Google blog claims that anyone can use GTalk even if they don't have Google Accounts.

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/09/now-anyone-can-talk.html

no they need a google account still, just not gmail

i guess that explains gtalk on the google accounts list http://blogoscoped.com/forum/69509.html

Oops. You're right. I misread it.

"now anyone can use the service (Gmail accounts no longer required)"

this is still big news and its a big leap towards being able to talk to aim users from gtalk and gtalk users from aim

It looks like they threw on Writely too. Happy day.

What JabberIDs have people that haven't got gmail account? it can't be somenthinggmail.com, so what is it?

Ok, i Think I now. It uses Jabber accounts usernamegmail.com, and blocks this username in Google Mail.

Ludwik, it might be nicknamegmail.com, because you have to select a nickname when you sign up for GTalk (and that nickname can't be a Gmail username or Picasa username or...).

Who knows? When Gmail goes public, you might actually get that Gmail address...

I can confirm what I wrote in the prev. comment

There is one interesting question. What would Google do when there were too many Gmail users? You know number of logins is limited, who would like to have a mail my.name152657gmail.com? So why they don´t support different domain names as Windows Live?

Well, they do. Get your domain + https://www.google.com/a/

<< ... you have to select a nickname when you sign up for GTalk (and that nickname can't be a Gmail username or Picasa username or ... >>

However, if you've already signed up for Picasa Web Albums using a non-Gmail Google Account, you can select any of the nicknames used there as your "Desired username" for Google Talk.

Also, if you enter a new desired username for Google Talk, it will appear in your Picasa Web Albums Settings page for you to use in your "Public Gallery URL". (Which shows there's tighter integration between these two services than with Google Page Creator.)

I think we could be getting closer to Gmail aliases as discussed here:
http://blogoscoped.com/forum/68461.html

> Well, they do. Get your domain + www.google.com/a/

That´s not the same. I have my own domain but I don´t want to provide freemail for bigger group of people. Google should offer more domains, at least some national domains – gmailcom/co.uk/de/cz – of course they have to buy them firstly. :-(

jlm,

For you / your family / your friends / your organization, not for the whole world.

Yes Ionut, but how many people have their own domains? That is not a solution for masses unless Google provide easy and cheap domain registration service.

.info domains are usually cheap. And .com, .net, .org are usually between 5-11 USD a year.

Sohil, yes but the process of registering a domain and then changing the MX records to use Google Apps for Your Domain is beyond your average user.

Google could really simplify this whole process...