Multiple Gmail Sign-in for Mobile

Google has upgraded Gmail for mobile with a couple of long-awaited features, including multiple sign-in.The feature, which has been present in the desktop version of Gmail for about a year, lets users sign into several Gmail accounts at the same time — very convenient for those who often need to switch between one or more personal and business accounts.

To sign into another account, click on the account switcher at the bottom of the app’s thread list. Then you can choose to either sign into an another account, sign out of all accounts, or switch between the accounts you’ve already signed into.

Other new features of note include a vacation auto-responder, which can now be set up from the mobile version of Gmail, and creating a special mobile signature that makes it clear you’re responding to an email from a mobile device.

To try the new features, simply go to mail.google.com on your smartphone or tablet’s browser.

Google Provides offline Access to Gmail in Chrome

Chrome browser users will be able to access Gmail when they're not connected to the Internet starting Wednesday and will gain similar offline capabilities for Docs and Calendar in the coming week, the company announced on Wednesday. Users will need to install individual offline-access applications from the Chrome Web Store to add these capabilities to their browser. The Gmail application is called Gmail Offline and is based on the Gmail application for tablets, which works both with and without Internet access. Docs and Calendar will each have its own offline-access application on the Chrome Web Store.

The offline capabilities will become available both for individuals who use Gmail, Docs and Calendar, as well as for organizations who use them as part of the Google Apps collaboration and communication suite in workplaces and educational institutions. Once installed, these offline applications will create an icon in the Chrome browser interface for launching them when users aren't online. The Gmail application will have its own user interface separate from the Gmail web interface, while the Docs and Calendar applications will trigger their web application's interface and work in the background.

In all three cases, users will get access to a subset of the web applications' features. For example, in Docs it will be possible to view documents and spreadsheets, but not yet edit those documents. In Calendar, users will be able to view events and RSVP to appointments. Previously, Google provided offline access to these applications via its Gears browser plug-in, but the company stopped developing it last year. It has been possible to use Gmail and Calendar offline through Gears in Internet Explorer 8 and Firefox 3.6, but not Docs.