Gmail (in Germany and Great Britain: Google Mail) is a free E-Mail service (Freemail) of the search machine operator Google, which is at present in a public beta phase.

Since 25 August 2005 the activation of the account over a de-energising code, that momentarily only into the portable radio nets from nine countries by SMS is dispatched for the registration with Gmail (under it the USA, Turkey, Australia) is necessary. So it is to be prevented that Gmail of Spammern is abused. New users can be likewise invited over so-called "“Invites"”, from which each Gmail user receives ever more and after some time 100 Invites has, thus 100 other persons by E-Mail to the opening of an Gmail account to invite can.

History

Since its announcement to 1 April 2004 Gmail has available particularly by the feature to place to each user a gigabyte memory brought large movement into the Freemail market. Other offerers of this of Hotmail, Yahoo! and in Germany also of GMX of dominated market their users so far in the comparison to it only between 2 and 20 megabyte had granted.

This discrepancy led to the fact that the message was falsely interpreted over the Gmail start of many first as April joke. If this reaction was strengthened by the fact that Google for its is famous notorious "„April jokes "“, so for example for the PigeonRank system or the offer of a place in the Google Copernicus center on the moon. However Jonathan said rose mountain later to BBC news: "„Incoming goods of acres very serious about Gmail "“(German: "„We mean it very serious with Gmail "“).

Finally most Gmail competitors increased the storage capacities of their offers after starting the public beta phase of Gmail partially drastically. Whereupon Gmail reacted for the first anniversary of the free service: The storage capacity was increased to 2 GB and continues to rise since then permanently in small steps.

Google has a Spam filter, the possibility in its Maildienst, of announcing abuse - about Phishing - and the additional entrance possibility with a Mailprogramm over TLS-POP3 and TLS smtp installs.

This service was called original also in Germany Gmail, had to be renamed however 2005 due to a controversy over the German trademark laws with Hamburg letter post enterprises, which Gmail announced rather and used commercially. In July 2005 Google introduced that E-Mail addresses receive the Domain from new German users instead of the Domain @gmail.com @googlemail.com. Nevertheless on @gmail.com addressed Mails arrives however with the correct receiver.

Characteristics

The substantial difference from Gmail to other Freemail services exists itself in the function offer of the browserbasierten surface, at independent Mailprogrammen (like for example Outlook Express, The asked! or Thunderbird) orients. This realized in large parts with one as Ajax designated technology in Javascript as well as DHTML and covers a directory, a spell verification as well as further functions accessible by Hotkey. These are also comparably fast and comfortable like a locally installed Mailprogramm, since the functions were to a large extent clientseitig converted. Since there also a Chatsystem (Instant Messaging similarly) is newest, with which Gmail users can be written among themselves messages. Meanwhile this surface is available also on German.

The file of received enamels takes place not as before generally usual in different files, but in a central Mailarchiv. These can be scanned and found similarly the well-known Google search. Furthermore messages in Threads, by Google "„Konversationen "“, are designated summarized. Files so-called "„labels replace "“with Gmail, whatever can be defined freely and be assigned manually by Mailfilter or the messages. It is made possible by these labels to assign Mails contrary to the usual file structure to several categories. Thereby a better overview is to be ensured.

In the meantime a multiplicity of not authorized extensions for Gmail exists. For example it gives message examiner, which represent the present number of new messages or programs such as GmailFS, which make Gmail accounts usable as virtual drive assemblies.

Gmail is the only Freemail offerer, with whom the Internet sides and the enamels sent away over it are coded in the university code University of (UTF-8). So one can send away and receive enamels with Eastern European latin, cyrillic and asiatic characters, without having to fear indication salad.

Further functions

There is a Googlemail Wap service for the use of most functions with mobile telephones. These there are so far (at the end of of 2005) only on English, umlauts is however usable. See to m.gmail.com - a side to the call with a Wap mobile phone.

The service Google talc was integrated last into the Web surface by GMail. This function which is based on the Jabber standard offers the possibility of writing contact people down from the own directory, who fetch straight also their enamels, directly and with them to chatten (similarly Instant Messaging). Chat minutes are archived thereby in their own listing. Already today is the connecting admission with Usern of external Messaging services (ICQ, MSN, AIM, Yahoo!) over so mentioned "„Jabber transport "“possible. Also Google plans the implementation of net-spreading communication with users of external Messaging services into its Clients, however to AIM will for the time being be limited.

Restrictions

The maximum size of a E-Mail is limited on approximately 10 MT.

As safety precaution against potenzielle viruses Gmail does not permit the receipt of executable files to the users (like files, which end with .exe). Gmail does not accept this kind of files, even if they are sent in a compressed format (.zip, .rar, .tar, .tgz, .taz, .z, .gz). If executable files are sent to an Gmail account, the message is sent back the sender. This safety precaution can be gone around however by means of a simple change the file dung.

If E-Mail accounts put on are not used more than nine months, Gmail deletes these according to own guidelines including all message stored therein and assigns the user names to the next prospective customer.

Financing

The service Gmail free for the final user finances itself completely over context-referred, i.e. on contents of enamels adapted text advertisement, which is right faded in similarly to the search machine surface by Google. Contrary to many other Freemail offerers Google does automatic adding of a slogan at the end of each E-Mail or advertising banner without the Internet sides.

Criticism

Different data security experts warn of a further softening of the since Gmail scans all enamels, to be able to fade in in order thereupon context-referred advertisement. A use of the won data for marketing purposes, going beyond it, is not excluded from Google. To a first larger exchange it came during the conference "„computer, Freedom & Privacy "“into Berkeley. Chris Hoofnagle of "„electronics the Privacy information center "“warned of the fact that "„Gmail lower the smallest common denominator with the data security of all Webmailer "“become.

Although the operator Google points out that each user must agree with providing its entrance these use conditions, the point remains problematic. Like that it is fixed in the German Basic Law in article 10 that the letter, post office and communications secret are inviolable. After however the senders of the enamels gave not their agreement to open and to processing the Mails, according to the data-security commissioners accepting the use conditions is not sufficient.

Further there was no warranty for the start by Gmail criticism because of the license regulations, since these do not only permit to indicate the enamels but also was given that by the user deleted enamels are also really deleted. It turned out however that one meant the regular backup copies with Google with it only.

In addition many formulations in the data protection regulations, which give Gmail extensive scope of action to cut the of the users, are. For example Gmail can pass personal data on (thus also contents of enamels), if "„after faithful and faith assumes "“can e.g. "„the rights, which are property or security"… the public to protect "“.

Safety reference

Due to the size of the p.o. box and the search function the E-Mail account for cheats is more interesting than some pin code. Accordingly passing the own entrance data on saves a large risk also at third parties, which offer increasingly services approximately by Gmail.

Related links

• Starting side of Google Mail
• "„Data security organization increases pressure to Google "“
• Gmail critical homepage (English)
• Use of Gmail as on-line non removable disk (Windows)
• Use of Gmail similarly a ftp of entrance, Firefox Plugin

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• About Gmail
  Gmail is Google's free webmail service. It comes with built-in Google ... There are no pop-ups or untargeted banner ads in Gmail, only small text ads. ...


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  Google-owned, web-based email service that includes over 2 gigabytes of storage (and growing).


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