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Google Unofficially Announces GDrive By Leaked Code
An anonymous reader writes "Google has unofficially announced the GDrive by source code. In an in-direct way, Google has publicly advertised the new, much-anticipated online storage drive called the GDrive. If you take a look at the source code of some javascript within the Google Pack, you will clearly see the GDrive referenced. The code categorizes the GDrive as an 'Online file backup and storage' device. It also provides the following descriptions; 'GDrive provides reliable storage for all of your files, including photos, music and documents' and 'GDrive allows you to access your files from anywhere, anytime, and from any device — be it from your desktop, web browser or cellular phone.'"
Finally, somewhere to back up all of my important porn!
I know that Google is all about introducing new (usually useful) services which tie into its already existing sites and services, and for that I applaud it. However I hope that it takes privacy, security, and encryption into account for this new online storage service. It's one thing to do a search with Google's engine - trusting Google with personal files is another issue entirely.
Also, here's hoping for a rich desktop client instead of just a Web interface.
Most men are not thought unwise until they speak.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dm_crypt
Give them my data? Not bloody likely. Poke around with some free storage for non-critical applications? Sure, sounds fun.
Duplicity, a clever backup tool, has let you use Gmail boxes for a storage engine for a while now. I'm sure they are just taking the next logical step. Of course, you can assume that they will probably index your files in some way, even if it isn't made public.
Cool! Amazing Toys.
"in-direct"?
that word is im-possible.
hold on, i have to tie my shoe-lace, be-cause i keep tripping over all the hy-phens.
Have a backup. Just like with any storage.
Occam's razor is the blind faith in the natural selection of least resistance and in universal oversimplification. -- EF
If you pay for Gmail ("Google Apps for business") it isn't beta, and it has an SLA and whatnot. Gmail's interpretation of "beta" seems roughly the same as all the other free webmail services' interpretation of their default release states, so it isn't as though Google is really behind in that area. If "beta" is just a scary word, ignore it. If you are waiting to get enterprise SLAs for no money, forget it.
My MP3 collection and some digital photos I don't wnat to lose isn't like some secret, private data I'm terrified they will analyze.
http://blindscribblings.com - Tasty pop-culture in conceptual fashion.
No, at no time whatsoever will you ever have access to the files you store on gdrive. In fact, gdrive is really just a counter attached to /dev/null
Will it have backup abilities? WTF? You either uploaded a file to it, thus implying you had access to it, enabling you to back it up. Or you can download the file from it, thus implying you have access to it, enabling you to back it up.
Description: Use your GMail account as a filesystem
GmailFS provides a mountable Linux filesystem which uses your Gmail
account as its storage medium. GmailFS is a Python application and
uses the FUSE userland filesystem infrastructure to help provide the
filesystem, and libgmail to communicate with Gmail.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
How did you get modded informative?
When Bush was talking about wanting search data for all US citizens, Microsoft, Yahoo and AOL handed it over without even really being asked. Google refused, and said they would not hand over any search data unless they were forced to do so by a court of law. Google has also since decided to anonymize their logs sooner and increase their privacy policies.
The only time Google has handed data over to a government agency was one case in Brazil, when they were forced to do so by a court, and even then, they didn't do it immediately when they were first ordered to do so. And that case was when Google had evidence on a child porn ring who distributed child porn via Orkut.
So please, explain to me how can you justify statements with no basis on fact?
http://blindscribblings.com - Tasty pop-culture in conceptual fashion.
Sure this is very useful, but whats in it for Google?
agreed, but this will most likely be connected to some *cough cloud* form on online computing. will it have backup abilities ?
No, backups are your job.
Just don't delete the stuff you upload.
You need to have the files on your computer First before you can store them on gdrive anyway. They are already there.
The act of spending no energy, and doing nothing, in that case gives you your backup.
The act of spending energy, time, resources, and thought on deleting your copies afterwards, is not just a waste but will put you in a bad situation when something happens to gdrive (or where ever you stored the copy at)
And if you DON'T have the files already on your computer, then you dont need to be worrying about uploading them to anywhere :}
Gmail doesn't use Gmail.com.
It doesnt?
Weird. Did you perhaps mean gmail doesn't exclusively use gmail.com?
Do you have any reason to suggest that Google is handing over data to the RIAA when Google has historically fought to protect the privacy of its users?
I have no reason to suspect Google would not do precisely that, if ordered to by the courts (after the inevitable, expensive appeals are finally exhausted). Much as I like cyberpunk sci-fi, I don't see Google declaring itself an extraterritorial sovereign entity no longer subject to national laws any time soon...
"Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies."
Then how do you suppose that email sent to user@gmail.com gets to the Google account? Someone just kindly forwards it?
I work for Google. In a project closely related to "GDrive". And I know for an absolute fact that you, sir, are full of shit. Google is the one company that has stood up to our government's "requests for information" and said, "Show me the subpoena." Hell, that's one of the big reasons I work at Google. As for your privacy, the only entities that can see the actual content of your files are 1) you, 2) the ads analysis program, 2) Google developers/system maintenance staff who sign a blood oath that they will not violate user trust, and 3) government agencies that provide a lawful warrant or subpoena for the data. The moment that list fails to be complete, a significant fraction of all Google employees will leave in disgust.
They only offer at most 95% per month, MINUS pre-scheduled downtimes, and non-scheduled downtimes that are "exempt". Honestly, 90% uptime per month real. The key is that these numbers are not real, because of the possible exemptions and everything, so a real SLA is unknown.
You could not be more wrong:
Enterprise-class service â" Google Apps includes a 99.9% uptime SLA.* Phone support is available for critical issues.
*The 99.9% uptime SLA for Google Apps is offered to organizations using Google Apps Premier Edition, as described in the Google Apps Premier Edition Terms of Service
http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/messaging.html
Sure it is only 3 nines but that is way better than the 90% you said
Dan
Would you be willing to offer a contract to someone else with reliability better than Google is, using your water-damaged ancient hardware? The SLA isn't about what they think they are likely to deliver, but what they think they can *guarantee*. There is some safety margin in there.
Eh, I have found it to be horrendesly slow and quite unreliable, as the files I put in frequently come back out differently.