Submit Hint Search The Forums LinksStatsPollsHeadlinesRSS
14,000 hints and counting!


Click here to return to the 'Use google mail' hint
The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
Use google mail
Authored by: atverd on Jun 30, '05 01:20:51PM

Guys, just get yourself a gmail account - it's free, has 2 gig of space, SSLed smtp/pop3 and will archive all incoming/outgoing mail automatically as a side effect. Why to use those lame services which don't even provide fully protected access?



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: kikjou on Jun 30, '05 04:33:47PM

There is no such thing as a free meal. Your communication with Gmail may be safe, but the data you put there are not. If you, like me, do most of your communication via email, your entire life will be there for Google to mine. If you have exhibitionistic tendencies, go for it. Unfortunately, you also drag all people you communicate with into this. Google is the only free email service provider that explicitly states that they will mine your data. I myself use a small community-owned internet service provider who I know and trust. My service may not have SSL, but at least it respects my privacy.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: Blah on Jun 30, '05 07:52:33PM
Thank goodness somebody gets it! "Public" servers, for mail, IM, etc., are exactly that: public. Every time you use one of these servers you are giving information to a 3rd party about one of your "friends", typically without their permission.

Would you walk into a Walmart or Starbucks and fill out someone else's personal information and post it on the bulletin board? For any purpose? When you send email with personal information (what that consists of is up to each person to decide!), especially from a public server, you're infringing on the other party's privacy. How rude.

Obviously the public servers serve a purpose, but people use them willy-nilly for any old thing, and all that information gets stored and mined (by most providers, not just gmail). You think your IM conversations aren't saved in some huge archives? You don't care? How about all the people you IM and email? Did you bother to ask?

And "services" (purposely in quotes) like Plaxo are just plain evil. They encourage you to put other people's personal information into their databases and (last I checked) don't provide any way to remove it - ever. Wonder what they do with all that info....

Bottom line: ALWAYS ASK IN ADVANCE before you put anyone ELSE'S information online. That goes for .mac servers too. Do you have your address book online or backed up online? Is it encrypted? Did you ask every single person in it if they wanted their personal information made available to other party(s)?

Grrr, better stop before I start frothing.... :-)

There is no such thing as a free meal. Your communication with Gmail may be safe, but the data you put there are not. If you, like me, do most of your communication via email, your entire life will be there for Google to mine. If you have exhibitionistic tendencies, go for it.

Unfortunately, you also drag all people you communicate with into this. Google is the only free email service provider that explicitly states that they will mine your data. I myself use a small community-owned internet service provider who I know and trust. My service may not have SSL, but at least it respects my privacy.


[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: friedguy on Jun 30, '05 10:17:35PM

I guess my stupid question is: what are they going to do with that information? I understand where you are coming from and what you are saying, but have you ever been contacted by a email server because you sent to email to someone who uses there "services"? I sure haven't and I highly doubt that google is going there every email just to find information to exploit. I really wouldn't be too worried about this.

I could, however, be missing your point. For the moment I just don't feel your concern.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: kchrist on Jul 01, '05 08:15:43AM

My service may not have SSL, but at least it respects my privacy.

Actually, I'd argue that by not providing secure services, they do not respect your privacy (or security!).

SSL/TLS for mail services (whether POP3, IMAP, or SMTP) is standard now -- required, in fact, if you're going to be using public wireless networks. If your ISP doesn't provide it, complain until they do or take your business elsewhere.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: atverd on Jul 01, '05 02:37:22PM

This is a big fat illusion that you can protect your privacy on Internet. Measures to protect it even in some basic manner would involve anonymous accounts, heavy encryption on different levels, untraceable IPs and rather strong expertise in the area. In fact you are putting yourself in more vulnerable position by thinking that you privacy is protected by some good guys whom you "trust", because in this case you cannot trust anyone and actually you just proved this by saying that they don't have SSL on their service (this means that they are at least incompetent in security and privacy protection). So believe it or not - gmail is "ok" alternative now and unless you do some really nasty stuff you are reasonably safe with them.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: ibalbin on Jun 30, '05 09:48:06PM

This doesn't work when your corporate network doesn't let you connect
to google mail

I haven't seen a way to bypass that.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: chjabu on Jun 30, '05 11:00:24PM

I've not been able to figure out how to get a gmail addy.
I know there were invites sent out, but I don't know anybody that got an invite, either.
How does an outsider get in?
Thx.



[ Reply to This | # ]
Gmail invitations Galore
Authored by: DC Watts on Jul 24, '05 08:16:57PM
Check here.

[ Reply to This | # ]
Use google mail
Authored by: revolution1965 on Nov 28, '05 01:35:34PM

A bit off topic but I have 99 free invites if anyone wants one. Just let me know!



[ Reply to This | # ]