I appreciate a good prank every now and then… as long as the appreciation is done from a spectator seat faaaaaar away from the action [read: no one come near me with whoopee cushions, silly string, or whatever newfangled items kids these days are using].

In celebration of the time-honored holiday known as April Fools’ Day, let’s revisit some of my favorite hoaxes perpetuated by now-legendary prankster, Google (which I may or may not fell for):

1.  Gmail Paper: Who says you have to sacrifice physical copies in this digital revolution? Request a hard copy of any email and have it delivered to your door. Of course, this isn’t cheap, so the costs are offset by advertisements displayed on the back of your prints… just like your supermarket receipts.

2. Google Romance: It only makes sense that the world’s most-renowned search engine would help you find your one-and-only with its Soulmate Search service. Then Contextual Date pays for date night, as long as you and your honey don’t mind sponsored ads. It’s like Match.com partnered with… well, Google.

3. Gmail Custom Time: Calling all liars, this is the solution for you! By utilizing an e-flux capacitor, Gmail lets you send email to the past, showing up in your recipient’s inbox in the proper chronological order. Caveat: you can send only 10 pre-dated emails per year before messing with the fabric of time.

After years in the hoax biz, it’s expected that Google will announce something on April 1 and we probably won’t even fall for it anymore. Despite being jaded, here’s hoping they come up another doozy to make us forget the date (and recover from last year’s Topeka non-funny joke). 

In the meantime, please watch out for saran wrap, tripwire, and coworkers who have read this article!

- Kelly