Google launches offline mode for Gmail

If, like some members of the Mobile Computer team, you find yourself
increasingly reliant on Google's Gmail service then the company's
latest announcement will be very welcome – you'll soon be able to work
with Gmail offline.

This might sound a rather retrograde idea in a connected world but the
point is that with mobility comes a reliance on wireless connections
and if you're a devotee of Gmail's webmail interface, then you'll know
it's useless without a line to the web. But not any more. More after
the cut.

Google is currently rolling out a new Labs feature – Offline Gmail. It
uses Google's Gears technology to download a local cache of your Gmail
folders and contents. If you lose your web connection, Gmail
automatically switches to using this cache, allowing you to continue
working – replying to messages, starring emails for later attention,
applying labels – without concern for when your device will next be
online. When a net connection is once again found, Gmail will
automatically synchronise the local cache with its servers.

The Offline Gmail feature even has a 'flaky connection' mode, which
relies on the local cache most of the time, synching automatically in
the background. In theory, at least, this should speed up everyday use
for those whose net connections are unreliable.