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Google Launches Gmail, Free Email Service (Danny Sullivan, Search Engine Watch)

Google is launching a new web-based email service called Gmail that it hopes it will allow people to search their email as easily as they search the web -- as well as provide Google with a more permanent connection to its users.

"Your mail comes in. You don't have to file it. You can just do a query based on what you remember about it," said Wayne Rosing, vice president of engineering at Google.

Rosing said the system has been in development for a number of years and used internally by employees. Now it's being turned into a product for the public, though most of the public will still need to wait a few weeks to try it.

Google employees are currently inviting people outside the company to join the system. Once Google becomes more confident of Gmail's stability under a heavier load, the general public will be allowed to sign-up.

"It really is a test. We need to get feedback from non-technical users. And that's one of the suggestions to Googlers, to invite their mothers, fathers and non-technical relatives. We think it will take a few weeks to get things sorted out, and I imagine we'll open it up after that."

The Gmail site is supposed to go live on Thursday.