Gmail, like most Google products, is free, making money through advertising. But if looking at ads is too steep a price for you to pay for great email, there’s hope for you. Google scans your email to determine what products to advertise. If that scan turns up mention of a tragedy, however, Google has the good taste to remove advertising from the sidebar altogether. And what better way to celebrate their good will than by exploiting it to make your life easier? Check it out: Irritating! But look: Uncomfortable making up a tragedy every time you write an email? No problem.

Not sure I would ever start doing this with my own money, but just came across a post at Lifehacker about kaChing , which lets you do the exact same trades as professional investors. Looks like it is an investment website that you can join, which used to just let you follow the trades of different professionals, but they just changed the site into a brokerage of sorts (although assets remain in your own account).

Some recent Google items Google is always releasing new features or apps. Here’s a rundown of some released recently that may have relevance for lawyers… www.slaw.ca/2009/10/18/google-roundup/ – Permalink – Similar Google Wave This is the biggie that some say is a bust. It deserves — and will get — a more thorough review here in due course, once I’ve learned how to use it. In the meantime, look at Lifehacker to see what it’s about; and danieltenner.com to understand better what it might do for firms.

“To check if your beans are fresh, scoop 1/2 cup into a zipper-lock bag and press out all the air, then seal the bag and leave it overnight. If the beans are within seven to 10 days of roasting, they will make the bag puff up from the carbon dioxide that they release. If the bag remains flat, then the beans are not producing gas—a sign they’ve passed the point of peak freshness.” – Test Coffee Freshness with a Zipper-Lock Bag – Coffee – Lifehacker