Google to make Gmail conversation threading optional - and apologizes for arrogance

I've screamed loudly about Gmail's obligate threading. It wouldn't be so bad if we could do Outlook-style subject editing to break the threads, but we can't. The fact that replies hide subject lines by default makes thread breaking even harder.

Google has been quite uninterested in my screams. There's a new boss though, and a new attitude ...

Disabling Gmail Conversations

... Last month, Henry Blodget reported that Google intends to make Gmail's conversations optional. 'Some Gmail users loathe the Conversations format -- complaining that is confusing and causes them to miss important messages. Google recently handed control over Gmail to a VP named Vic Gundotra. Vic regards Google's prior attitude toward issue as 'tone deafness' and plans to offer another option soon, sources say.'...

I love this guy. Google, I forgive you.

I hope Vic's attitude is contagious, and that Google is learning a reasonable amount of humility. Even as Apple has gone off the deep end of arrogance ...

See also:

• Please fix Gmail's broken threading model
• Gmail: I don’t love you any more, but we can still be friends

Update: More evidence that Google is changing. They may be looking, for the first time, beyond the algorithm.