I like to think that Wave hasn't failed, if it will survive as WiaB and on Google Apps. It *will* survive on Google Apps, right?
I know these aren't simple things to achieve, but I think Wave failed as a mass appeal tool is because 1. Nerds like me were raving about it, realizing its potential, but users didn't get it. So, better marketing. 2. People thought it was some fancy IM with other stuff they didn't get. Again, marketing. 3. Interface. While I didn't mind it, yes, it was a "programmer" UI. 4. It was out of reach. 4a. Put it into GMail and make it a default messaging system for contacting other GMail users. Buzz was pretty bold with automatic changes (yes, even when it resulted in lawsuits), so I think that energy could have been used to propel Wave. 4b. Email compatibility. Transfer nested replies into text. Send an email with full text of Wave posts. 5. Server availability. If I can't type "sudo apt-get wave-server", it's not going to be the next email. 6. Client availability. If it's not in GMail, Outlook, and on my BlackBerry, it's not an email replacement. (Yes, I know Google's stance "we don't have time to develop for crappy BBOS browser", and I agree with it. But rich-client are sadly not dead yet. Google is a web- first company, but serious, email isn't.) 7. Twenty years back, email was a riot. Also, you could send an email to *any* email address and it worked. Now, we have a huge information overload, and channel overload. I have friends that check email once a month, but are on facebook daily. It's a busy, highly competitive market (for lack of a better word). /blog That said, I still trust that Wave (or a derivative) will succeed as the next email, only it will take another decade. Oh, and thanks to Google Wave team for all the hard work, and for finishing the job with WiaB. m. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Wave Protocol" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/wave-protocol?hl=en.
