It used to be a very big deal compared to e.g. what Yahoo offered even for a fee. Interestingly enough, Yahoo has since bumped up the entry-level for-fee email accounts to 2GB storage…

Right now the main attraction to me is to use it as a mailing list sink and see how it fares.

I am having a GMAIL GIVEAWAY. Go here for it: http://theplaceforitall.com/gmail.htm

I will be posting invites ALL week!!

i need one really bad pleas give me one

What do you guys think about this…

http://gmail-is-too-creepy.com

I think you want to be very careful what you use gmail for. For that matter, I really dislike sending even trivial personal email unencrypted.

After light use of the service, it seems to come up short on features that I want anyway.

Spocko, I think some of the concerns expressed there are a bit overblown, but it’s not completely without merit. Then again, Gmail isn’t any worse than Yahoo Mail in that respect either. Or HotMail for that matter.

What I think is: Google is backing up my eMail. Which is something every other email company does as well, and everyone that does not is trampled upon when they lose data (which happens from time to time, as we remember). Retrieving older mails is possible with those other providers as well, and as well even if you did delete it.

Google is data mining my eMail. So whatever, they serve me ads, and sometimes they’re even useful (though most of the time they’re not, that’s why I don’t use AdSense at my Blog). And you can find out a hell of a lot more about me if you just google my name.

Google does probably, possibly link other people’s names with content for data mining. That’s something I wouldn’t like, as it is without those other people’s consent. However, this is pure speculation.

Google does probably (surely) give out your eMail data if that is required by law. However, that does not mean they do screen mail for overly many mp3 or whatever files, it just means if the FBI comes and asks, they give out the data they have. Which every other eMail provider must do as well. Because it is required by law.

Sure, Google is bigger. Google has more users, Google does collect more data. That makes it more useful for data mining. And for Spam filtering, by the way. That’s about it.

We all have a few brain cells devoted to paranoia and the quest to be “Blank Rejj.“  But IT systems aren’t designed for discarding information, they’re designed for preserving it.  It almost matters not what email system you use, your email is practically immortal and if Big Brother wants to read it, he will. 

That’s why it matters so very much who Big Brother IS at any given time.  And why encryption may become more important (and less legal) as time goes on.

The ideal encryption would be able to make the encrypted messages not look encrypted somehow.

Elwed, your Gravitar has changed to a Satanic rubber duckie!  I read several posts yesterday before I realized that was you.

DOF, sorry about that. I’m toying with avatars.

Using encryption today has one drawback - it’s so unusual that it raises all kinds of red flags to anybody monitoring traffic.

What you’re looking for is called steganography. Ideally you use both; use steganography to hide an encrypted message.

As an aside, the German government seemed to be on board regarding key escrow, but suddenly flipped, declared access by citizens and corporations to strong crypto as a constitutional necessity. They’re funding e.g. GnuPG… I can’t help wondering what role Echelon played.

Anyway, in this time and age strong crypto is your friend.

I think I’ll just ignore that paranoia. The only way around the problem would be to disconnect from the net permanently and even that probably wouldn’t be enough.

Man, Google keeps topping off the number of invites. They’re really out for saturation now.

hey i would like to have one gmail invitation ..so if anybody can help.. please e-mail me at

can someone send meeh a gmail invite? thanks heres my addy