June 20th, 2007
GDrive "Platypus" still in development
Do you remember GDrive (also known as Platypus)? Well it looks like it’s in development and still being used internally at Google. How do I know? Wakoopa says so. “Scoops” noticed several Google employees have the Wakoopa application tracker installed on their machines — giving us a window into what their computers run from day to day. I have verified the users listed on this page either currently work for Google or have at some point in the past.
Looking at the version information on Wakoopa, Platypus has gone from 1.6.x to 1.8.x since it started being tracked. When the client was first leaked thre was no mention of a version number at all — that version may account for the “(Unknown)” entry in Wakoopa.
It’s still unclear if or when this product will be given to the general public, however there are indications that it even has a marketing team. Why would an application need a marketing team if it is only for internal use? Like many current Google services, employees working on it are likely using their 20% according to the leaked documentation — that means there has to be enough interest by people within the company to keep working on it.
Can I help make Platypus better? I have some 20% time built up.
Yup! We’d love your help with engineering, interface design, or marketing. Email Justin if you’d like to volunteer your time. You can also make Platypus better just by using it and reporting bugs. [link]
Google’s competitors have been going full steam ahead on products of their own. Microsoft and AOL have both created similar ones already, however I’m not sure what kind of uptake they’ve had. It seems like a logical move for Google though — let’s see what happens!
[Platypus image via Google Blogoscoped]
Garett Rogers 
is employed as a programmer for iQmetrix, which specializes in retail management software for the wireless industry.
See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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