Now that Google Wave has opened up to one million users and there are countless unused invites floating around, just about anyone who wants to take Google’s new collaboration tool for a spin can do so. Sure, some users are disappointed with the platform, but if you’re among them you’ll have to admit that whether it’s going to catch on or not, it’s been used for some neat stuff.
Four uses in particular have stood out for their cleverness and high fun factor, and you probably didn’t see any of them coming. Each has gotten a lot of press, so if you’ve been following Wave closely you might have heard of them.
We’d like to hear about more fun uses for Wave. Have your friends or colleagues come up with anything creative? Read these examples, then tell us if you have any ideas for exciting new applications.
1. Manhunt
A Washington man was suspected of shooting four police officers, but when he evaded capture, a state-wide search began. That’s a regular story, but this time a new tool was used. The Seattle Times created a public wave where readers, officers, and journalists could post and update information that might lead to the alleged shooter’s capture.
The Wave received photos of the suspect, sightings, a description of what was believed to be his vehicle, evidence, and updates from the police radio. The Times also set up a Google Map with place markers for important events and locations in the manhunt.
2. The Declaration of Independence
When Wave was first announced, a lot of people were having trouble sussing out what it could be used for. O’Reilly Media founder Tim O’Reilly suggested a great demonstration tool to Wave designer Lars Rasmussen: Dramatization of the drafting of famous historical documents in Wave.
The Declaration of Independence was used, and if you have a Wave account, you can take a look at the wave and see the edits as they happen. Many of the fake changes are humorous — for example, the first pass at the opener says “we hold these truths to be awesome” rather than “self-evident” — and they illustrate Wave’s strengths well.
3. Role Playing Games
Role playing games were among the first traditions geeks ported to networks. Since then they’ve been played through e-mail, instant messaging, social networks, and virtual worlds. It was inevitable that they’d make their way to Wave as well.
It turns out the platform is well-suited for them. Players and game masters can easily embed supplements like maps, statistics, dice rollers, and character portraits. Players can start private in-character conversations between one another, and game masters can relay information to specific characters. Play-by-e-mail RPGs have been popular for a long time, but thanks to all the extra tools and the real-time functionality, play-by-wave RPGs have a good chance of achieving even more success.
There’s a wave out there that was created to list all the RPGs currently running on the platform, so go and check that out to get started if you’re into that sort of thing.
4. Pulp Wave Fiction & Good Wave Hunting
These videos went viral when they debuted; watching them is like watching Wave widgets do interpretive dances to the dialog and events in two famous scenes from American cinema. These aren’t actually useful, but they’re without a doubt the most popular and entertaining items on the list. Watch the videos here, but be warned that this is Pulp Fiction and Good Will Hunting we’re talking about; the dialog is probably NSFW.
These have been the best examples we’ve seen so far, but have you heard about any more creative or entertaining uses for Wave? Let us know in the comments.
More Google Wave resources from Mashable
- HOW TO: Get Started with Google Wave
- Google Wave: A Complete Guide
- Testing Google Wave: This Thing is Tidal
- The Top 6 Game-Changing Features of Google Wave
- Google Wave: 5 Ways It Could Change the Web
- Google Wave Extensions: An Inside Look
- Could Google Wave Redefine Email and Web Communication?
Tags: Google, Google Wave, List, Lists, trending
