Sunday, January 2, 2011

Gmail's Space Limitation - Yes, I Know the Problem

For the last couple of weeks, I've given Gmail a bit of grief about their storage limitations imposed upon advertisement-supported email accounts. This limitation is a real issue for me. However, I do understand Gmail's dilemma. There's a "hack program" called "Gdrive" or "Gmail Drive" that has gained an enormous following. This program allows Gmail users to treat their Gmail accounts just like a hard drive - it appears in "My Computer" as a separate drive and can be treated just like any other drive (i.e., users can drag and drop files straight to the email account). I realize this popular programs makes it impossible for Gmail to offer unlimited storage. I should note that by using the program PHPGmailDrive (or Gspace), users simply link multiple Gmail accounts together for purposes of using Gdrive. But that doesn't help a legitimate Gmail user that simply wants to store all his or her email. Thus, the storage limitation is targeted to prevent abuse, but those who want to abuse the system can, and do, abuse it regardless of the storage limitations.

But, I offer a solution. I realize that Gmail cannot just offer everyone unlimited space because of the large number of people who will simply back up their entire computers online. However, what if every user does not have the same amount of storage space. Let's say that every user who opens an account begins with the current limit of 7.5 gb (frankly, for a brand new account, this can be drastically lowered). After an account is established, permit each Gmail account to grow as it is used (I mean real growth, not the minuscule growth offered now). For each month that the Gmail account is active, add .1 or .2 gb to the account's allotted storage space (all I proposed is .1 or .2 gb a month - the amount of space that a moderate user would probably use in a month). Sure, 7.5 gb is a huge amount of storage for a new account. But it's not reasonable for a user that has been actively using their account for seven years to be limited to the same amount of storage as someone who has had the account for two days. Since I am confident that my blog posts have received the attention of Google executives, I hope they will consider my proposed solution.

FYI - Blogger (i.e., this website) is owned by Google.

No comments: