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Google wants you to be able to book a flight without exiting an email:
Google is bringing its Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) capabilities to email today through a developer preview for Gmail. The feature, called AMP for Email, will allow developers to make emails "more interactive and engaging." Google envisions the feature to be beneficial to users because developers can embed widgets in emails that are constantly up-to-date and include actionable functions that work without leaving your inbox. Google's existing AMP webpages are an emerging standard for webpages that load radically faster than regular mobile pages.
AMP for Email is open-source so developers can freely play around with the capabilities and use them to their advantage. Companies developing features for AMP for Email include Pinterest, Booking.com, and Doodle. Google says the AMP for Email feature will allow you to do things like RSVP to events, browse and interact with content, or fill out forms without leaving an email. For example, Google says if a contractor wants to schedule a meeting with you but isn't able to see your calendar, they'll contact you about availability. With AMP for Email, you could respond interactively through a form without ever leaving the email client.
Some observers believe AMP allows more effective phishing attempts. One serious flaw, noted by tech writer Kyle Chayka, is that disreputable parties who misuse AMP (as well as Facebook's similar Instant Articles) enable junk websites to share many of the same visual cues and features found on legitimate sites. "All publishers end up looking more similar than different. That makes separating the real from the fake even harder," said Chayka.
Also at Google and TechCrunch.
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Wednesday February 14 2018, @03:23AM (6 children)
What COULD go wrong? You can already send HTML emails (and embed JavaScript in them). If your mail reader renders AMP emails, it probably renders HTML emails too. AMP is just a subset of HTML [1], so if you're offended by this and not regular HTML emails, you're barking up the wrong tree. If you are offended by regular HTML emails, you're still barking up the wrong tree; that ship has not only sailed and arrived at the destination port, but has started making regularly scheduled round trips.
[1]: https://www.ampproject.org/docs/reference/spec [ampproject.org]
If you irrationally hate it, just use a mail reader that doesn't render AMP or HTML, seems simple enough. You can embed all manner of things in an email, including, say, Windows bitcoin mining malware, I don't see why you're getting upset over this of all things.
Also, this is more or less inevitable. “Every program attempts to expand until it can read mail. Those programs which cannot so expand are replaced by ones which can.” Conversely, mail readers for the average user will expand until they can replace every other program (and everything is a web app nowadays).
Also, let's just clarify some things, since there are a ton of crotchety fear mongers here. AMP is just a subset of HTML. It is an open standard, licensed under Apache. It is not managed by W3C, which might actually be a plus. It removes a lot of the shit in HTML that get abused by mainstream sites. AMP is fine. The fact that Google is using their market dominance to push AMP is less fine, but that's not a problem with AMP itself.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Arik on Wednesday February 14 2018, @05:30AM (5 children)
Email is text. HTML is text with a few semantic tags. Heck, if you send me decent HTML I might just read and answer without noticing, though it's still not the thing to do. But then there's bad HTML - that's text with a pile of layout tags. Dumb, dumb, dumb, much less likely to get read. Then there's not HTML, just straight pig poo, that's a bunch of tags and scripts with no text at all. That's probably what the client will produce if you think you're sending an 'HTML' email and that's just fine, it's a great time-saver for me. I see that, I realize you're a moron, and I block further email from you immediately.
"irrationally hate it"
No, I rationally despise it. It's completely pointless at best, a thoroughly bad idea about which absolutely nothing can be said that is both good and true.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 3, Touché) by Wootery on Wednesday February 14 2018, @10:46AM
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Wednesday February 14 2018, @06:31PM (3 children)
If you want to rant, I'd prefer you not rant at me. Your post does not even mention AMP at all, so I'm not sure how it is relevant to the discussion.
You hate HTML emails, knowing that HTML emails are in widespread use. Okay.
How does that make AMP worse? All that means is that you'll be getting HTML emails with less worse formatting, which you will continue to not read.
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 1) by Arik on Wednesday February 14 2018, @07:37PM (2 children)
As a direct refutation of your sophistry.
"You hate HTML emails, knowing that HTML emails are in widespread use. Okay."
No, I *despise* HTML emails, can you not read?
And what kind of mental damage makes you think that the second half of the first sentence is in any way relevant to anything? Are you really stupid enough to think that anything in wide use must be good?
"which you will continue to not read."
Yes, I will continue to screen them out, nonetheless other people exist and their lack of technical expertise really should not result in them being reduced to digital slavery. But because of trash like this, that's exactly what happens to them. Can you not imagine someone's interest in the world going beyond their own immediate, personal needs?
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 2) by Wootery on Thursday February 15 2018, @11:29AM (1 child)
Is that really your idea of a cutting retort?
http://www.thesaurus.com/browse/despise [thesaurus.com]
(Score: 1) by Arik on Thursday February 15 2018, @04:36PM
In the case of despise and hate, for instance, they're very different words with very different meanings, though both may be taken to imply a very strong dislike, that's where the resemblance ends.
To *despise* something is not to be filled with hatred for it, but rather to be filled with *contempt* and/or *repugnance.* To hold something in *contempt* means to have evaluated and found it to be without worth, below consideration. To find something to be *repugnant* means to have evaluated and found it in conflict with, incompatible with, fundamental values and decency. Neither of these words can be adequately represented as merely 'hate.'
(This has been a PSA from the "English, do you speak it?" Foundation for Literacy.)
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?