Gmail Invisible

The stealth cloaking generator has hit the Gmail stores and now is available somewhere near you, and other words and phrases to that effect. Google's mail service has just been added an all-time popular feature with other IMs, the option to appear invisible to your list of contacts - can't quite name them friends with the trouble the manager had with adding any and all addresses an email was sent to.

Google Talk is a delicate little beast, a work in progress. You can only be invisible if you're using Gmail Chat, in case you're working with the desktop gadget you'll have to wait some more to be able to go into stealth mode. And "Oops! You are not invisible because you're also using desktop software that doesn't support invisibility, such as Google Talk." Two things: first and foremost, the gadget recognizes the invisible status, but isn't capable of mimicking it, a sure sign it will be implemented any time soon. Second, it's really embarrassing to have three separate interfaces and each to have different features.

The benefits of the newly found invisibility are obvious, but don't expect it to do wonders. It will not extend its cloak over you, so you could be able to sneak into the girls' locker-room, even if you're holding on to your laptop and are signed in. It would be something, though, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll probably be an old dude when it will happen, but nevertheless I will go for it.

Being able to not be seen as online has its perks, people won't bother you if you're not feeling like it. It's a well known fact that the 'busy' icon stops next to nobody from attempting to start a conversation. If you're a dangerous love stalker, you'll also be able to wait unseen for your better half to come online without fear of meeting you, and then strike. The list can go on.

At the moment, the invisibility feature is only available with the new version of Gmail and thus only supported on Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2.