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Google Adds Chat To Gmail

Nathan Weinberg writes "Google has added a chat feature to Gmail. It brings Google Talk, minus voice calls, into your webmail client. Gmail now also logs your IMs, whether they originate in Gmail or Google Talk. In the commentary at InsideGoogle, I note that Google recommends you disable Firefox's AdBlock, which can block Google's ads, if you want Gmail Chat to function properly."

8 of 315 comments (clear)

  1. Logging by Silas+is+back · · Score: 5, Informative

    Just to mention, logging of chats is turned off by default. You have to turn it on manually.

    I think this thing is a good idea (not the logging, the chat-inside-mailapp). I wonder if you get marked as "online" whenever you check your Mail on mail.google.com...

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  2. I foresee.... by LnxAddct · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I foresee a web based api to embed GTalk into your site. This web based chat interface is exactly what I've been waiting for, in fact I personally think they should do away with their desktop counterpart and do voip through an open source plugin of sorts. Using a desktop app just doesn't feel googly, no matter how well ddesigned it may be. Now if only they'd throw in support for GPG signing and/or encrypting in GMail(yes I know it'd kill their compression ratios). If everything was done client side in javascript, I'd imagine the security concern would be fairly low, the only thing I can think of is maybe other programs crawling the browser's memory after you've decrypted your private key client side (does anyone know if this would be an issue?)
    Regards,
    Steve

  3. Re:Am I the only one? by skiman1979 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    well your IMs aren't really private unless you use some form of encryption. Even then, it would depend on the type of encryption you use.

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    Having a smoking section in a public restaurant is like having a peeing section in a public swimming pool.
  4. Re:whatever! by sinucus · · Score: 5, Informative

    "AdBlock often interferes with Gmail's chat features, causing Firefox to crash. Our engineers are working hard to fix the problem, but in the meantime, disable AdBlock for testing purposes, and clear your browser's cache. Then, log back in to GmailAdBlock often interferes with Gmail's chat features, causing Firefox to crash. Our engineers are working hard to fix the problem, but in the meantime, disable AdBlock for testing purposes, and clear your browser's cache. Then, log back in to Gmail"

    Well, after I actually RTF, I found that quote. So it appears that the blurb of this article was just FUD and that Adblock is just a temporary glitch and the services will work just fine in the future! Now I can happily go back to google worshipping.

  5. Re:Am I the only one? by MadMoses · · Score: 5, Informative

    RTFA.

    1. You can choose whether gmail logs your chats when you first use the feature, and you can change this option in the settings menu at any time.

    2. There is even a feature that let's you get "off the record" during a chat. So even if you're having logging enabled, you can go "off the record" during a chat, and what you type afterwards will neither be logged in your gmail account, nor in your chat partner's gmail account.

    Sounds good to me.

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    Do not be alarmed. This is only a test.
  6. Re:The whole point of email is to avoid "instant" by ClearlyPennsylvania · · Score: 5, Informative

    See bottom of screen - "Standard with Chat" vs "Standard without Chat". You can disable it entirely. Or, you can just sign off on the chat window.

  7. BCC by jaaronc · · Score: 5, Funny

    Actually, this was technology that google had to incorporate in order to get Google Talk into China...all chat logs are BCC'd to the chinese government...

  8. Re:Google policies by cashman73 · · Score: 5, Informative
    I just got a notice in my Google Talk account just now with updates to Google's Privacy Policy. This page actually has their privacy policy, with the old text they removed today in RED STRIKEOUT and the new stuff they added in GREEN UNDERLINE.