MaximumPC 2006 12

With a quick sign-up and

a little know-how, you can

transform Google’s free mail

service into the ultimate online

messaging app.

Need to keep important files

handy? You don’t necessarily

have to shell out 100 bucks

for a high-capacity thumb

drive. Instead, use Gmail’s free

2.7GB of storage as an off-

site backup for the files you

need access to. The easiest

way is to simply attach your

file to an email and shoot it to

your Gmail account. Then you

can retrieve it at any time just

by logging in and running a

quick search of your inbox. Of

course, Gmail’s 10MB attach-

ment limit means you won’t

be able to archive massive

documents. But it’s a great

way keep your most essential

files handy wherever there’s an

Internet connection.

To take even greater

advantage of Gmail’s free

storage space, you’ll need to

download a helper app. Firefox

users can download Gmail

Space from Mozilla’s Firefox

Add-ons library (http://addons.

mozilla.org/firefox/), which

turns the web browser into an

easy-to-use file explorer. The

extension lets you drag and

drop files directly into Gmail’s

storage space, without having

to worry about the attachment

size limit.

Alternatively, you can

download Gmail Drive Shell

Extension (free, http://www.viksoe.

dk/code/gmail.htm) for more

ubiquitous access through-

out your Windows PC. Gmail

Drive Shell Extension sets up

your Gmail storage space as

a network drive on your PC,

which you can access simply

by double-clicking the GMail

Drive icon in My Computer

and then entering your Gmail

username and password.

Once you log in, your Gmail

storage will act just like any

other drive on your PC. It even

works with Windows Vista.

T

ired of stingy ISPs imposing arbitrary email restrictions on

you? Yeah, so are we. 1MB attachment limits, 25MB stor-

age limits, and restricted SMTP servers are sooo 1997.

For a 21st-Century mail experience, step up to Gmail.

We know what you’re thinking: Webmail is webmail. But

with 2.7GB of storage, 10MB attachment allowances, and an

array of easy hacks that let you customize your mail account

in almost any way you like, Gmail may be the most power-

ful e-mail tool the world has ever known. But enough of our

yammering. Here’s how to turn your Gmail account into a

messaging dynamo, and more.

Hack Gmail

what you need

FRee GMaIL aCCount

InteRnet C onneCtIon

by RObERT S tRohMeyeR

TIMEhours:minutes

00 : 20

1 Use Gmail as an Online Storage Vault

Gmail Drive Shell Extension lets you treat your Gmail storage

space like an Internet-connected hard drive.

dEcEMbEr 2006 MAXIMUMPC 57

ImprovIng your pc experIence, one step at a tIme how^2