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Gmail gives users 'Multiple Inboxes'

New feature allows users to have multiple viewing panes open simultaneously without having to open another browser window.

Steven Musil Night Editor / News
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. He's been hooked on tech since learning BASIC in the late '70s. When not cleaning up after his daughter and son, Steven can be found pedaling around the San Francisco Bay Area. Before joining CNET in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers.
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Steven Musil

Google late Thursday unveiled a new Gmail Labs feature that allows users to have more than one inbox in their default Gmail view.

The new feature--called Multiple Inboxes--allows users to have multiple viewing panes open simultaneously without having to open another browser window. The upgrade gives users a quick view at important labels as well as saved searches.

Google software engineer Octavian "Vivi" Costache explained in a company blog post why he used his "20 percent time" to develop the feature:

I'm seriously into filters and labels. All the email I get related to Flash goes under my "flash" label, everything about paragliding goes under "flying," and they all skip my inbox because that's how I like to stay organized. But when new email arrives I have to switch to the "flash" label first, then click on "paragliding," etc. I wanted a way to see it all at once.

For those who use their Gmail accounts for multiple personal e-mail lists, as well as for work, this is a huge step up.

Gmail Labs