Pimp My Mail
Posted by Jonathan Ng | Filed under Technical
That’s the unofficial slogan for the next generation Hotmail code named “Kahuna”, currently under development. It’s okay if you’re clueless as to what “Kahuna” is, but if you still havn’t heard of Windows Live, then you might as well check out the next generation ideas from Microsoft.
I read an article about a couple of years back about Google. The author predicted that in the near future (right about now), everything would be web based. Your operating system matters less, as everything moves online. Google’s services such as Gmail and Google Maps arguably sparked that revolution. But now, Microsoft is realizing the importance of the internet. Start.com blew those table layouts away, Windows Live further cemented the direction Microsoft was heading, and there were even rumours of Microsoft considering an ad-based model for Windows and Office.
So what’s Kahuna? It’s part of the next Windows Live wave, coming to you in the 1st half of 2006. Kahuna is also known as “Windows Live Mail”. You can think of it as Outlook “Lite” on the web, or Gmail on steoroids. Kahuna’s keywords: DHTML (Start.com gave is a good example of how advanced the DHTML is), AJAX and right-clicking. I’m not good at reviews, so check out Paul Thurrott’s preview complete with screenshots, and the interview with it’s developers at Channel9. Judging by those previews, Gmail is in no position to stand up to the “Live” wave.
Another “Live” idea that caught my attention is Windows Live Custom Domains. It’s basically a service that allows you to redirect all your mail from your own server to Hotmail’s servers. So instead of connecting to your server via POP3, you can check your mail at Hotmail. So instead of limited to a mail client at your computer, you can check your me@mysite.com email anywhere in the world. Perhaps you might be turned off with Hotmail’s current feature set, but add it Kahuna in the equation, and you’d certainly consider abandoning whatever mail client you’re using now.
Google brought an array of innovations to the web. Heck, it’s even used as a verb meaning “to search on the internet”. Finally, Microsoft is responding, and the world is watching. We await the Windows Live wave.
Tags: web_apps
