Comments on: More details surface on Google's alleged GDrive

Google's GDrive might actually exist. That's at least what new rumors surrounding the storage service suggest.

[Jonnygthedrummer]

cool , so whens google desktop os comming out?

[random truth]

gOS at one time called itself google os, but then got sued for trademark infringement...

[Super2online]

"GDrive allows you to access your files from anywhere, anytime, and from any device" This sounds like they are taking pointers from Microsoft on how to advertise there products!

[alegr]

Bye bye Live Mesh

[vamman]

GMail drive was pretty cool.

[l3it3r]

April 1 release? I hope not because I could really use it NOW.

Hope their price points come down a bit though...

[twolf2919]

It will probably be "free" as most of their other tools. The question with Google is always: how much privacy are you willing to give up in return for these tools/services? Do you feel comfortable that Google would NOT look into the content of your files? I bet most people don't think about this. I bet most people that downloaded and are actively using Google's Chrome browser don't realize that Google may, based on their site visiting habits (collected by Chrome), present some focused advertising directly from Chrome....or, perhaps, when you next visit one of the google web pages.

Most people are very ignorant when it comes to technology. When they see that something is "free" their instinct kicks in and they get/use it. Google is banking on this behavior.

[cb3431]

All reasons why I won't touch anything from Google.

[8301]

However, let's think about that for a minute.

Who "looks" into your e-mails, files, and web history? A person with judgmental and invasive tendencies? Or a computer program that knows no context but keywords? How do they store the information they collect? Do you think they keep full dossiers on each user, complete with all the juicy details you didn't want others to see, or is it a few lines of code instructing which advertisements to show?

Read the terms of service for Google products. They aren't trying to blackmail you, just match the user with the advertisement. Plus, I'd be willing to bet that most people who are too "ignorant" to realize this have much more dangerous Web habits than using Gmail.

[forever4now]

I don't have a reference link, but there was an article some time back that showed that Microsoft and Yahoo retain search history longer than Google (one was more than twice as long, if I recall correctly).

The fact of the matter is, if you want web services for free (versus pay-as-you-go), companies need to recoup the hardware/software/electricity/etc expenses somehow & advertising is how it is done. Knowing a little about your interests helps Google/Yahoo/Microsoft present ads that are more relevant.

[celticbrewer]

I don't we're worried as much about the google (or yahoo/M$) company as rogue employees, lawyers, or hackers.

[GetOutMore]

Oh, gasp! I might see an ad. Oh, shock! It might be something I actually want to see.

Fleeeee. Run for your lives!

[loose_screw]

You don't think any other email provider looks at your accounts, or your ISP? Unless you're encrypting everything before you send it to Yahoo or MSN, they can look at your emails too and probably do as well.

Don't delude yourself. Unless you're using an email client with PGP or similar encryption, you're not increasing your privacy by using any other email provider.

Oh, and by the way, please provide an example where someone has died or suffered something catastrophic because of their loss of privacy by using Gmail. Until then, shut your trap.

[ender21]

Wow, someone needs some lessons in civility.

Wasn't Google among the providers that gave private data on users to the NSA? Who knows what the government did with some of that data. And it likely was much more "catastrophic" than focused advertising.

You wouldn't be hurt by someone standing watch over you in your home 24/7, but somehow I think you'd rather them not.

[dragonbite]

I hope it will handle being able to make a TrueCrypt file and upload that. This way I don't have to worry about my files being "in the cloud" because even if somebody hacked the "drive" they would not be able to get those files (not easily, at least).

wow, an actual non-biased article from Don. Congratulations!

[cnet_user_0]

I fail to understand why would anyone be excited about this? Furthermore, would you feel comfortable having Google employees access to your files? Anyone, please tell me how this feature is attractive against, say, your own domain set up on a non-Google server?

[scottlewis101]

Because not everyone is as brilliant as you clearly are, cnet_user_0. Do you honestly think that Google is gunning for the insignificant fraction of computer users who can implement an internet-accessible file system, or are you just another perpetual malcontent who finds satisfaction from anonymous pot-shots in the blogosphere? News flash, brainiac. Most people don't want or need anything more than a really easy way to share a file between their work and home PC without twice-daily synchronization through their AOL email accounts.

[loose_screw]

Google employees can access any file that I put up on the internet. I am not so stupid as to upload confidential information without encrypting it, Google or not. I have less trust of MS and Yahoo than I do of Google, as a matter of fact.

[forever4now]

For the majority of my files, I only care that I can access them from anywhere at anytime (laptop,smartphone,etc.) and that they are backed up. For any "sensitive" files, I can either encrypt them before uploading or just keep them local. Simple!

I think this will be an awesome service to have and it will be especially convenient with an Android smartphone, since GMail, etc. are already totally integrated.

[LuvThatCO2]

So basically, Google is ripping off Amazon's S3 and Microsoft's SkyDrive? Is there something that GDrive can do that those two cant? There's a whole lot of 'excitement' in the tech press over it, but I've yet to see any details about the product that indicates it is anything other than a copy of what other companies have already been offering for years.

[loose_screw]

S3 is not free, and SkyDrive is an MS product, which is enough to turn off people. No one ever claimed GDrive was original or unique. However it offers additional functionality to Google users. Is there anything wrong with that? I don't think so!

[jgirmo]

Bunch of conspiracy theorist kooks. Stop looking over your shoulder. Nobody cares about your files.

[loose_screw]

Agreed. Maybe the ones complaining are MS shills, or pedophiles. I suggest the FBI track them down and search their PCs for kiddie porn.

[ender21]

Yeah, and the Earth is still flat too and politicians really do have our best interests at heart. And the NSA really did only spy on average citizens' not suspected of terrorism "by accident." Look it up. Interested in some land in Florida, guys?

[hoystory]

Connect the dots with this news and the fact that the upcoming Palm Pre doesn't have a MicroSD slot. There's been lots of questionings and rumblings about how Pre users would backup their device -- integration with the GDrive might answer that question. After all, if I recall correctly, they're already integrating the Pre with the Google Calendar app, Gmail, etc.

[tcr071]

The Palm Pre has 8gb of storage. I don't know what that mysterious "gb" stands for but I am pretty sure it means "lots of space."

[JDubbs115]

Doesn't the iPhone not have a card slot? I'm not ego-tripping or anything, I really don't know. My Omnia does, but that's beside the point. There are several ways to backup devices nowadays, and with the increasing inter-connectivity of technology these days I don't know why people would even ask this question as if it would pose a problem. However I would agree that direct synching with the drive is a good solution.

I have to agree with cnet_user_0 and LuvThatCO2; what's the big deal? We already have our cloud solutions, should we really get excited about one more just because it's Google?

[hoystory]

@tcr071: Reading comprehension is good for you. The question is: "How do Pre users backup their device?" The answer: "The Palm Pre has 8gb of storage" does not answer that question.

I've had several different Palm devices, and I must say that on the occasions when for some reason the onboard flash memory scrambles itself or I have to get a replacement handset for whatever reason, it's been nice to just swap in an SD card (or mini-SD) and restore all of my data.

[gggg sssss]

Who in their right mind would store anything valuable and important anywhere near google? And further on on CNet we read that Yahoo is closing Briefcase and users should get their files out fast before they disappear forever.

[loose_screw]

"Who in their right mind would store anything valuable and important anywhere near google?"

Your mom.

[GlennAllen]

"Who in their right mind would store anything valuable and important anywhere near..." the Internet. Google is no worse than any other such organization. Use their services or don't, but the same "rules" apply to everyone: you gotta give to get. Nothing is truly "free". Trust no one - encrypt everything... or just don't do/save/transmit anything you'd be concerned about anyone else knowing/seeing.

[tcr071]

Worst. Idea. Ever.

Google tracks everything. I am sure there are people out there stupid enough to store all of their personal data and possibly their entire operating system on some google drive out in god knows where but I, for one, will keep my files and operating system LOCAL.

[loose_screw]

Just because you personally wouldn't use it makes it the worst idea ever?

And so what if Google "tracks everything?" What are you afraid of, black helicopters flying over your house? FBI breaking into your house to get your kiddie porn? Grow up.

[OS11]

Apple has been doing this with their iDisk for some 8 years... yawn...

[random truth]

but it costs money... Free = better.

[WebBuddha]

So Microsoft has been offering 25 GB worth of space with SkyDrive for nearly 1 year now. What exactly is so special about this? Is it because it has a "G" in front of the name? Maybe we could call it "iG"drive and get all the Mac Fanboy and Google slobberers in a tizzy at the same time?

Seriously, why is this story eating up our precious bandwidth?

[ender21]

Or more to the point, why is it given the double-super-secret treatment? Add-ins retracted a day after they're released, etc. So you're developing a consumer-level cloud-based solution. Big deal, so have others. Why all the cloak and dagger? That you *wouldn't* offer it would be of more news. But that it's being treated as if it's some Top Secret: Eyes Only project is probably where half of the criticism is coming from.

[ClarkWells]

Gspace???? its free.

[Zayniac]

Why would you wait for GDrive when Live Mesh already exists, and works perfectly?
If you want I'll add "for once" - but in this scenario, Microsoft is actually way ahead of its competitors.
I use Live Mesh and love it.