IE-only Y!PhotoMail
Yahoo! launched their latest value adding email feature last week - PhotoMail. As the service requires users to install an app which in turn requires IE's ActiveX functionality it's currently only available to IE users running XP or 2000.
I've had quite a few people contact me about PhotoMail. (This usually happens whenever Y! launches a new service or does something that hits the headlines. Other former Y! employees are probably in the same situation.)
Their feedback on Y!PM, and that of various bloggers, has been varied. But I'm puzzled about some of the comments.
First of all, I haven't yet tried PhotoMail myself (being a Firefox devotee, working mainly on a Mac... well you can see why...), so I can't comment on the service. But I do know a couple of things.
1) There are some brilliant people working on Y!Mail, and even if you don't agree with everything they do - you should pay attention to their work. If for no other reason than to compare it to Gmail, Hotmail et al. As we know - what one does, the others will try to match or beat. That's good for us as end users.
2) Various versions of IE for Windows still unfortunately make it the dominant browser out there. That's why it makes sence for Yahoo! to release services for that unquestionably dominant part of their user base.
3) Feedback and criticism on a service, like PhotoMail, is ok if you're actually trying to use it on your XP machine, running IE 5.5, and it's not working. Most companies want feedback so that they can improve their product. But complaining about it not working on Opera, or some obscure Linux build is an expression of having very little insight in to the reality of running a business. And if you're actually in the industry and complain about it... well, you should know better shouldn't you ;)
Apart from that, I look forward to testing PhotoMail, and following that I'll get in on the discussion on the pro's and con's of it.
Until then, SiliconBeat has the best story on PhotoMail, including word from Y! Mail's VP Andy Spillane, who "says the company is exploring using XUL to build a Firefox version of the software".
I've had quite a few people contact me about PhotoMail. (This usually happens whenever Y! launches a new service or does something that hits the headlines. Other former Y! employees are probably in the same situation.)
Their feedback on Y!PM, and that of various bloggers, has been varied. But I'm puzzled about some of the comments.
First of all, I haven't yet tried PhotoMail myself (being a Firefox devotee, working mainly on a Mac... well you can see why...), so I can't comment on the service. But I do know a couple of things.
1) There are some brilliant people working on Y!Mail, and even if you don't agree with everything they do - you should pay attention to their work. If for no other reason than to compare it to Gmail, Hotmail et al. As we know - what one does, the others will try to match or beat. That's good for us as end users.
2) Various versions of IE for Windows still unfortunately make it the dominant browser out there. That's why it makes sence for Yahoo! to release services for that unquestionably dominant part of their user base.
3) Feedback and criticism on a service, like PhotoMail, is ok if you're actually trying to use it on your XP machine, running IE 5.5, and it's not working. Most companies want feedback so that they can improve their product. But complaining about it not working on Opera, or some obscure Linux build is an expression of having very little insight in to the reality of running a business. And if you're actually in the industry and complain about it... well, you should know better shouldn't you ;)
Apart from that, I look forward to testing PhotoMail, and following that I'll get in on the discussion on the pro's and con's of it.
Until then, SiliconBeat has the best story on PhotoMail, including word from Y! Mail's VP Andy Spillane, who "says the company is exploring using XUL to build a Firefox version of the software".
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