Desktops...Ugh...What Are They Good For...

I'm writing this column on a wiki. A bit odd you might be thinking, but I find nothing extraordinary about it at all. In fact, non-desktop type applications have become the normal palette for my online writings and conversations. For example, when I post to my blog, I usually use the "Blog This" button that is conveniently provided by the Google Toolbar or via the bookmarklet that I found in the Blogger site and and dragged up to what I like to call my browser dashboard (it's the place where I put all of my "can't live withouts" and "need to have them available at all times" links). When I want to access my instant messenger, I load Meebo (conveniently available on my dashboard) and I can instantly log into the 4 IM accounts that I am registered for, and actively chat with my 200 buddies at will on the browser. If I want to run a spell-check on anything that I am writing, I right-click and scroll to "check spelling" and my wordage will be scrounged by Spellbound, a plug-in for Firefox (which ironically comes up as a misspelled word). Even more mind-blowing: As I type in the wiki (I prefer PBWiki for the ease of use) or Meebo (yes, I actually spell-check my chats!), Spellbound will notify me of possible errors on the fly with a red line under each word (which gives me quivers as I am reminded of my 5th grade English teacher with her never-ending supply of red Bic pens - the ones with the transparent base that were almost always seemingly out of ink, but lasted for weeks thence) whereupon I can left-click and correct my errors with the numerous choices provided.

If I want to check my to-do lists, calendar, or contacts, I click on my AirSet button on the top right of my dashboard and I am presented with everything I need for the days chores. In fact, since my wife and I share a space on AirSet (I have three set up, one for home, one for work, and one for my side projects of which this column is part), I am completely surrounded with what I need to accomplish for the day in one place. I like AirSet because it also comes with a Skype plug-in, which, when I get around to adding all of my daily Skype buddies to it, will allow me the freedom of not having to launch the darn thing and have it sit on my system tray and take up valuable CPU energy.

What else is there? Ah yes, e-mail, the bane of my existence. As I've mentioned on many occasions on my blog, I despise e-mail. E-mail doesn't work for me, which is essentially why I hate it. Technology is supposed to work hard to make life easier for their users. It's supposed to sit us down, put a napkin under our chin, and feed us soft food until our jaws have ceased aching after having 4 wisdom teeth pulled in on sitting. E-mail doesn't do that for me. E-mail gives me the toothaches that the technology dentist supposedly fixes. Whether it is spam (Gmail and the wonderful invention of filtering messages in the many existing clients have been able to assuage the Viagra ads and Nigerian Kings asking for money [Why don't the Nigerian Kings ever ask for Viagra? Can spammers spam each other?]) or message upon message from colleagues who have cc'd each other on discussions which end in me not knowing what sort of outcome has been determined (which usually ends me asking the cc'd group, "So, what do you need from me?") or those ever helpful one letter replies ('K' - meaning, 'ok' - meaning 'alright' - meaning, usually 'sure, I'll meet you for lunch as Noon as previously discussed over the phone last night'), e-mail is broken. That said, I have to use it...because everyone else does. If everyone that I need to get a message to or those that have to get a message to me used IM, Skype, or a phone, I wouldn't have to use e-mail. But, alas, I do. The trick is, how am I going to use it without using a desktop application? I've come so far. Word processing documents in a wiki or Writely, Excel sheets in NumSum, Iming, spell and Wordcount checking all within the safe confines of my browser. How will I be able to send and reply to the dreaded e-mail messages directly from my browser? I can't.

Well, technically I can. I have a Gmail account and that is obviously browser-based. But, I need the desktop if I want to be notified of any new messages that have been sent to my account, I have to use a notifier that I download to my system tray and my goal is to not use my desktop for anything. Another problem is that I have two e-mail accounts (the fact that I have to have one drives me crazy, the fact that I have two is mind-bogglingly insane) and there is no system tray icon built for that particular e-mail address. The new Web (whatever we are calling it these days, some prefer Web 2.0) is doing more online without having to use desktop applications. The fact that nobody has created an online tool or a Firefox extension that notifies me that I have a new e-mail in Gmail (and that I can have the option to add my other POP3 account) tells me that there is something inherently wrong with e-mail.

Someone once told me that e-mail serves a purpose that will never be overridden by another means of communication. Unfortunately, I have to agree with this statement, but a boy can dream, can't he?