Ah, ha! I knew this is how it would be! If you have a Gmail account, stop and take a close look at it for a second. Notice anything different? Yes, it still says it is in ‘beta.’ So nothing has really changed there. But look at the number of invites you have to give away to friends. For a program that is going to eventually come out of beta, doesn’t this strike you as a bit strange? Perhaps not for a program that has been out of beta for a lot longer than they have been letting on!

First of all, what is beta? To me, it is merely a program that has been given to the public to try with the understanding that it is still very much in development. In other words, it is a license for bugs. Yes, so when Google says that its Gmail setup is still in beta, it allows for total flexibility and understanding when servers are down for some reason, or other unexplained weirdness that might be going on at that time.

Now, putting the whole beta aspect to the side for a minute, let’s look at the reasons why the invite system is not going to be going anywhere soon. First off, it gives Google both control and marketing abilities that having a ‘come and get it’ setup like Yahoo! Mail or Hotmail does not give them. By setting itself up with this whole invite program, Google will be able to grow the Gmail program in a safe, controlled environment that is sure to keep the likelihood of empty, unused accounts down to a minimum.

But why this sudden increase from a handful of invites up to 50? Could this mean that Gmail is about ready to come out of beta? I don’t think so, and here is why. As I explained before, remaining in beta gives it the flexibility to do as it pleases while making sure it doesn’t spend the better part of its day sorting through complaints from users since the servers were down for an hour or two. Also, it allows it the excuse to stick with the invite system, all the while looking wonderful to people even though it does not just allow people to merely sign up for an account. I feel that Google will eventually have to come clean with this whole Gmail beta thing. But for now, it appears to be a good thing for Google and so far, for us as well. It will be fascinating to see if it considers implementing similar programs like this with other future beta programs. Only time will tell…

Let’s get digital!