Google started off as a search engine back in 1996 when it was called Back Rub and has diversified into so many areas including which is now the third largest email provider in the USA behind hotmail and yahoo.

According to ComScore, gmail has 37 million unique visitors which is just past AOL’s 36.4 million. Windows Live Hotmail has 47 million unique visitors, but in the lead is Yahoo Mail with 106 million monthly unique visitors. I am not really surprised by the growth in numbers, afterall, gmail is constantly upgrading its features which is more than can be said for Windoss Live Hotmail and Yahoo Mail. I have to say I love gmail, they are so innovative. Since starting in 2004, they have diversifed into calendar, gmail chat, docs, maps, and even web albums where you can upload photos safely and securely. One of the best things I like about gmail is its superior spam protection. I had hotmail account and someone hacked in and sent spam to everyone in my address book. I never had this problem with gmail, nor has anyone else I know.

If you don’t have gmail, I recommend singing up, it is free. Here are my top favourites:
Picassa: I have recently been using Picassa and it is integrated with Gmail. It is such an easy way to organise your photos.
Calendar: You can sync your calendar with other gmail users so you always know what is going on and can plan your days/evenings out together
Analytics: Now this is something you will use if you have a website, but it is great to know it is integrated with your account which is a great time saving device.
Google Talk: otherwise called known as Gchat is an Instant Messanger. You can easily see who is online chat for free.
Docs: Here is where I think google is expanding into a sharing and storing area. Google docs allows users to upload and edit there documents on line. When I am travelling and want to edit a document and do not have word on a pc I use google docs to view and edit the file.
Maps: Where would we be without gmaps? Well I suppose using multimap or streetmap. With google introducing street view, you can now have a 360 view of the street.

So sign up to gmail today!!