Gmail rewrote the rules on how online email functions. At the same time, the folks at Google have offered up a platform for some really cool programming tricks. Ben Hammersley explores a number of those tricks and hacks in the book Hacking Gmail. A very enlightening read...

Contents:
Part 1 - Starting to Use Gmail: Desktop Integration; Integrating Your Existing Mail; Gmail Power Tips
Part 2 - Getting Inside Gmail: Skinning Gmail; How Gmail Works; Gmail and Greasemonkey; Gmail Libraries; Checking for Mail; Reading Mail; Sending Mail
Part 3 - Conquering Gmail: Dealing with Labels; Addressing Addresses; Building an API from the HTML-Only Version of Gmail; Exporting Your Mail; Using Gmail to; Using GmailFS; Long Code Listings; Index

Hammersley has written an entertaining book that delves deep into the inner workings of Gmail, and in the process uncovers a lot of functionality that isn't apparent on the surface. By using Firefox and a few strategic plugins, he's able to dissect the HTML and Javascript used to display the Gmail interface. This hunting trip shows how Ajax grabs data in the background so that screen updates happen without trips back to the server. It also uncovers the URLs that are used to get that data, and he then shows how those URLs can be used for so much more. Many of the hacks he shows use Perl and Python libraries that you can use to interact with Gmail without the Gmail interface. He also shows how you can use a few Greasemonkey scripts to completely change the user interface, or "skin", of Gmail to fit your own preferences. It's all really incredible stuff that you probably won't find from too many other sources.

There's only one "drawback" to this book, and that's the everchanging "beta-ness" of Gmail. All the analysis that Ben's done could easily be wiped out by an update to Gmail by Google. In fact, as I type this, Google has announced a whole new interface that is being rolled out. You could look at that and think this book is already obsolete. I would disagree, however. The fact he was even *able* to get this book published with all the ongoing Gmail changes is amazing. But even with all the changes, the fundamental principles he uncovers will likely *not* change for a long time. He also shows you an interesting set of hacking tools that will serve you well for other projects going forward. To me, those were worth the price of admission themselves.

The sooner you read this book, the more immediate gratification you can get. But even if you buy it six months down the road after a Gmail interface change, you'll still learn more about the service than you thought possible...