Google Wave

[Previsionary]

So, I keep hearing rumblings about this through the grapevine, but no one (or any one site) seems to be able to simply explain what it is. I mean, Google has an 80 minute video up, and I kinda refuse to waste an hour + of time learning about something I can't immediately use; so, does anyone have simplified information about what "Google Wave" is, why it's so great, and why it may be the future of email?

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

Wikipedia seems to help here.

To summarize, it's basically a combination of email, instant messaging, forums, and wikis.  I guess the idea is you set up a wave, which is kindof like a forum thread, then then invite people into it.  The wave is divided into messages, like posts, but anyone can add, delete, or edit at any time, and the edits are seen as they happen.  So type a letter and anyone else in it can see that one letter.

Anyway, it sounds like it's pretty easy to use it as one of the four and ignore the other possibilities or switch between the uses as well.  Sounds interesting, but hardly life changing, although I might change my mind later.

[GogglesPizanno]

Its basically what cat said, built around an API and technology base that can be used to build custom communication applications that utilize all these different transmission mediums. The videos and demos thus far seem like they are meant to show off all the flashy cool interactive nature of the thing for communicating with multiple people in cooperative ways... but I think they are relying on these videos to get developers to start thinking of creative ways to use the technology for new types of applications.

Really for a certain type of person or a certain type of organization, i think the the technology has some interesting possibilities, but i also think that its going to take some effort to get people to transition to a wave application in lieu of traditional IM and email. I personally am really minimal in my communication needs, so its a bit overkill for someone like me. We'll see. It might the next big thing, or it may just be another interesting "google thing"

[Sevenforce]

Best Video so far I have seen to explain it in laymens terms, compared to the hour long (!!!) presentation on the google website. Sheesh.

The main thing I'm focusing on is consideration and inclusion of social media content, such as facebook, youtube, twitter, etc., as well as the whole timeline aspect.

I mean, time is an incredibly important thing nowadays, especially in the workplace, and its nice to have the function, ESPECIALLY in an email/forwarded email environment (man, how many times do I have to clean up messy emails to make sense of them, especially chain mails with forty gajillion people attached -_-), to see who did what, when, and in relation to what, and what attachments/additions to the wave were added to make sense.

I agree with Pizanno (Heh, thought it said googlesPizanno there) in that its definitely more a business orientated application, but I can see it being adopted mainstream faster than he suggests.

OOOOO, also (Note, the language is NSFW, but thats because of the source material):

Pulp Fiction told in Google Wave

Good Will Hunting Told in Google Wave