Gmail attachments updateDPic | Thursday, February 26, 2009 15 years ago • 13,219 views |
Looks like that new gmail title lab isn't the only thing Gmail was working on, eh? http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/updates-to-attachments-multi-select-and.html |
JEShack | 15 years ago # |
I keep on suggesting this in Gmail's help center. thank god they've worked on this already.
Now who's said: Google is evil and Gmail is a Gfail...
What's left is to shift my emails from Y!Mail to Gmail.
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Vegetable | 15 years ago # |
Love the progress bar!! |
JEShack | 15 years ago # |
Progress bar http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZaGO7GjCqAI/SaZiFWNAX7I/AAAAAAAAPF8/T4EZBNtVsec/s640/gmail-multi-upload.png
Multiple file upload http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZaGO7GjCqAI/SaZk95Nu9CI/AAAAAAAAPGE/K3rn3gtSfiI/s640/gmail-multi-file-upload.png
Screenshots via: googlesystem's blog |
James Xuan | 15 years ago # |
Can we send program/apps yet? |
David Hetfield | 15 years ago # |
Well it's about time! :D |
Ricardo | 15 years ago # |
Good job with the new progress bar! |
mbegin | 15 years ago # |
Very nice! |
Sam Davyson | 15 years ago # |
A very nice update – I'm impressed. |
Zim | 15 years ago # |
Finally! :D Good addition here |
JEShack | 15 years ago # |
HOWEVER, this update works if and only a Flash plugin was installed to your browser. Else, you need to use the Basic Attachment uploader (and say hello again to single attachment at a time). You can manually change the settings at the General tab's Attachments. |
Keith Chan | 15 years ago # |
Love it! |
Gunesh | 15 years ago # |
[Moved from "Gmail using different upload method" – Tony]
I noticed that Gmail uses a new way of uploading Attachments. multiple files could be selected from Finder / Explorer & watch them load visually.
Any idea how did they do it ? |
Tony Ruscoe | 15 years ago # |
Gunesh, they're using Flash for the front-end. Here's the SWF file:
mail.google.com/mail/uploader/uploaderapi2.swf
Most server-side upload utilities allow for you to display a progress bar these days. |
JEShack | 15 years ago # |
How bout Gears? Gears can do multiple selection... Gmail will work perfectly with Chrome. 'Cause everything Gmail required, Chrome almost had it with no more further installations. :] |
Ianf | 15 years ago # |
I'm kind of surprized at Gmail's Flash route.... what's the advantage of relying on a third-party runtime component, if equivalent functionality could be implemented just as easy --and in nicer degradable/ wider compatible fashion still-- with CSS and, AT MOST, 1px-square, blank gif? |
Ionut Alex. Chitu | 15 years ago # |
The Flash uploader is functional, not fancy. Why requiring users to install Gears when more than 99% of Internet users already have Flash? (http://www.adobe.com/products/player_census/flashplayer/) |
Tony Ruscoe | 15 years ago # |
Ianf, you can't select multiple files to upload using native HTML controls. That's a browser restriction that can't be overcome without a plug-in of some description. And definitely not with CSS or GIFs. |
Ianf | 15 years ago # |
Tony, standard HTML controls do certainly allow for multiple UPLOAD, though not simultaneous SELECTION of files pluralis – I do it all the time within Gmail Basic HTML mode of a Mozilla-derivative Palm PDA browser (files have to be picked one by one, but appear first in a list, up to 10 at a glance, and are then uploaded in sequence upon pressing either the "Done" [selecting] button, or the 11th/ 21st/ etc. attempt to pick a file).
However, we may be talking of different ops – I wondered mainly at Gmail's choice on being dependent on a third-party, if common, component, rather than doing this particular simple linear "progress-bar"-function all within its own code. I still maintain that it could as easily be done/ and with better downgradability to boot/ in CSS alone (my mention of a gif blank was anal-retentively superfluous ;-)) |
Tony Ruscoe | 15 years ago # |
Ianf, of course you're right, but Google clearly wants users to be able to select multiple files at the same time, which requires the usage of a third-party component. (Hence me saying that "you can't *select* multiple files to upload using native HTML controls" rather than "you can't *upload* multiple files".) Given, as Ionut says, that 99% of users have Flash installed, it makes sense to utilise it where possible. (If not installed, I assume they make sure it degrades gracefully and provide the standard multiple file upload interface whereby the user must select files one at a time.)
Just for the record, the progress bar doesn't use Flash; it uses CSS and DHTML as you suggested it should. (Perhaps I wasn't clear in my original statement when I said they were using Flash for the front-end.) |
JEShack | 15 years ago # |
All I can say is... This is a great addition, much better than Y!'s. (bow) :] |
Naru | 15 years ago # |
[moved from new thread "A flash api for uploading attached files in gmail" -Philipp]
it is the first time i meet a flash API in Google applications. now to upload files to be attached with mails Gmail use this API:
http://mail.google.com/mail/uploader/uploaderapi2.swf |
Ianf | 15 years ago # |
Tony [http://blogoscoped.com/forum/150978.html#id151117]
Correct me if I'm wrong: the Gmailteam elected to wrap a multiple-file-picker code in JS and/or ActionScript inside a Flash.swf file rather than serving it as [YA]JS file (ActionScript is but a variant of Javascript/ ECMAscript anyway). They did it to ensure wider compatibility across the board, than would be possible with plain JS – either the JS being "absent" at runtime, or the file needing to be interpreted by less known, potentially quirky behaviors of present and, especially, future browser-native JS interpreters [true/false?].
Because of "manual" nature of user actions, having to decode those in 2-step fashion – Gmail's SWF backend talking to the resident Flash plugin, which then relays the outcone via browser's http-api to the mothership – a speedy response wouldn't matter. Hence Gmail's choice of the more indirect route, better suited/ and less maintenance-prone overall [true/false?] |
Mambo | 15 years ago # |
Ianf
The way Google have made this is very similar to SWFUpload. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they have extended its codebase.
This to me just seems like a decision for user experience more than anything. All the HTTP calls are lightweight, so nothing to worry about there, and the whole thing degrades successfully without Flash enabled. |
Ionut Alex. Chitu | 15 years ago # |
So nobody noticed the bug that creates messages for each of the files you attach and then sends them to Trash? |
Tony Ruscoe | 15 years ago # |
> Correct me if I'm wrong
You're wrong. You cannot physically create a dialog to select multiple files using the native <INPUT type="FILE" /> element in HTML regardless of whether you use JS or any other client-side scripting language. The only way to do this is with a browser plug-in like Flash (or some kind of ActiveX component in IE).
> So nobody noticed the bug that creates messages for each of > the files you attach and then sends them to Trash?
I saw that after you posted about it. I guess that's how it works but you'd certainly expect them to add a hack to hide those if that's the case. |
Tony Ruscoe | 15 years ago # |
On a related note, Safari 4 apparently *does* support the MULTIPLE attribute for the INPUT TYPE="FILE" element:
http://ajaxian.com/archives/input-typefile-multiple-now-in-a-real-browser
[Via: http://friendfeed.com/e/93339d7f-8e9b-997f-05ab-a6306993b73d/input-type-file-multiple-now-in-a-real/] |