Google to consider Gmail changes

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This is much to do about something, but not the right to do

I agree that tech pundits and others should be talking about Gmail. But I wish they were talking about the important things.

Scanning private communications isn't new and it isn't newsworthy. Every day, our e-mails are forwarded, their content is parsed (for spam, viruses, etc.), and then they're stored on servers (AOL, Earthlink, Yahoo, your company, etc.).

The only difference with the scanning here is that Google's actually providing something tangible; ads that -- unlike the blinky annoying "why would *I* be interested in this crap" stuff on Yahoo and Hotmail -- are likely to be stuff you're interested in. You get an e-mail about baseball, you see "Trade baseball cards on ebay" ads. Your aunt sends you an e-mail about her recent cruise, you get "discount travel" ads. And just text ads on the side of the screen... not in your incoming e-mail, not in your outgoing e-mail.

How do I know about this? Even though I don't work for Google, I'm one of the lucky testers of Gmail. It's still rough around the edges (duh!) but it's pretty damn cool.

And that's why I'm really peeved about all the hullabaloo in the press, who is pulling a Howard Dean on Google. I like Gmail. I don't wish to see it neutered. And I don't want its public release delayed an extra year or two while Google holds the hand of every tin-foil-hat wacko and grandstanding politician, either.

Can't people just exhibit some personal responsibility? If you don't want ads next to your e-mail, that's fine. But quit bugging the rest of us who are interested in a free account with lots of storage, lightning fast search, and trusted brand behind it.

Posted by: ThatAdamGuy   Posted on: 04/13/04 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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