Using all that GMail space - a GMail file system extension for Windows

As many folks have found, GMail allows each mailbox 2GB of data storage space. However, as you may have also discovered, the maximum message size is 10MB. So, to fill your mailbox, you are going to have to send and receive a LOT of mail!

One popular use of GMail is to store frequently used tools. Since I have my own web server, I usually don't bother doing this. If I have important tools, I just park them in an area on my web site where I can download them. But, since I work with the military and government, I frequently need to transfer tools and files back and forth between the Internet and the NIPRnet.

A clever fellow named Bjarke Viksoe has written a file system extension for Windows that allows you to connect a drive letter to all that storage in your GMail account. It is called the GMail Drive Shell Extension. With this tool, you can easily move files back and forth between your GMail mailbox and your computer. I have just started playing with this, but it is very cool and definitely worth blogging. It is worth noting that this shell extension was originally the idea of Richard Jones; Mr. Viksoe notes this on his web site, too.