What is Google Wave?

So, what is Google Wave, and what’s the fuss?

I am seeing lots of comments and links to it on twitter, but so far I still haven’t understood what it is. So, what is it, and do we need it? Google call it “a new model for communication and collaboration on the web“, and have split it into three distinctive areas;

Learn: “… makes you more productive”

Develop: “… put waves in your site and build wave extensions”

Build: “… uses an open protocol, so anyone can build their own wave system”

Basically, it seems like it pulls everything you use into one ‘interface’; email, blog, wiki, RSS, IM, search, etc.

I’m not seeing the point. So, in an effort to see through my own short-sighted attitude, I thought I’d turn to Twitter for some answers. Here’s what I got/found;

@jvaneck: posted a link to Google Wave Highlight Reel. Some interesting video snippets from the 80 minute Google Wave introduction; at least you don’t have to watch it all (thanks Jeroen).

@mashable: posted a link to  Complete Guide to Google Wave. Innovative feature list of Google Wave like real-time activity, embeddability (is that a word?), applications & extensions, open source (about time), playback, and file sharing are but a few.

@john_hsq: commented that “There’s no document management, workflow, CM, etc. It’s not even close to sharepoint”.

@SmartDataCo: posted a link to “Google Wave or just a Blip“. The post ends with moer questions than Wave has so far been able to answer.

Sorry, but I’m not really comfortable putting all my eggs in the Google basket. Only time will tell if it achieves the hopes and dreams us mere mortals have for it.

Please let me know if I’ve got it all wrong, or I’m heading down the right track. I am confused, I just don’t think we need Wave, yet.