co.uk]

    Personal Information in Yahoo - Hotmail - Gmail

    Kevin Fox compares the required and optional personal information collected by Yahoo, Hotmail, and Gmail when a new account is created [Article at Fury.com]

    POP/SMTP Gmail - What's the Point?

    From the Gmail-Users forum at Google Groups: "I'm sure I'm missing something, but I just don't get the point of using GMail if you are simply going to use POP access. Doing that will make two of Gmail's best features - the features that make GMail unique - irrelevant..." [Read More at Google Groups]

    Wednesday, July 28, 2004

    Secure Your Gmail Account Against Spammers

    Seven steps you can take to prevent spam from overrunning your beautiful new Gmail account. From EverythingHurts.com: "To protect myself from SPAM in my Gmail account, I've implemented a system which should defeat 99.9 percent of spammers" [Article at EverythingHurts.com]

    New User Says - Gmail Interface is Intuitive

    "Gmail is a pleasure to use. It is much faster than most other webmail services, but this probably depends also on the still limited number of users and it will be interesting to see how it scales up.The interface is intuitive and at some point you stop missing folders..." [Read More at TransHumanism.com]

    Tuesday, July 27, 2004

    New User Says - Gmail is OK But Not Great

    WHAT ONE NEW USER SAYS ABOUT GMAIL: "I have Gmail and use it occasionally. I don't use it for my main email but instead I use it for temporary stuff or when I don't trust a person or company with my real email address. I also use it to keep spam out of my real email account and it's really helped with that. Do I care if they scan my email so they can target advertising to me? Not really. What are they going to learn? "Oh wow, they know that I emailed Charlie and Rich about getting new inline skates, how horrible. My life is ruined". Gmail is not great, and I'm not going to replace my normal email with it, but it has its uses and it performs those tasks well." [Read More in Our Forum]

    Non-Google Gmail - Gospel Music Association

    The weekly members-only email newsletter sent by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) is called "GMAil". For more information see the official Web site of the Gospel Music Association's GMAil newsletter. To see their Gmail logo, connect to the GMA home page and scroll down one or two screens.
  • GMAil Newsletter
  • GMAil Logo (from their home page)
  • Monday, July 26, 2004

    Non-Google Gmail - ProNet Analytics

    This is not really "new news" - it's from last April - but here goes anyway... a small company in the United Kingdom, ProNet Analytics, a subsidiary of The Market Age, claims they have trademarked the name "Gmail" and according to them, they have have been using it for their email service since 2002 (from EarthV.com)

    Non-Google Gmail - UseGmail.com

    Look at this! Another Web site is using the name "Gmail" for a product that is not the Google Gmail service: UseGmail.com. But uhhhh... when I do a "whois" lookup that domain is owned by Google! I'm wondering if this product has *always* been owned by Google or (as I suspect) Google took over owning the domain name UseGmail.com at some point. Does anybody know the story behind this?
  • UseGmail.com: A Non-Google Product?
  • Share What You Know in Our Forum
  • Sunday, July 25, 2004

    How to Get a Gmail Invitation

    It's not necessarily easy to get your own Gmail account and user name, but there's still hope for people who want to participate in the testing and evaluation of the new Google electronic mail service.

    Web Based Email Pros and Cons

    A new article by Lou Dolinar in Newsday says Web-based email is a doubled-edged sword that it is probably more suitable for individuals than corporations [Article at NewsDay.com]

    Saturday, July 24, 2004

    Gmail - Get It If You Can

    "The exclusive gentlemen's club in cyberworld has a just got itself a new address: Gmail.com. In the fast and furious competition that often ensues between the netizens' myriad of status symbols, the email service being offered by search engine Google has emerged a clear winner...." [India Tribune Article]

    News About Gmail

    Google press releases and news from other sources about Google's new free Web Based electronic mail service. A beta (test) version of the service was released to a limited number of users in April for an evaluation period that some rumors say will end in September or October of 2004.

    Articles About Gmail

    Articles on the Web about Gmail including features about Gmail privacy, what makes Gmail different than other Web-based email, the pros and cons of Gmail, and more.

    Tell Us About Your Gmail Resources

    Please tell us about your Gmail articles, forums, tools, Web sites, and any other important Gmail resources we have missed, so we can link to them in the appropriate section of GmailUsers.com [Contact Us]

    Write an Article About Gmail

    If you have written any articles, reviews, tutorials, or commentaries about Google's new Gmail service, and you agree to let us publish them at GmailUsers.com, you will retain the copyright to the material, and we will create a special "Contributing Author" page for you at GmailUsers.com that will list and describe all of your articles about Gmail, Google, and related topics. If you like, we can also include your bio, photo, contact information, and Web site link on that page [Contact Us]

    GmailUsers.com Was Launched in July of 2004

    The Web site GmailUsers.com first appeared on the Web in July of 2004, and its purpose is to be a hub of information for Gmail users all over the world.