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Gmail's Big Upgrade Featuring New Web App, Confidential Mode, Nudges, and Snooze Goes Live (venturebeat.com)

Posted by msmash on from the it's-here dept.

Google on Wednesday pushed out the biggest revamp of Gmail in years. The company is bringing to the flagship Gmail service many (but not all) of the features it trialed in Inbox for Gmail, and adding a few new ones, too. From a report: While the overhaul does usher in a new look to the Gmail web app, bringing it into the material design fold, this update is more about throwing new features into the mix than moving things around and causing confusion. G Suite -- Google's paid productivity service for businesses, which also includes Gmail -- appears to be the core focus of this update, however these features will also be made available to standard Gmail users. [...] Google is adamant that no person within the company will ever read your emails, but that doesn't mean your email content is protected from third-party infiltration. To address this, Gmail will soon offer users a dedicated "confidential mode" -- on the web and in its mobile apps -- that is designed to protect against two kinds of attacks. [...] In addition to privacy and security updates, Gmail on mobile and the web is getting a bunch of new features to help solve the perennial problem of email overload. One of those tools is "nudging," which leans on Google's AI smarts and automated processing, similar to how its spam filter works, to remind users to follow up on a message they've received.

78 comments

  1. Nudging users? No thanks by Nova+Express · · Score: 1, Interesting

    "To remind users to follow up on a message they've received."

    How about "No"? How about "Hell no!"

    I receive some 50 emails a day, the vast majority require no "follow up" on my part.

    The very first thing I want to learn about this "service" is how to turn it off.

    --
    Lawrence Person (lawrencepersonh@gmailh.com (remove all "h"s to mail)

    http://www.lawrenceperson.com/

    1. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There was a time I created a "jobs" folder in a webmail interface, received the email I was waiting for there, and left it die on the vine because I forgot to check it.

    2. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by Mostly+a+lurker · · Score: 2

      I am also a bit concerned about nudges. They could be super annoying, but I will wait to see how they work in practice. If they end up being good at identifying messages that really do need follow up, distinguishing those we ignored deliberately, it could be a valuable feature.

    3. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There is only one reason to nudge someone: if you're a spammer and want the recipient to buy your merchandise. Nudging will die a horrible and well-deserved death after it becomes a nuisance to all.

    4. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by gnick · · Score: 2

      If they end up being good at identifying messages that really do need follow up...

      Which will be determined by parsing the contents of your email. They claim to have stopped reading mail for ad purposes, but they're still scanning our mail.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    5. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by Mostly+a+lurker · · Score: 2

      They claim to have stopped reading mail for ad purposes, but they're still scanning our mail.

      Well, I do not think they claim to be able to do spam filtering without browsing the content of messages. I, for one, consider that acceptable. Is this qualitatively different?

    6. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by gnick · · Score: 1

      I don't think so. I'm a gmail user and have been since before they stopped scanning for ad purposes. I was just pointing out that our mail was being scanned; I didn't mean to imply a negative connotation. For some people, that's a deal-breaker. If I receive an email that contains "Please RSVP by", a "nudge" might be appropriate.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    7. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by DogDude · · Score: 1

      They claim to have stopped reading mail for ad purposes

      They did? Where and when? And if that's true, why does Gmail still exist?

      --
      I don't respond to AC's.
    8. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by gnick · · Score: 1

      Where and when?

      June of last year in a blog post.

      In the blog post, Google also called out its anti-spam, anti-phishing, and Smart Reply features for Gmail -- all of which require the company to analyze email content.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    9. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by sexconker · · Score: 1

      You bought a product on Amazon last week and the 3rd party merchant has asked you 4 times to leave a review!
      NUDGENUDGENUDGENUDGENUDGENUDGENUDGE

    10. Re:Nudging users? No thanks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Some of us aren't as forgetful or irresponsible as you.

  2. Please... by Daetrin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Can someone please come up with some alternative to Flat/Material design that can become the hot new trend? Unless it involves just a pure white screen where you have to have previously memorized an invisible design layout it can't help but be better than what the industry is moving towards now.

    --
    This Space Intentionally Left Blank
    1. Re:Please... by decipher_saint · · Score: 2

      I call it immaterial design, thousands of controls and options that all do nothing.

      --
      crazy dynamite monkey
    2. Re:Please... by fahrbot-bot · · Score: 3, Funny

      Can someone please come up with some alternative to Flat/Material design that can become the hot new trend? Unless it involves just a pure white screen where you have to have previously memorized an invisible design layout it can't help but be better than what the industry is moving towards now.

      Okay. How about the all black on black color scheme in Disaster Area's stunt ship:

      "It's the wild colour scheme that freaks me," said Zaphod whose love affair with this ship had lasted almost three minutes into the flight, "Every time you try to operate on of these weird black controls that are labelled in black on a black background, a little black light lights up black to let you know you've done it. What is this? Some kind of galactic hyperhearse?"

      The walls of the swaying cabin were also black, the ceiling was black, the seats - which were rudimentary since the only important trip this ship was designed for was supposed to be unmanned - were black, the control panel was black, the instruments were black, the little screws that held them in place were black, the thin tufted nylon floor covering was black, and when they had lifted up a corner of it they had discovered that the foam underlay also was black.

      "Perhaps whoever designed it had eyes that responded to different wavelengths," offered Trillian.

      "Or didn't have much imagination," muttered Arthur.

      --
      It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
    3. Re:Please... by omnichad · · Score: 1

      Unless it involves just a pure white screen where you have to have previously memorized an invisible design layout

      You don't want to get sued by Snapchat, do you?

    4. Re:Please... by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

      LOL. Mod parent +1 funny.

    5. Re:Please... by Daetrin · · Score: 2

      You're right, i was being unnecessarily specific. Any UI scheme where the background and the interface elements are the same color scheme would be equally bad.

      Hmmm, how about plaid on plaid? Would it be better or worse if the rotation of the plaid was slightly different for the interface elements?

      --
      This Space Intentionally Left Blank
    6. Re:Please... by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 2

      /sarcasm You just need to wait a few more years when the UI from ~2000 will be in vogue again and will be pimped as the latest shiny.

      While we are waiting can we also kill "endless scrolling" where a user has NO clue how far (vertically) they are along the (page) content? There is a reason scrollbars have a thumb knob.

    7. Re:Please... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 2

      The problem with flat designs is that it is much less fault tolerant. A crappy traditional UI is still workable because everything is very clearly marked. With flat designs it's easy to create something that confuses the user. The Material design guidelines go a long way to preventing that, but they are by no means foolproof.

      The new Gmail seems okay though. It's obvious what is a button and what isn't. If the lack of contrast is too much for you try the light grey theme.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    8. Re:Please... by gnick · · Score: 1

      a user has NO clue how far (vertically) they are along the (page)

      How do you determine that you're 60% through a page with no fixed size?

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    9. Re:Please... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Endless scrolling is one of the stupidest things I've seen in UI design.

    10. Re:Please... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      UI's from 2000 were pretty bad too... That's right in the middle of the WinAMP era when everything had to have a custom skin on it.

      I think we peaked around 1993.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    11. Re:Please... by Daetrin · · Score: 1

      Whelp, i've had the chance to try it now. I haven't had any issues with the contrast so far, but there are a lot of other things i find problematic.

      First, on a positive note, i do like that there are still lines between items in the inbox. Way too many Flat/Material designs seem intent on getting rid of all delineation between items. (I personally like lines and boxes and containers to keep different parts of the UI distinct from each other.)

      I don't like the size of the text. I might get used to that eventually, but it's kind of hurting my eyes right now. I'll definitely look to see if there's a way to reduce the font size.

      I don't like that all the icons are just a single shade of grey, but gmail's been like that for awhile, so it's not like that's an actual change for the worse. (Just a steady-state for the worse?)

      But i _hate_ the stupid icons on the right side of the email headers in the inbox that pop-up when you mouse over the email. Hover-over text and highlighting are fine, but i hate hate _hate_ UIs that physically change just because you're moving the mouse across the screen.

      I'm also not too fond of the auto-suggestions for responses when i open up emails. They've been in the mobile client for awhile, but hate to see them spreading to the desktop UI.

      If anyone knows a way to disable either the pop-up hover icons or the auto-suggested responses I'd love to hear about it!

      --
      This Space Intentionally Left Blank
    12. Re:Please... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      For me the most annoying thing is that they moved the archive button. The report spam button is there now and I always go to click it when I mean to archive.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    13. Re:Please... by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      Material design, and most importantly the name of it, is in my opinniion the worst thing that ever happened in software/UI design.

      I did not upgrade the OSes on my iPhone and iPad for nearly a decade, because Apple jumped on that train, too. It is so super ugly it makes me cry when I have to use it.

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
    14. Re:Please... by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      I think you made a Dent with that post!

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
    15. Re:Please... by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      I actually like two consecutive lines, e.g. the inbox with sender and mail subject, in tow slighly different colours.
      On the other hand in Java IDEs, I usually switch all colours of program text off.

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
    16. Re:Please... by Junta · · Score: 1

      There is almost no such thing as a page with infinite content. I suppose you could have 'scroll for more digits of pi' sorts of things, but overwhelmingly you are scrolling through some record that does have an end, but the scrollbar is oblivious to where that end may be. It may be better if the scrollbar could be used to give the user some indication of how far into the available data they are, even if that data isn't loaded until close to being on the viewport.

      Of course, another reality is that our brains will consume things in 'chunks', so some sort of pagination may make sense. Not the 'click next to see one more picture', but somewhere in the middle between having no idea how much farther things could go and having to contend with annoying pagination.

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve the problem, use more.
    17. Re:Please... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can someone please come up with some alternative to Flat/Material design

      Yes. Use linux. Make your choice, stick with UI from whatever period you like in the 1995-2018 range. New ui trends comes to linux, but actually using them is optional. Keep whatever window manager you enjoy - decades after other trends came (and went away).

      that can become the hot new trend?

      Now you're being difficult. But why do it have to become a 'trend'. You have a need to be a 'trend follower'? Don't be afraid of having a computer unlike everybody elses.

      As for gmail - why do anyone care? Don't use gmail - it is well known that google reads the messages (to set up ads?). It is not hard finding an email service that DOESN'T read your mail. Most ISPs do that, and lots of free services too. They don't need to read your mail in order to put some ads on the web interface.

    18. Re:Please... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can someone please come up with some alternative to Flat/Material design that can become the hot new trend? Unless it involves just a pure white screen where you have to have previously memorized an invisible design layout it can't help but be better than what the industry is moving towards now.

      Still waiting for the OMG! Ponies! design change?

    19. Re:Please... by Streetlight · · Score: 1

      .
      .
      .
      I'm also not too fond of the auto-suggestions for responses when i open up emails. They've been in the mobile client for awhile, but hate to see them spreading to the desktop UI. If anyone knows a way to disable either the pop-up hover icons or the auto-suggested responses I'd love to hear about it!

      Agreed. I subscribe to a number of list servers, so why would I want to respond to many, if any, emails from them.

      --
      In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act. George Orwell
    20. Re:Please... by Daetrin · · Score: 1

      Of course when i posted to the Google Product Forums about these issues the response from the moderators was more or less "there's nothing you can do about it".

      However _then_ a true hero came along and developed a bunch of CSS mods to use with Stylish (or presumably any other similar add-on) to fix every issue i had and then some!

      For anyone else who wants to modify the UI of the new design in similar ways: https://productforums.google.c...

      --
      This Space Intentionally Left Blank
    21. Re:Please... by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

      I agree with the time frame being somewhere between ~1989 - ~2000.

      1989 = NextStep -- Very good
      1990 = Windows 3.1 -- Ugh, no!
      1995 = Windows 95 -- Decent

      I.e. HTML5/CSS demo of Win95 scrollbars:
      https://codepen.io/louh/pen/oZ...

    22. Re:Please... by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      I once tried plaid on inverse plaid for a poster. It was ... different.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  3. How to get it. by ardmhacha · · Score: 5, Informative

    The linked article doesn't actually explain how to enable the new version. This CNET article does https://www.cnet.com/how-to/ho...

    "Regular Gmail users
    You can enable the new look and features by clicking on the Settings cog in the top-right corner, then selecting Try the new Gmail option."

    1. Re:How to get it. by AmiMoJo · · Score: 2

      It's not available to me yet. Doing some checking it seems that they are actually doing a gradual roll-out, so you might have to wait a while for it to become available.

      The same is true of updates for Android apps. You read about some great new feature but it takes two weeks to get to your phone. I understand why they do it, hell I do it, but I'd love an "I'm feeling lucky" override option.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    2. Re:How to get it. by ardmhacha · · Score: 4, Informative

      I was not able to see the option when using Firefox but I was able to when using Chrome. However once I chose the option I had the new version in Chrome, Firefox and Edge

    3. Re:How to get it. by wes33 · · Score: 1

      don't see it in chrome either; in Canada FWIW

    4. Re:How to get it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I enabled it in Chrome and saw it in Edge. U.S.

    5. Re:How to get it. by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      On the 17th refresh of the page it showed up for me.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    6. Re:How to get it. by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 1

      I was not able to see the option when using Firefox but I was able to when using Chrome.

      That seems to be another Google “feature” they’ve been rolling out over the past bit - different UIs depending on which web browser you use.

      I ran across this with YouTube several weeks ago - the path I need to take to get to the “Live Control Room” for one of our events was different depending on whether I was in Safari, Firefox, or Chrome. It’s bloody annoying.

      --
      #DeleteChrome
    7. Re:How to get it. by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      To get my android tablet into developer mode I had to click 15 times on a hidden button ... (documentation said it would be ten times).
      In the end: it does not mount as an USB drive on Macs.
      Under Linux It actually mounts two drives, one containing the Android OS and the user data (Apps etc.) and the other with windows tools to install for 'better usagae', probably synching and back ups.

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
    8. Re:How to get it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Same for me, I could only change it in Chrome.

      Is it just me, or does the new version seem to be much slower? I feel like there's a lot of lag that didn't used to be there; switching tabs, hovering over emails, and even scrolling don't work as smoothly.

    9. Re:How to get it. by JackieBrown · · Score: 2

      I'm sorry but I'm intrigued on how your post makes sense to the comment you replied to.

    10. Re:How to get it. by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

      He had to click 17 times ...

      --
      Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
  4. Why use SMS for 2FA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When it comes to security - especially for email, which well-resourced state actors will attack, why would Google use SMS as the basis for 2FA? I can only assume that this is the most ubiquitous method to disseminate a temp pin, however, it is susceptible to intercept.
    I would prefer to see an option to use Google Authenticator (which works on iOS and Android) or Microsoft Authenticator.
    I am sure that there are other valid reasons for relying on the less secure method of SMS and I hope other options will be provided soon.
     

    1. Re:Why use SMS for 2FA by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      If they force you to use SMS for 2FA, then they have a plausible reason for asking for your telephone number. The Google Play Services and all of the Google apps on iOS have access to the phone number of the device, so they can tie your mobile and desktop accounts, for building a better advertising profile.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    2. Re:Why use SMS for 2FA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For the free version of Gmail, this could be a reason (cynical as it is), for gsuite users and to limit GDPR violation, this use of your phone number for marketing or account verification would be a problem.

    3. Re:Why use SMS for 2FA by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

      I would prefer to see an option to use Google Authenticator

      There is one. I know, because I use it.

  5. I have an idea! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Let's centralize all email onto Google, and then give them complete control over how email works.

    I'm sure it will end well!

  6. Confidential mode? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can I use my own keys to encrypt a message yet? Until I can use and not share a private key with google, then there is no confidential mode.

    Remember that google makes money from scanning your data and building profiles on you.

  7. Beware of the leopard by Hognoxious · · Score: 2

    You can enable the new look and features by clicking on the Settings cog in the top-right corner

    What are the chances of you being able to find the control to turn it off again if you don't like it?

    Assuming such a thing even exists.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    1. Re:Beware of the leopard by gnick · · Score: 2

      What are the chances of you being able to find the control to turn it off again if you don't like it?

      I turned it on, off, and on again without difficulty. The control is in the same place.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    2. Re:Beware of the leopard by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      Somebody hasn't done his job, then.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  8. Confidential? by geek · · Score: 1

    From everyone but Google I presume.

  9. Don't care by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 2

    I use Gmail via Apple's Mail program. As long as this setup works, I don't care what Google does to the web front-end.

    --
    #DeleteFacebook
    1. Re:Don't care by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Me too. I use IMAP and best of all I have access to all my email even without an internet connection

    2. Re: Don't care by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Me too. I like to talk about myself and my own set up because I can't help but post and fill up forums with my opinions.

  10. Doesn't look very "private" to security pros by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject & https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2018/04/17/gmails-new-confidential-mode-wont-be-completely-private/

    APK

    P.S.=> Read that link's content & judge for yourselves... apk

  11. Re:FIRST? by junk · · Score: 1

    Are we still doing that? I thought it all got moderated away and people gave up. Get off my lawn.

  12. Still using Gmail? by DogDude · · Score: 1

    I find it ironic that so many people who may realize that what Facebook, etc are doing with data is generally not a positive thing for the "users", still use Gmail. Email is one of the simplest, cheapest parts of the Internet, and for some reason, everybody I know is willing to give all of their email to Google in exchange for about $1/month (the price of real email today). However, if I offer them $1/month to be able to read (not even store and sell) all of their email, that doesn't fly. People are weird and frequently dumb and irrational.

    If you care about privacy at all, or value your own privacy at all, you're dumb for using a free email service.

    --
    I don't respond to AC's.
    1. Re:Still using Gmail? by Hodr · · Score: 1

      Please point me towards the $1 e-mail service that gives me guaranteed privacy (and 19GB of space, and integrates perfectly with my phone / calendar)

    2. Re:Still using Gmail? by DogDude · · Score: 1

      Calendaring isn't part of email. That costs extra. You can pay a few bucks a month and use Exchange hosting, which is awesome, and has calendaring and tasks and a whole bunch of stuff.

      Anybody that you pay money to that has a privacy notice will be private. If you pay them, you can sue them. If it's free, you can't.

      In terms of integration with your phone, IMAP and SMTP have been standards for decades, now. If your phone can't deal with those things, then you probably have a shitty phone.

      Here's one that's $1/month: https://www.1and1.com/email-ho...

      As with most things in life, you get what you pay for.

      --
      I don't respond to AC's.
    3. Re:Still using Gmail? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      https://posteo.de/en

      Only 2 GB, but 1 Euro a month.

    4. Re:Still using Gmail? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      FastMail is $30/yr. $50/yr if you want to use your own domain. I think that's very affordable for anyone who is concerned about their privacy.

      Email via IMAP. Calendar & Contacts all via standard protocols, too.
      https://www.fastmail.com/pricing/

    5. Re:Still using Gmail? by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 1

      I don't use Gmail for my personal mail anymore - haven't for quite a few years.

      My work email is on Gmail (Google Apps for Education, or whatever they call it now). But, as a state employee, my email is all public record anyway - so anyone, including Google, could get at it if they really cared.

      --
      #DeleteChrome
  13. Change? Change BAD! by Merk42 · · Score: 2

    The first version of any sottware is the best version.

  14. loss of density == FAIL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Comparing the compact mode between the "classic" and the latest "new" versions, the classic wins by far.
    The new version uses larger fonts and more spacing--defeating the purpose of a compact mode--anti-scrolling.

  15. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  16. Mobile threaded conversation view. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Until they get rid of the forced threaded conversation view on the mobile app, ./meh.

  17. Do I Get Real Folders? by Greyfox · · Score: 1

    If I don't get real folders, they can fuck right off.

    --

    I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

    1. Re:Do I Get Real Folders? by Tony+Isaac · · Score: 1

      This is the whole point of GMail, you don't have to file stuff in folders any more. I used to create an elaborate folder system so I could find emails later. With GMail, the search feature is so god you don't have to file them. Just archive. Done.

    2. Re:Do I Get Real Folders? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thunderbird search sucks, yes. I'm a happy user of KMail however, and there the search feature is (for me at least) better than gmail's.

      Also: IMAP keywords.
      Using labels for sorting possible way before gmail, and the lack of directories forbids you from using labels+directories for sorting. I won't even go into how incompatible with IMAP gmail's extensions are.