The folks at WebProWorld have been discussing the possibility of Google developing an online diary application similar to Yahoo! Calendar. This seems like a pretty likely project for Google, given that their endgoal is to rule the world. Even with the hypothetical calendar though, I’m not sure if I’d be able to switch to the Google productivity suite just yet — I’d also need things like …
- an instant messaging application that interfaces with my calendar, address book and inbox
- a desktop tool that syncs my online address book, calendar and inbox with the Outlook-based one on my laptop
- a WAP-enabled inbox
- a inbox backup tool that allows you to archive old messages
- webhosting services that interface directly with your inbox and address book
… all of which you can already do with Yahoo’s suite. (It also bears mentioning that nearly all of my contacts use Yahoo, so it’ll be a bit of a trick to get them all to switch with me.)
The truth of the matter is, the Yahoo group of apps is one of the most mature online suites out there, and Google will have its hands full trying to come up with a product of the same level. Their recent video search gaffe proves that even they can get it wrong sometimes.
Search is a key feature in every software suite, but it isn’t everything.