Use Gmail and Google Docs offline without gears

Google recently announced the end of development for it Gears plugin and that it will be shifting focus to HTML5. Internet explorer 9, Firefox 4 and Chrome 12 no longer support offline backup of Gmail and Google Docs via gears.

Gears is still available for older browser versions and allows compatible websites and service, including Google Docs, Google Mail and Google Calendar to be stored and accessed locally, in a fully searchable database.

Although Google plans to provide similar functionality through HTML 5, but for now, what are the possible alternatives for Gmail and Google Docs to be available offline?

If you need create a backup of all your documents in your Google Docs account, edit or even sync changes once you are online, here are a couple of tools that come in handy:

Syncplicity:
Syncplicity is an online storage and synchronization service similar to dropbox that also supports Google Docs.

Link your Gmail or Google Apps account with Syncplicity and then assign a local desktop folder that should be kept in sync with your Google Docs account [Tour]

CyberDuck:
Upload and download documents straight from your Google docs account using this open source FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Cloud Files, Google Docs & Amazon S3 client for Mac & Windows.

Joukuu:
Synchronize your Google Docs account with your local desktop, so you can access all Google Docs files anytime, anywhere. You also can edit files through your local applications, such as Microsoft Office or Open Office.

SyncDocs:
A windows only application, SyncDocs provides one of the easiest ways to keep your Google Docs library in sync with a local folder on your computer for easy access.

When it comes to storing your email account offline, most modern email clients support access through IMAP. This needs to be enabled from Gmail settings (available under forwarding and POP/IMAP). One popular solution that works with Windows, Mac and Linux is Thunderbird. For anywhere access to your email, a portable version is also available for download.

If you are a windows user, the easiest and an absolutely free application for storing all your important emails is Mail Store Home. This application lets you archive emails from various sources including Gmail. It is also available as a portable app which you can use to create a portable archive on any USB flash or a USB hard drive.