GDrive rumors and screenshot – Platypus
I saw this ZDNet post today with a tantalizing glimpse of Gdrive. It comes originally from cocaman.ch where he found a login page for something called Google Platypus, which is essentially a remotely used file storage. Now, from the page there are a couple of items that can be gleaned. Currently it’s something that’s in use internally (by the Googler’s…) Also, there is a download client for Windows/Mac/Linux that is used to synchronize files somehow. The benefits of it as it is advertised in the screenshot….
Backup – Synchronize – VPN-less access – Collaborate – Disconnected Access.
It sounds like they bill it (at least currently) as being able to backup all your files, restore onto a new machine (just download the platypus client and restore your data. Synchronize pcs, even across disparate operating systems, access files on the Web – create shared file areas and still access files while offline.
It really sounds like it could be an implementation of an rsync or unison style synchronization with Google being the filestore for it. The next question would be how much space they’re willing to give when it goes public (and what, if any, fees). Also the important question for many is going to be privacy of the data. I.E…. will the files be turned over for searching (algorithmically, or manually?)