Hm. Does this mean that there's no longer any benefit from linking an apps account with a Google.com account?

@brandon004: Well, they said it's an "exciting announcement from iTunes," so it seems a safe bet.

@Jeremy Hindle: For me, it's about eliminating arbitrary distinctions. There's no longer any real technical reason why an email and an IM are different, or why phones don't just send email, etc. If Wave had opened up and allowed us to integrate our existing services into its interfaces, I'm convinced that it could…

@thenughuffer: Well, Wave was about a lot of things. But what I remember from Lars Rasmussen's introductory presentation was what he described as the basic premise: "What would email look like if it were invented today?" So I think it's fair to say that Wave was meant as a medium of communication (even if that's not al…

@Trolly: You're right, and that's precisely what I plan to do.

@process91: I agree.What's unique about Facebook's approach, as I understand it, is that they aim to completely eliminate the distinction between all these services, from a UI point of view. If you want to send someone a message, you just click their name and start typing - Facebook will decide whether it's sent by…

@lord2800: Wave didn't actually do any of those things, though. It didn't integrate them, it just tried to replace them outright. Facebook has provided for a transitional phase, which, I think, gives it a much better chance of succeeding.

Excellent summary, Adam. Covers all the bases nicely. :)

I have to admit, I love the concept of this. It appeals to me in much the same way that Google Wave once did: it could be the first step towards eliminating the distinctions between disparate services like email, IM, SMS and phones. Once upon a time, there was a reason for these distinctions, but with today's…

@lewis82: Everyone has a unique Facebook "username," actually. You can see it in the URL when you visit their page.

@Raidah: The address I use is the one that I give to people to email me with. If I don't give it to people, it doesn't get used.

Heh, I'll take it.

...mm. I think it boils down to one question: if you had to choose between your PC and your smartphone, which would you keep? I want an iPhone, but I need my laptop.

@kojimarou (is my PSN and Gamertag): The version numbers are increasing so rapidly because Chrome has switched to a six-week development period. They want to let new features filter out more organically instead of saving them for a big drop.

@infmom: Ah. When you said "with whatever you want," it sounded like you were suggesting that I submit 50,000 words of filler text. My apologies.

@infmom: Heh. I'd rather not get a discount by cheating, but thanks.

@tedhogan: I'm not complaining. They have the right to charge whatever they want, and evidently it's a pricing model that works for them. But as a consumer, I simply can't justify that expense, just as I couldn't justify paying $300 for Office when I have access to a range of completely free software that does the…

@Woodrow Jarvis Hill: I tried Celtx a bit. I thought all the templates kind of got in the way (it seems heavily geared toward scriptwriting and stage production, so it's great for them, less great for the rest of us), and of course it's lacking some of Scrivener's smooth organizational views. Still a decent app,…

@Axiem: It's not a dealbreaker. I'd still use the app if I could, because it's an otherwise-outstanding product, and I'd put up with the flaws. But yes, I do anticipate the problems I described, because they happen - and as we all know, such things tend to happen at the worst possible time. You don't want to be…

@Axiem: That's not a good analogy. If MS Word vanished into thin air one day, I would still have Open Office, Google Docs, etc. to pick up where it left off. A .doc file is compatible with so many apps and online services that the possibility of being stuck where I can't open it is exceedingly remote. Likewise for…