So how is Gmail?

One reason I decided to get this blog now instead of waiting is because I am the lucky few to get Gmail. The extra space is the biggest plus, but what about the other things? Here is my humble opinion.

As an online service, there is an occasional slight lag when it is loading up (you can't view the HTML code), but very fast and efficient once your in. I have a 56K modem.

When sending test mails back and forth, Yahoo immediately told me when I got new mail. Didn't happen with Gmail. Since it seems to connect to an external database, there is like a maximum 2 minute lag, which is how often it checks for new mail. This can spell bad news if you got a delivery failure notice.

The actual letters themselves are now called 'conservations'. You know how e-mails tend to get longer and longer as the older letters are put on the bottom and newer responses are at the top? Gmail automatically sort this out and put it in separate boxes. I consider this a good thing, but the older ones are at the top!

Instead of folders, there is labels. They can be used as folders, but one letter... excuse me... conservation can have multiple labels. Since a label is more of a search tool than an organization tool, your conservation stays in the inbox. If you want a tidy box, you can archive letters. This removes it from the inbox, but it is still there. By clicking on "All Mail", you can see all the archive mail... and those in the inbox and mail you sent. Yes, Google was thinking more about searching, not organizing. So use those labels! If nothing else, one called 'other', if you want an empty inbox but not wanting to see every single conservation you got! You can also put a star on those conservations you consider important. It acts just like a label.

Bugs? Besides missing features, I only caught one. On I.E., the browser thinks it is loading something on the page when the page is already up! Haven't caught Netscape doing this. Note: The fact that my I.E. is plagued by spyware might be the reason.

As for those missing features, I think this is the main reason it isn't public yet. It is usable, but there is a lot that could be done. For one, how it works with addresses is horrible. It automatically adds a new contact for every new person who contacts you instead of asking if you want to. You also can't open the window and add address to an e-mail that way. (It does have auto complete though) Google is working on this. There is a way though to import an address book from existing ones, like the one I had with Yahoo. Also there is no HTML option and, a bigger pet peeve for me, how long length wise your plaintext letters can be. This is also being worked on. Other things: POP3, automatic msg forwarding, and ability to save as a draft.

I haven't tried attachments yet. I do know it doesn't allow exe files, even zipped.