Google offers a wide assortment of free tools to users ranging from email, to calendaring, to instant messaging and office productivity apps.  Basically, you have access to all the tools necessary to manage your day-to-day life and work with ease.  Well, it would be easy if the applications were actually integrated seamlessly together, but at this time, they aren't.  Google Mail and Google Calendar work together sort of, but the integration isn't all that smooth.  Other pieces of the Google Apps family don't talk to one another at all.

But just because Google itself hasn't leveraged its tools, doesn't mean others haven't found a way to do so on their own.

Steve Rubel, a tech blogger focusing on tech and pr/marketing has an article detailing how you can combine Google tools with third party applications to create your "personal nerve center"  It's an interesting read and worth looking into for any of us who use GMail and other such services.