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Comment by jcfrei | Hacker News Reader

I'm just gonna hijack this thread in case any gmail devs are dropping by. the new compose box is a joke - why would you force users to write emails in a small window in the bottom right corner?!

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I felt the same way at first. Then I noticed two things:

(1) I could write several messages at once. Useful if you want to look things up, and keep multi-tasking.

(2) I can refer to other messages while writing one.

So we're managing windows inside of our browser inside of our window manager.

I could already do that by composing in a separate window.

I actually prefer this as it allows me to check other mails while I'm typing. It actually bothers me that replying on a mail still uses the old compose.

I'm not a gmail dev and am not shy of criticizing Google when warranted, but I actually like the compose box. My understanding of the purpose of it is that it allows you to read email in a single browser window while having a compose window open simultaneously. I've found this is helpful when I need to copy/paste addresses or other information from existing emails into a new email. In the past I've previously had to have multiple windows open to do that.

I can see how it is a personal preference issue but it does server a useful purpose as far as I can tell.

This a million times over.

The new compose window makes me want to switch away from Gmail. It should be purely optional.

I appreciate the ability to browse around my inbox while writing an email, and I suspect that is why the change was made; however, I wish they had left in the ability to compose from the old compose window.

I guess the rationale is that they let you navigate your gmail in the background, flipping back and forth between conversations etc, while composing the new mail.

I just wish the compose box was freely movable. On a very large screen it is indeed awkward to type in the bottom right corner only.

You do know that you can popout the compose box, or even the other chat boxes into popups which you can expand as you wish?

You can pop it out, but that creates a whole new browser window. That's clunky.

It makes a lot of sense in a multiscreen environment - I personally like it.

Half of the cribbing about the new compose is unfounded. You see the slanted arrow above the new compose box? Click that. Now you have a whole window to write your message. But the benefits that the new compose gives are quite important for me and many others.

I'm on the fence. I use it and love it. Then I read criticism of it and hate it. Then I read glowing praise of it and love it again. I just can't decide.

Have you tried enabling keyboard shortcuts and pressing "d"?

> why would you force users to write emails in a small window in the bottom right corner

Seconded. It's actually very painful to write on the bottom right corner; also at times pasting large amount of text in to the box screws its interface. When you've some formatting on the text pasted there, something goes crazy.

I recently quit accessing my primary Gmail account and this is one of the main reasons for it.

Other being the amount of spam that started coming in, in the name of notifications, deals and whatever "my friend has unlocked...".

I also found Gmail forcing a lot of G+ around the header of my inbox, and tonnes of services that I have never opened or would not be interested in. Unable to switch those off.

That said, I do find this label-tab option interesting. Will definitely give it a go.

[Edits] Added thoughts.

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