Showing posts with label Gmail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gmail. Show all posts

Google tool to enable what to do with emails after death


HOUSTON, APR 12: Are you worried who will read some of your very personal and saved emails or conversation after you are dead ? Stop worries as help is on the way.

Finally Google has found a way by launching inactive account manager page that can be used as a “Digital Will”.

Google is asking people what they want to happen to their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings after they die or become incapacitated.

An “Inactive Account Manager” can be used to direct Google to pass on data from online venues such as Google Drive, Gmail, YouTube, or social network Google+ to particular people, or be deleted after being dormant for too long.

In a message at an account settings page, Google gives people the option of sharing their data with a trusted friend or family member, or having their account deleted.

Google lets people specify how long to wait before taking action, and the California—based internet giant will send account holders email or text message reminders before “timeout” periods are ended.

In setting up the Google Inactive Account Manager, users will be able to select a length of time the account must be inactive before the alert goes out. Then, up to ten trusted individuals will receive a customised information on how to proceed or handle the account.

Finally, Google gives users the option to effectively “burn” their account, wiping all materials from all Google properties — including public Youtube videos, Google+ profiles and Google Voice extensions.

Users can choose 3, 6, 9, or 12 months as the timeout period and Google will send a notification to the secondary email address one month before the period is set to expire.

If that time passes, any trusted contacts will receive a personal email explaining that said individual had left them the data, including instructions on how to download it.

The set—up page reads: “What should happen to your photos, emails and documents when you stop using your account? Google puts you in control.

“You might want your data to be shared with a trusted friend or family member, or you might want your account to be deleted entirely. There are many situations that might prevent you from accessing or using your Google account. Whatever the reason, we give you the option of deciding what happens to your data.

“Using Inactive Account Manager, you can decide if and when your account is treated as inactive, what happens with your data and who is notified.”

Dealing with digital identities after someone has gone dead or missing is an interesting and still—developing problem on various platforms.

The Inactive Account Manager is a simplified version of the old process for accessing or shutting down an account, which required both birth and death notices from a family member.

Other platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, still require a bit of finagling to secure a loved one’s account after he or she dies, but the Inactive Account Manager could provide plenty of information and act as a “digital will” with minimal set—up.

Report by : PTI

Google’s new Inactive Account Manager lets users plan for digital afterlife


Worried about what will happen to your digital presence and data after your death? Well, so is Google and the company has now unveiled a service designed to manage the accounts of people after their time in the world ends.

Called the Inactive Account Manager, the service offers users of Gmail, Drive, Google+, Picasa and other Google services a template which can be filled up with details of what should happen in the event you die or become inactive for a specified period of time.

"Not many of us like thinking about death — especially our own," Product Manager Andreas Tuerk wrote in a blog post. "But making plans for what happens after you're gone is really important for the people you leave behind. So today, we're launching a new feature that makes it easy to tell Google what you want done with your digital assets when you die or can no longer use your account."

Now, also managing your afterlife

The Inactive Account Manager can be found in your account settings page and you can choose whether to have your data erased after your death or alternatively, you can make it available to pre-specified trusted contacts. The settings also let you choose when Google deletes your data. Users can ask Google to erase data if the account is inactive for three, six, nine or 12 months.

For Google, the Inactive Account Manager is a way to free up space on their servers without breaking a trust agreement with their users. It's also a way to address privacy and security concerns of people who would be worried about their private photos, videos and messages that could leak out to the world after their death.

And if some casual Google users who have signed up for the Inactive Account Manager service are having second thoughts about their account being erased, then they can put a stop it before it’s too late. Before the deletion of the data, Google will notify account holders via text message and email to a designated address.

“We hope that this new feature will enable you to plan your digital afterlife — in a way that protects your privacy and security — and make life easier for your loved ones after you’re gone,” Tuerk added.

Babel app reference spotted in Gmail notification and Google code crash log


A reference to Babel has been spotted on Gmail in the notification text. Babel is said to be a unified messaging service from Google that will bring a better IM and communication experience to Android as well as Chrome OS. It was purportedly called Google Babble until last month, but some reports later said Google plans to name the service Babel. The service will reportedly début on iOS, Google+ and Gmail, besides Android and Chrome OS.

The notification was spotted by Google+ user Patric Dhawaan, who was cleaning his inbox up when a notification popped up saying one or more conversations he had deleted were part of Babel and will be available in other Babel chat applications. Dhawaan posted a screenshot of the notification, which does hint that Babel could come with the ability to sync your chat conversations.

All under one roof

This latest piece of information validates earlier claims that a version of Babel will be coming to Gmail, but what about the Android app? Well, a mobile version appears to be on its way too, as confirmed by another user on Google’s social networking site.

In his Google + post, user Roga Moore said he found a line found in a crash log for a Google code issue that points towards a Babel app. The code says: “/data/data/com.google.android.apps.babel/lib/libvideochat_jni.so”

The eagle-eyed Android fan would have noticed the com.google.android.apps prefix that normally accompanies Google apps. This is something Moore also points out in his post. For example, the app ID or package name for Currents on the Google Play Store is com.google.android.apps.currents. In cases where it is a core app in question, the prefix drops the apps in the package name. For example, com.google.android.gm is the package name for Gmail.

The crash log has multiple references to the Babel app’s package name, but a simple search for Babel on the Google Group for Chromium bugs reveals multiple entries related to the feature, or more to the point, the current bugs. One particular post that deals with reproducing a Google Chat bug in Windows says it will only work on old chat and not Babel. There are other entries as well, which talk about the size of title bar in Babel. All these are clear indications that Babel is well on its way to several platforms.

Babel seeks to solve the age-old Android bugbear of not having a unified messaging service that integrates all the various chat and IM options while using Google’s services. Users will also be able to carry forward conversations across multiple devices, start a Hangout, and share files with their peers more easily. The service could launch in the next few months, but we expect to see it first at Google I/O, which is scheduled for next month.

Report by : Nikhil Subramaniam

Gmail for Android 4.2 may have pinch-to-zoom, swipe-to-delete gestures


Google has recently updated its Google+ app for Android as well as iOS devices. The search giant has also brought in a variety of handy features to the updated version of Google Drive for Android devices. Google may be readying an update for Gmail for Android as well, which will be version number 4.2. In this update, Google is speculated to bring in very useful features such as pinch-to-zoom, and swipe-to-delete or swipe-to-archive.

As per an exclusive report by Android Police, “We are thrilled to share some exciting news about the next version of Gmail for Android. We may or may not be in possession of an unreleased version of Gmail, which may or may not have come from an LG Nexus system dump. One thing I am sure of is we definitely have video of it.”

The handset used in the video is the Galaxy Nexus. In the video we can see the pinch-to-zoom feature and the swipe to delete/ archive feature. In the 46-second long video, you can see the major updates come to light. These features may not be limited to the upcoming Android 4.2, but are likely to work on Android v4.1 as well, as the mobile phone is running on the latter OS.

Shedding some light on the new updates, Amadeo states, “The about screen says it's Gmail version 4.2. Besides pinch zoom, the other major new feature is "swipe to archive/delete," which, just like a notification, will let you swipe away messages from your inbox. Gmail has made this feature nice and configurable; digging through the options will let you change your swipes to "No effect" "Archive or delete" or "Always Delete." The default, "Archive or delete," will archive swiped messages when you're in the inbox, delete swiped messages when you're in All Mail or Sent, and remove a label when you're in a label-only view.”

The author goes on to state that he isn’t allowed to share the APK but Android Police is working on getting the required permissions to share it.

In early August, Google has updated its Gmail application for Android users. The update applies to devices running Ice Cream Sandwich OS and above and features improvised support for 7-inch tablets. The app includes bug fixes and performance improvements too. It is available for download on the Google Play store. Gmail is a popular and widely used e-mail service. The Gmail app for Android allows users to manage multiple accounts, view and save attachments and set up label notifications.

The updated Google+ app for Android now allows Google+ users to view, post, and comment from their mobiles. Using 'Find people', users can discover people and topics more easily. The new homescreen widget has been redesigned as well.

Using the Google+ app for Android, users can view the content in a magazine style layout in the new tablet version. They can also automatically share photos to an Event using the Party Mode. With mobile Hangouts, users can initiate Video chats with up to nine friends. Users also have the option of getting started with an Instant Upload to sync photos from their phone to a private Google+ album. On the 'What’s Hot' stream, users can view what are the trending topics. Also included is the ability to view the Nearby stream to see what people near the user's location have going on.


Report by: Aaron Almeida

Gmail unveils free sms for Indian users


New Delhi: For those users hooked onto their gmail accounts for chat and communications, Google has unveiled a free sms service for all users in India. This service basically allows, users to send smses to contacts on the chatting list of gtalk, free of cost till the limit of 50 messages, where each of them cost 1 credit each, and a reply via the same method gives back 5 credits to the user. Basically, with the help of mobile numbers, one can now use gtalk on gmail to send sms to their contacts, without completely loosing credit.

Google has partnered with multiple service providers in the country like Tata Docomo, Tata Indicom, Aircel, Idea, Loop Mobile, MTS, and Reliance but players like BSNL, MTNL, and Airtel have not been bought into the loop as yet. However, this arrangement ensures that Google would be sharing revenue with the telecom companies, and perhaps expand their user bases during the course of time. In effect, when the service becomes popular, the customers could be looking at more attractive service offers, but thats currently on the anvil.


Report by: Dailybhaskar