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April 21, 2005

Gmail goes RSS and makes search history

Hardly anyone seems to have noticed it yet, but Google has added an RSS reader called Web Clips to its free Gmail service. It displays headlines above your Inbox or message from feeds you can either add yourself, or choose from a Google selection. Because it alternates between headlines and ads, it's a cute way of getting your attention.

The feature is being added progressively to Gmail accounts - in what order nobody seems to know, although it was first spotted by former employee and Blogger co-founder Evan Williams - so if you can't see it yet, don't feel offended.

Not satisfied with that, Google has also released another exotic creature from its labs - My Search History. Just sign in to your free Google account - if you haven't got one, it might be a good idea to sign up at that link - and you'll be able to choose any day from a calendar.

It caches pages you've clicked on, allowing you to make a full- text search of the contents, which may be slightly different from this explanation.

Google seems to be engaged in a campaign of conquest by utility. Once you've signed up for an account, you can expect they'll be sidling up to you with lots of new features. The tactics are different from those of Microsoft, but the effects are likely to be identical: total world domination. We imagine Bill Gates is not having a good day today.

Posted by cw at April 21, 2005 07:53 AM

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