News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

May 11, 2006

software

Two layer email

Posted May. 11, ’06, 10:52 PM PT by Derik DeLong
Category | Software

Gmail Email used to get delivered to client computers and read using local applications/programs. Then email got wrapped by up into web pages that one could use anywhere. Now we have a local applications specifically to render web-based email.

It says: Go ahead and follow that link your friend (or bug tracker) sent you, but to check BoingBoing, you’re going to have to go over to Safari. Maybe you’ll decide to go back to work instead.

It’s basically the WebKit demo, except that I tried to improve the key shortcut situation a bit, and it has a progress indicator.

Sure, Gmail’s interface is cool, but we’re now giving up on the portability (you can’t bring that application with you everywhere). You also don’t get the niceties of a local email client (faster no-connection-required access your email). I understand that he’s trying to improve upon Safari’s built-in capabilities, but the whole idea seems a little silly, particularly when one could use Mail.app (though I suppose that’s not the same).


2 Comments

Oliver said:

This is incredible. For the last few months I have been thinking more and more about the future of web apps and whether or not Google's newly acquired Writely can replace MS Word.

My conclusion was this: yes it can, but not if we have to work in a clunky, do everything browser. What we need is a simple, light and fast native app that has a few controls, but bascially just renders the Writely pages.

I also started to think how someone could make this app, and a similar app for gmail, and then another one for google calendar, and eventually a web based excel app. Bundle them together and you have the new Office suite, for 19.95 instead of 400 bucks!

I'm glad someone else has had a similar idea, because i think this is the way forward, but i don't have the skills to make it happen myself.

May 12, 2006 12:28 AM
Michael McCracken said:

Hi, I think maybe the point of my post didn't come across fully. I wasn't trying to make a better email client than Safari+GMail, I was really trying to make a worse web browser - all I wanted to do was avoid getting lost on the web just because I checked my email. (And have the mail windows in a separate layer.)

It's really just about cutting back, not a fancy new interface to GMail - That's Google's problem.

May 12, 2006 9:53 AM

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