Until now, Gmail users were able to modify the look of their inbox with the help of various Firefox add-ons, like Stylish Add-on or Gmail Skins, by changing the default theme colors or Google Logo. For example, in case of Gmail Skins, the user is also able to insert images from Picasa albums or to implement a Google homepage alongside the inbox.

Recently, Gmail introduced thirty supplementary themes in addition to the default one, as an integral part of the service. The users will no longer be forced to install unofficial extensions in order to change the inbox style.

The new set of themes provides a wide range text styles and colors, as well as, modified Gmail logos: a chrome styling theme, animated raining themes, an ASCII theme and more. To select a certain theme, the user must choose the appropriate thumbnail in the Themes tab under the Settings menu.

The animated nature themes dynamically change their appearance based on the user location, like Summer Ocean or Phantasea. By specifying the country and the city, the time changes in the user area are tracked and the theme characteristics will modify according to sunrise, sunset or weather fluctuations.

According to the Official Gmail Blog, the interface has also suffered minor changes: “We’ve also done a minor face lift to Gmail’s default look to make it crisper and cleaner”. By personalizing their inbox with themes, the users will express their need for the optimal visual accessibility.

This long waited Gmail feature could present future enhancements, like the user possibility to customize the themes style and functionality or to upload custom themes to its Gmail account.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, November 20th, 2008 at 3:44 am and is filed under Google methods & tools. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.