The news is out. Everybody is talking about it:
- Google Planning to Roll Out E-Mail Service - New York Times
- Google to offer gigabyte of free e-mail - C|Net
- Google to Test E-Mail in Challenge to Rivals - Reuters
But the best part is if you then go to Google and read their press release.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - April 1, 2004 UTC - Amidst rampant media speculation, Google Inc. today announced it is testing a preview release of Gmail – a free search-based webmail service with a storage capacity of up to eight billion bits of information, the equivalent of 500,000 pages of email. Per user.
The inspiration for Gmail came from a Google user complaining about the poor quality of existing email services, recalled Larry Page, Google co-founder and president, Products. "She kvetched about spending all her time filing messages or trying to find them," Page said. "And when she's not doing that, she has to delete email like crazy to stay under the obligatory four megabyte limit. So she asked, 'Can't you people fix this?'" [Google.com]
I love it. The press release just reads too much like an April Fools joke to me. I wonder how long till the story gets pulled from the New York Times (or until there's confirmation that it is real).
More edit: Slashdot seems to think it may be a joke too.
Even more edit: Oh yes, and here's a cool job offer at Google.
