Microsoft to challenge iCloud with SkyDrive OS X client

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 73
    gtrgtr Posts: 3,231member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Robin Huber View Post


    Nothing but good can come of this. iCloud needs competition.



    Agreed.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jpellino View Post


    Maybe - just MAYBE - this will make up for snubbing us Mac users for so long on the Zune sync client. I'll hafta think about it.



    What's a Zune?



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    A "friend"?



  • Reply 22 of 73
    Microsoft will win this one. Apple just doesn't know how to run stable Internet services. Sorry but iTunes and the appStore do not count.
  • Reply 23 of 73
    mrstepmrstep Posts: 513member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post


    There are APIs for iCloud that would let Dropbox, SugarSync, anyone with some Objective-C knowledge, and even MS create their own hierarchal storage system that syncs via iCloud.



    Also, even with the Open dialogue box in apps for iCloud there is a structured file system, but it's been simplified to match that of the iOS Home Screen as access from iDevices is the main reason for its inclusion.



    I haven't noticed any option to un-flatten the files in any iCloud app file space to date (maybe it's in the APIs?), but with the sandboxing of files for specific apps, I don't think you'd get the same functionality as you do with Dropbox & Co. even if you can make it hierarchical. Lots of files visible only to the Dropbox app would be pretty limiting. I really wish iCloud had allowed assigning of file types to apps as is normal, the UI could automatically aggregate those file types for you on the server and present faster-access views, but you could still share items. Keep it flat if you want, do folders if you want, etc. And share with apps on your desktop.



    The sandboxed file thing is definitely pretty limiting - which I think is why OSX has the file open that can allow files from anywhere to be opened into an app without allowing the apps to directly break out of their own sandbox. Of course, even then - that app can't aggregate things itself, and you then hope that Apple provides every type of view you could ever want for apps in the App Store, though fortunately it sounds like signed apps outside the store can still do whatever they need to do.
  • Reply 24 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bloggerblog View Post


    Apple just doesn't know how to run stable Internet services.



    iCloud utilises AWS and Azure. I'm sure Apple will continue to bring more stuff in-house, but they always have those two solid mature cloud platforms to fall back on if something goes wrong.



    What do you think the chances are of Microsoft utilising AWS or Google App Engine if something goes wrong
  • Reply 25 of 73
    panupanu Posts: 135member
    All of these services are partial solutions, but you can mix and match to meet your needs. For example, iCloud gives me access to my media files for free without uploading them: all 1.5 TB of them. No one else can match that. However, iCloud's weak spot is synchronizing files. Dropbox is mediocre with this too, because I'd have to use a single special folder and rearrange things. SugarSync lets me designate any folders and any number of folders I like as sync folders. Since text files are compact, I'm using less than half the free 6GB there. For me, iCloud and SugarSync make an ideal combination--for me. Maybe for some people, Microsoft's Skydrive will be a partial solution. Imagine: iCloud + SugarSync + Dropbox + SkyDrive is 20GB of free space right there.



    I see no reason to use only one of these services.
  • Reply 26 of 73
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    I wish iCloud had a DropBox type service attached to it. I'd like to be able manage my iCloud files and to up and download files as per a good old fashioned file system. I wouldn't mind if this was paid add-on.



    I also think iCloud should have a mm type Gallery feature. Less limiting and faster than mm gallery, but something that easily integrates with iPhoto.



    iCloud works an invisible automated service. This is good but it could/should be so much more.
  • Reply 27 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by OskiO View Post


    I use Microsoft Live Mesh already on all my Macs. It gives me UNLIMITED GB of syncing across three machines. There is no cloud storage, but I don't need it if it is syncing to all my machines (about 230GB and works flawlessly).



    It looks like SkyDrive and Live Mesh have a lot of overlap...I don't know why they can't just combine the products into one.



    That's what this is... kind of.



    It looks more like a take-over than a merger.



    Live Mesh appears to be gone. The alternative (note I didn't say "replacement") is a SkyDrive sync client that syncs a selected folder of files to SkyDrive and allows you to browse back to the files on that PC.



    I didn't see any mention of the PC-to-PC sync functionality that you use.
  • Reply 28 of 73
    no thanks. No crap Microsoft software on my mac...sorry. Skydrive is a garbage Dropbox clone.
  • Reply 29 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bullhead View Post


    no thanks. No crap Microsoft software on my mac...sorry. Skydrive is a garbage Dropbox clone.



    Live Mesh predates Dropbox. Saying Skydrive is a Dropbox clone is like saying iPhone is a Windows Phone clone.
  • Reply 30 of 73
    This is good news! Apple is slowly becoming Microsoft?and believe me, it pains me to say it. Apple needs a swift kick in the pants. iCloud and all its syncing headaches are inexcusable. And taking away functionality in order to make OS features look more like the iOS counterparts is just dumb. EXCUSE ME, I work on my Mac. Lion is a joke. Tiger was Apple's most innovative, positive step forward, followed by Snow Leopard. This 20-year Mac user is not happy.
  • Reply 31 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    Apple is going down! Daddy has come to the party!



    You'right!



    As Slappy would say:



    Apple is DOOMED, DOOMED, I tell you DOOMED
  • Reply 32 of 73
    I tried Skydrive last year. It stinks. It wouldn't work very well. The navigation was nearly impossible to work with when trying to find files. Eventually when it was too difficult to use I deleted everything on it. The problem was that it took a long time to find the right links and tabs to get to the delete files button. I hated Microsoft before trying Skydrive. I now hate Microsoft even more.



    Today I needed to use Vista for work. I booted it on the HP computer instead of Ubuntu. The damn OS didn't recognize the modem for some reason. I switched to Ubuntu to check the modem and it was fine. I rebooted into Vista and the modem was working again. I didn't change anything to cause it to stop working or start working again. I HATE MICROSOFT AND VISTA!!!!!!!!!
  • Reply 33 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post


    There are APIs for iCloud that would let Dropbox, SugarSync, anyone with some Objective-C knowledge, and even MS create their own hierarchal storage system that syncs via iCloud.



    Also, even with the Open dialogue box in apps for iCloud there is a structured file system, but it's been simplified to match that of the iOS Home Screen as access from iDevices is the main reason for its inclusion.



    I didn't know about the API stuff (which is interesting), but it doesn't help me at all really.



    I like to keep things simple so I like to get all my online services form one place which has always been Apple. I don't even have a DropBox account because I find the idea of keeping stuff in two places somewhere between annoying and stressful (or perhaps both).



    Despite the fact that the speed was always atrocious and the reliability poor, I miss the iDisk feature where one can share a large file with someone else. It's really one of the big problems most people have today and unless you have some storage space in the cloud it's really just not possible.



    I don't even care about file hierarchies and so forth or how many levels deep the file system is. I just want to be able to either send or share a file with a family member without having to burn it to a plastic disk and put it in the post.



    With iCloud, everything is locked down to the app and to your own personal devices. Sometimes it would be nice to be able to share your stuff with other people. I realise they are doing it this way at least in part because they don't really *want* you to share your stuff (because people have a habit of sharing illegally etc.), but I find it annoying and a bit insulting that this presumption is being made.



    I don't see why if I'm paying for iCloud and have tons of storage space, that I have to pay for more storage through DropBox and manage yet another online account and password, just because they *assume* that I'm going to share some hollywood movie.



    In the original leaked plans for iCloud there was going to be something like a FileVault that one could throw files in and have them synced between all your devices but also (crucially) share them with other people.
  • Reply 34 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post


    If you compress your file in .RAR, especially if password protected, their system won't be able to weed out copyrighted material by looking for code sequences. I don't think .ZIP would work as that that can be read in a compressed form.



    Kind of not the point though. This kind of fascist censorship completely eliminates SkyDrive from consideration for many people if the account is true. They have no right to look at your files. In Europe they could be taken to court over such behaviour.



    I find it humorous that this kind of thing is somehow okay in the "land of the free," when the only proper response is outrage.
  • Reply 35 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by avidmac View Post


    iCloud and all its syncing headaches are inexcusable.



    Mac Pro: Type in my credentials.

    MacBook Pro: Type in my credentials.

    iPad: Type in my credentials.



    Synced.



    Quote:

    And taking away functionality in order to make OS features look more like the iOS counterparts is just dumb.



    So, pray tell, what was 'taken away' in Lion? Other than Rosetta, obviously.
  • Reply 36 of 73
    This is a competitor to DropBox, not iCloud. iCloud is not about file sharing. iCloud is all about letting you use your iOS devices without the need for a computer, so that people who do not otherwise need a computer can just buy an iOS device and use it untethered. iCloud was necessary for performing several functions that you could not otherwise do without a computer such as:



    - Backing up your device, including applications and their data (SkyDrive cannot do this)

    - Restoring your device from backup (SkyDrive cannot do this)

    - Backing up your photos (SkyDrive cannot do this automatically)

    - Transferring photos from one device to another (SkyDrive cannot do this automatically)

    - Synchronizing data within your apps, between your devices (SkyDrive could potentially do this at a file level, if the app developer choses to use SkyDrive as their cloud solution, but iCloud has deep integration with Core Data and makes this so much easier for developers. Also, iCloud is already built-in, free, and doesn't require you to log in with each app and device you want to sync.)

    - Backing up and re-downloading your iTunes purchases (iTunes Match)



    I think competition is good, but comparing SkyDrive to iCloud is sensationalist journalism at it's best, and making this comparison shows quite a bit of ignorance as to what the technology does and what it is for.
  • Reply 37 of 73
    swiftswift Posts: 436member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Robin Huber View Post


    Nothing but good can come of this. iCloud needs competition.



    Sure thing. But iCloud, in my mind, is first and foremost almost kind of a filesystem, automatically duplicating everything. iTunes Match? Not out of your storage space. Buy something on iTunes, no charge for space.



    We'll see. Right now, Amazon kind of pairs the storage with the music store, etc. Apple now does the same. As programmers figure out how to use iCloud in their apps, it will be very strong.



    But all the better for competition.
  • Reply 38 of 73
    swiftswift Posts: 436member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by LarryA View Post


    Well, you did say "all-Apple" user, but I am a mostly Apple user, and if this creates a non-Google calendar syncing solution for me at work without having to use iTunes (prohibited), that doesn't force me to manually drag each item to iCloud folders, I am in!



    Why is iTunes prohibited? Do you go to a Jesuit college?
  • Reply 39 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    Kind of not the point though. This kind of fascist censorship completely eliminates SkyDrive from consideration for many people if the account is true. They have no right to look at your files. In Europe they could be taken to court over such behaviour.



    I find it humorous that this kind of thing is somehow okay in the "land of the free," when the only proper response is outrage.



    I don't know of any such service that doesn't comply with DMCA.
  • Reply 40 of 73
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Smallwheels View Post


    I tried Skydrive last year. It stinks. It wouldn't work very well. The navigation was nearly impossible to work with when trying to find files. Eventually when it was too difficult to use I deleted everything on it. The problem was that it took a long time to find the right links and tabs to get to the delete files button.



    So let me get this straight...



    You browse to a folder and decide you want to delete it, but you couldn't see the links indicated here:





    Or maybe you tried to select a file and delete it, but you couldn't see the links indicated here:

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