What to do when you get a Google Wave invite
Google Wave is on pace to reach the 1 million users mark. Here’s what to do when you become part of the fold.
Google Wave has been one of the most talked-about destinations on the Internet, and that talk will only get louder now that Google is extending invitations to almost everyone who requested one through their online form. If you woke up to an invite in your inbox, rejoice and then get to work on understanding Wave.
Step 1: Connect with others
When I first got Google Wave, it was like being excited to be in an amusement park but disappointed because I couldn’t share those laughs with my friends. Wave, like any other communication tool, is meaningless unless you have others to talk to. Look to the “Contacts” window in the bottom left corner. There you will see the names of contacts that have already joined Wave. If you know someone who wants to use Wave, or someone who could benefit from it, search the “Inbox” window for the “Invite others to Google Wave” link. Fire off invites and watch your network expand.
Step 2: Learn how to use Google Wave
Sure, you can watch the video about what Google Wave is, and you can read the Complete Guide to Google Wave to learn how to master surfing the site, but don’t discount the value of regular browsing to discover how to perform the most basic functions. I think the Guide is an excellent resource for learning how to enhance Wave, but self-study for general use is a great way to get moving quickly. Be sure to explore the resources in the “Welcome to Google Wave” greeting.
Step 3: Get to work
After establishing your contacts and learning the most basic functions, put Wave to practical use. For a side project I am involved in, Wave is a useful method for team members to communicate. We are all in different time zones and on different work schedules, so Wave is a way for some of us to communicate and have others return to the Wave to see what has developed.
How can Wave work for your company? Our team uses Wave as a chat session to improve the product, and once we have enough ideas, highlights are taken from the Wave to develop a course of action. There’s a separate Wave where three of the team members are planning for a networking trip we will take soon. We share links, bounce ideas off each other, and share images of invitations/events we may consider. Along the way, we’ll develop an itinerary with Trippy that can then be exported to the Google Maps “My Maps” function.
It’s important to consider what Wave offers and then make those features practical to your business ventures. There are a variety of ways to get your project flowing with Wave. Now that the doors are finally open to more people, you can take advantage of what it offers your business.
Once invited…can you then invite others?
I really have no use for my invite…but you can’t even give it away, becasuse they need to sign in to your GMAIL/GOOGLE account to activate it…
So, for me, it’s a waste? I don’t have google chrome, firefox or picasso……
SHould i delete it…or is it have some intrinsic value?
Hi Jay,
Quick answers:
1. Once you have an account you can invite others.
2. It isn’t a waste for you. You don’t need chrome or picasso to use it. Think of Google Wave as the email of the future.
3. It has value. Don’t delete it.
Personally I think that the fact that there are articles like this telling people ‘what to do when you get a Google Wave invite’ says it all.
Google Wave is the answer to a question noone asked. Email could do with a lot of improving but I think Wave is really the wrong answer to that problem. I was pining for an invite for a while thinking it’s some auto-magical stuff, but I honestly have been underwhelmed. People keep telling me it’s early days yet, but then I think well… they shouldn’t have released it until it was ready!
Problem 1. Upon signing up, you get yet another email address. Or should that be a ‘wave’ address. I really don’t want another address to give out in addition to my Gmail, Work, Twitter and IM addresses. Seeing as Wave is a protocol they really should have made it compatible with our existing email addresses and just made Wave ‘listen’ for the correct signal. Something like what a fax machine does in only receiving messages when they’re accompanied by a fax signal. Google should have made their email addresses keep an ear out for a Wave and when they find it, then deliver it to the inbox. Simple.
Problem 2. All the things wave does are things that other existing solutions can do, apart from editing old sent/receiving messages (which, though it’s cool is actually a significant problem)
If Google solves problem 1, they MAY be onto something. The day of the truly global, multi-use address would have arrived. If not, Wave is pants.
What a waste of time. Just pick up the damn phone and call your friends to see if you want to come to the BBQ. This is the problem with social networks, people are going to forget how to talk to people. Give it a rest. This is not the future, it’s AIM on steroids. Hopefully Google got this technology for FREE!
Will this be another tool for Google to deliver contextual advertising to us? Will they be reading our conversations like they read our Gmail to find keywords for directing marketing (and who really knows what else) onto our desktops? When I think of all the data that can be used for a buying tendency psychological profile contained in the Gmail I exchanged over the last couple of years, I wonder how they intend to use immediate and conversational communication. Anybody out there have an encryption engine for IM?
Wave is still in beta so there are no ads yet, but I definitely would say we could expect ads at some point in the future. Google’s previous apps remained in beta for quite a while and then started showing ads.
As for Wave, I definitely think it’s a niche service. I will not use Wave to send one off-shoot message, especially when I can just reach them on GoogleTalk. But for group contact, chat, gadgets, and interactivity w/ archival uses, I think it’s worth exploring for some people.
Can anyone invite me?
Sure, what’s your email address to send it to?
hey everybody.
Has anyone a Wave invitation for me?
my adress is s.virgo at gmx.de
Who wants an invited?
Is there anyway i can get an invite.