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Jul-04-2008Weekend project: Sync your .Mac bookmarks one last time(topic overview)
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Beyond selling you a phone, Apple is selling you a platform, and like Windows and Mac OS, once you're entrenched in one computing platform you usually stay entrenched. Beyond the shape of any ultra-mobile PC, the iPhone is now the newest computing platform in town, even though it's harder to see it as such, because it comes in the vaguely familiar shape of an iPod and phone. Think of the complexity of such a challenge - an entire ecology of hardware (Macs, iPods, iPhones), services (iTunes, MobileMe) and software (Mac OS X and iPhone apps) that work together seamlessly, an operating environment that so far major mobile competitors have yet to achieve. Think of the flexibility of this mobile phone platform, with complete OS upgrades that can be pushed to your phone and apps you can buy to increase functionality. Windows Mobile and Symbian have yet to see the killer app that would explode their popularity. Think of the far-reaching implications of this challenge, that if Apple succeeds, we will be the ones who were here to witness the birth of a new computing platform to complement Windows and Mac OS, the birth of a new mobile computing device, and the birth of a new kind of phone that nobody has yet seen. With iPhone 3G and MobileMe in the playing field, these are going to be interesting times indeed. The writer is a designer and technology enthusiast who finds the combination between good design and technology in the monthly tech magazine HWM. This article also appeared in the July issue of HWM. [1] New Apple touch patents show body part sensing, fingernail input Apple lops $500 off the price of SSD-based MacBook Air Apple accidently ships MobileMe boxes; Google Talk for iPhone Challenges ahead as Apple and Best Buy expand Mac program iPhone 3G plans to start at $18 in Australia Jobs & Co. sued again; Mac web share up; iTunes K-12 launches iPhone 3G plans start at $48 in the Netherlands, $128 in Denmark Adobe's PDF format now an ISO standard AT&T says original iPhones can be deactivated and used as WiFi iPods iPhone 3G to be in healthy supply as iPod touch supplies weaken Apple named in lawsuit over wireless data, circuits Apple's iPhone 3G guided tour reveals extra details How to hand-down your old iPhone after upgrading to iPhone 3G Moving to iPhone 3G: a guide for current and non-current AT&T customers New and old AT&T iPhone plans compared, cost increases detailed AT&T announces iPhone 3G plans, 8 a.m. launch time on July 11 iPhone 3G plans start at $25 in Switzerland, $50 in Finland Apple releases Mac OS X 10.5.4 update, security fixes Report: half of prospective smartphone buyers eying iPhone 3G Three says Hong Kong iPhone plans to start at $24 per month Real embraces Apple's iPod with new Rhapsody MP3 service AT&T memos detail iPhone 3G unbricking tool, crowd planning, more.[2]
Besides iCards,.Mac slides, and support for.Mac syncing in OS X 10.3, Apple is also dropping support for Web access to bookmarks. "MobileMe will let you easily access your bookmarks from anywhere by syncing them across all your computers, and pushing them over the air to your iPhone and iPod touch," Apple said in a Wednesday notice to.Mac subscribers.[3] As part of the transition to MobileMe, web access to your bookmarks stored on mac.com will end this July. MobileMe will let you easily access your bookmarks from anywhere by syncing them across all your computers, and pushing them over the air to your iPhone and iPod touch.[4]
Apple has posted instructions to.Mac customers to sync their.Mac Bookmarks by July 6th ahead of the MobileMe launch. While MobileMe will allow bookmark syncing between computers, it will remove the online web access to them. In order to preserve your bookmarks, you need to make sure they are synced to your Mac.[5] Apple has given additional hints that the MobileMe service should come online imminently. While MobileMe will allow bookmark syncing between computers, it will remove the online web access to them. In order to preserve your bookmarks, you need to make sure they are synced to your Mac.[6]
Use.Mac Sync If you'''re a.Mac member, you can use.Mac Sync, which supports many kinds of data: Address Book contacts; Dashboard widgets; Dock items; iCal calendars; Safari bookmarks; OS X keychains; Mail account settings, rules, signatures, smart mailboxes, and notes; and application preferences. Third-party applications such as Microsoft Entourage, Panic'''s Transmit, and Bare Bones Software'''s Yojimbo can use the same underlying mechanism to synchronize their data via.Mac. In most cases,.Mac Sync operates at the level of individual records (such as iCal events or Keychain items); this increases syncing efficiency and reduces the likelihood of conflicts. When you sync your data with.Mac, OS X copies it to or from Apple'''s servers behind the scenes, rather than directly between Macs, so both computers don'''t need to be online at the same time (or even be able to communicate directly with each other).[7] Among the many kinds of data you might want to sync between Macs is a category I'''ll refer to as personal data'''contacts, calendars, bookmarks, keychains, preference files, and so on. Apple has built synchronization capabilities for this sort of data directly into OS X, in the form of its Sync Services framework; however, taking advantage of Sync Services requires either a $100-per-year.Mac (soon to be MobileMe) membership or third-party software.[7]
Are you a.Mac subscriber who's been using the built-in bookmark syncing app? Come Sunday that service will no longer exist as part of the MobileMe transition, so if you want to do one last sync you've got to get it done this weekend. Shortly after the MobileMe announcement last month Apple sent out an e-mail to current.Mac subscribers detailing this change.[8] "However, the existing.Mac Bookmarks application will be taken offline and will no longer provide web access to your bookmarks." Apple says that.Mac subscribers should sync.Mac bookmarks with their Mac by this Sunday.[3]
Apple has extended the deadline for.Mac subscribers to synchronize their Bookmarks to July 6, giving users a few extra days to make sure they don't lose any Web page links they marked with the.Mac Bookmarks feature.[9] Apple will be disabling.Mac Bookmarks as part of the transition into the new MobileMe service. Once MobileMe launches, subscribers will still be able to synchronize bookmarks between devices, but they won't be able to use the.Mac Bookmarks feature that's been part of.Mac for some time.[9] Apple announced MobileMe at last month's Worldwide Developers Conference. The service retains many.Mac features, such as contacts and mail, with a new emphasis on push services that keep information synced between your computer, iPhone, and Me.com Web page. Some.Mac features will be discontinued once MobileMe goes live this month.[3]
Shortly after the iPhone keynote was completed the Me.com domain began redirecting to a new Apple Web site for the new service that allows you sync email, contacts and calendars with Mail, Address Book, and iCal on a Mac and Mail, Contacts, and Calendar on your iPhone or iPod touch.[10] Google has released a streamlined Google Talk messaging client for iPhone and the iPod touch. Around the same time that @me.com email addresses became active for some existing.Mac subscribers, Apple began shipping MobileMe retail boxes to customers who had pre-ordered the service through its online store. Couriers were apparently asked to hold local delivery until sometime mid-to-late next week, but at least one of them mistakenly began making home deliveries this week.[2] "Apple implemented the real-time, Over The Air (OTA) syncinc in MobileMe with "push" email, contacts and calendar. Apple stores all your email, contacts, and calendars on a "cloud" server and pushes them down to your iPhone, iPod touch, Mac, and PC. When you make a change on one device, the cloud updates the others.[10]
I could have a Windows Mobile smartphone, an iPod, a Windows PC and a Mac running at home, but when I'm on one device I might want to work on something I left on another. If you use several devices that handle your work and life-critical information, we're sure you've faced this problem before. The amazing thing about MobileMe is that now you won't need to physically plug in your devices to sync them.[1]
I'd like to see some way to get those bookmarks into Safari for Windows on my PC at work. That's where I've always used this function, and I will miss it unless they can help me sync to Safari for Windows.[4]
The MobileMe retail box pictured below was delivered to one customer today. When he called Apple Support because he couldn't activate his service, a rep told him that the box shouldn't have been delivered and that a courier would return to take it back into custody, then redeliver it later. Users who have not synced their.Mac Web bookmarks to Safari by now should do so immediately, as the service will be discontinued on July 6th. [2] I saw this story on MacDailyNews and thought you should see it. MacDailyNews.com article summary: Apple is reminding.Mac members via their.Mac website to sync their.Mac bookmarks in preparation for the arrival of MobileMe.[4]
Use SyncTogether If you'''re not a.Mac member, you can easily sync your personal data with Mark/Space'''s SyncTogether 1.0.2 ( ; $50 for up to three Macs). It uses Sync Services, just as.Mac does, but lets one of your Macs function as the server that coordinates syncing among your computers, rather than relying on Apple'''s servers.[7] Unlike.Mac Sync, SyncTogether doesn'''t support keychains, and it has a number of other minor limitations. It allows you to sync data between different users, something.Mac Sync doesn'''t allow (and at $50, it'''s a lot less expensive than.Mac'''s yearly fee, so it may be a better buy if you don'''t need.Mac'''s other features).[7] Once you'''ve set each of your Macs as nodes in the same group, you can select types of data to sync (as in.Mac Sync) and a syncing frequency-anywhere from every 15 minutes to weekly (you can also choose manual syncing). After the initial setup, SyncTogether provides almost the same day-to-day experience as.Mac Sync for Macs on the same local network, though it'''s considerably more complicated to synchronize with remote Macs, as this requires either a VPN (virtual private network) connection or knowledge of the remote Mac'''s IP address.[7] Setting up.Mac Sync couldn't be easier-just select the types of data you want to synchronize and then choose how often the syncs will occur.[7]
Your bookmarks will stay in sync on any Mac where you have enabled.Mac sync.[4]
To ensure that you keep all your saved bookmarks, make sure that your.Mac Bookmarks are synced with your Mac no later than July 6.[4] I'm not happy about.Mac bookmarks going away. It sure is convenient to have my bookmarks available to me anywhere in the world via a browser.[9]
The notice to subscribers links to instructions for syncing.Mac bookmarks with Safari.[3] Apple had previously said it would discontinue.Mac Web bookmarks on June 30th, but has extended the deadline for syncing.[2]
I don't always carry my laptop or iPod Touch everywhere. I have no idea why Apple would kill off such a simple but useful feature of their.Mac service.[9] Apple Store Advertisements: • [[ Buy a Mac for college and get a free iPod touch.[4]
Photos can be uploaded in the web browser or synced by iPhoto on a Mac and by sending it from the iPhone and iPod Touch.[10] On Thursday, Google released a new streamlined Google Talk web application for the iPhone and iPod touch that's accessible via www.google.com/talk from the mobile version of Safari.[2]
Live-bloggers flock to the event, and blog every single detail as it occurs. When the phone is finally unveiled to thundering applause, blogs explode, the local news reports it and HWM has one of its best-selling issues yet. Whether it's cool or crazy, no other mobile phone release commands so much attention. Whether you love it or hate it (and invariably it seems you either do or don't), the iPhone isn't just here and here to stay - it's just got upgraded on its first birthday.[1] WHEN you stop and think about it, it's either insanely great, brilliant marketing or a complete geek-fest when you have so much anticipation for a mobile phone that websites start posting rumours, speculation, supposed leaks and long wish lists months before its guessed-at release date. Fans devotedly post mock-up after mock-up, imagining just what this new phone will look like.[1] Sex Drive: How to Keep the Fireworks Going From Afar Many long-distance lovers have become experts in how tech can augment sexuality.No commuter couple should go without Skype, Twitter and mobile phones, while sex toys can take the repetitive stress injury out of a long-distance affair.But it's not much of a stretch to think that there's a bigger need (read: market) for "tele-amore" devices than there ever will be for teledildonics (online sex toys controlled by a lover from anywhere in the world).[10]
Whereas Exchange support is free with the iPhone 2.0 firmware update, MobileMe comes with a US$99 annual price-tag. Even though it comes with a price, we think this is going to be a big one. The problem with having multiple devices is keeping them in sync.[1] If it works and works well, MobileMe will sync your devices simply and invisibly, so that you have what you want when you want it. Of course, these devices and software will mostly belong to Apple. It's a brilliant move by Apple to lure you into their hardware and software eco-system, especially when the ordinary user sees how easy it is compared to Apple's competitors.[1]
The warning came as part of Apple's transition from.Mac to the new MobileMe online service.[3] Expires 9/15. ]] Buy a Mac for college and get a free iPod touch. Order online and get free shipping. Expires 9/15. • Buy any new Mac and get $30 off your first year of MobileMe subscription.[4] A year from now, we might see yet another new iPhone, but the Mac OS X iPhone platform stays.[1] You'd hardly find anyone happily using a PC with 10-year-old specs now. 10 years on, we're still using Windows and Mac OS X, because they've evolved and upgraded through time.[1]
Select the Synchronize With.Mac option and choose how often you'''d like to sync (or choose Automatically, which syncs either once per hour or more often if OS X detects that information has changed on one of your computers). Repeat this procedure on each Mac you want to sync. (Although the process sounds simple, you may encounter problems when you try synching'''see Stay in Sync: Solve.Mac problems for advice.)[7]
THE new version of the iPhone is slightly bigger, with an increase of height by 0.5mm, width by 1.1mm and depth by 0.7mm. It's slimmer at the sides because of its curves and for all the additional features, surprisingly lighter by 2g. Other than that, and its new plastic black and white backs, it looks very much like the original. [1] Today, the new iPhone 3G 8GB model - with more hardware features than the original - is set at US$199 while the 16GB model is going for US$299, three hundred dollars less than the first 8GB iPhone.[1]
TOGETHER with the iPhone 3G, a new web-based service called MobileMe was also introduced.[1] Almost lost in the hub-bub, hullabaloo and histrionics over the July 11 release of the new iPhone is the concurrent release of Apple's MobileMe - cloud computing for the rest of us.[10] Although the new hardware upgrades for the iPhone are appealing, if long anticipated and to nobody's surprise, the newly unveiled MobileMe is the surprise punch in Apple's announcement. It brings an interesting dimension to how iPhone's future could play out.[1]
Sure, it might change form and structure. It might grow smaller or more powerful, but a desktop or laptop shape and form is what they're used to seeing. It might be harder for them to think different, to see the birth of a brand new computing platform, but essentially that's what the iPhone is.[1]
TMO also has a Quick Tip explaining how to make sure your iCal and Address Book data is properly synced ahead of the MobileMe transition. [9] Push Mail. Includes a @me.com email address (previous.mac users also keep their @mac.com address and can use either as both addresses are linked).[10] MobileMe uses Ajax to attempt to simulate the look and feel of desktop applications in the user's web browser.[10]
Once you've verified that your.Mac Bookmarks are syncronized, you can stop using the.Mac Bookmarks application at ( http://www.mac.com ).[4] Apple's.Mac service was similarly distributed as a box with an activation code.[6] Believe in Office: Save Up To 25% on Office 2004 For Mac. IBackup - SMB Online Backup: IBackup is the preferred online storage and backup service of choice for SMBs for its ease of use, security and value.[2]
Supported browsers are: Safari 3 or later (Mac + PC), Firefox 2 or later (Mac + PC), or Internet Explorer 7 (PC) or later.[10] All information presented on this site is copyrighted by The Mac Observer, Inc. except where otherwise noted. No portion of this site may be copied without express written consent. Other sites are invited to link to any aspect of this site provided that all content is presented in its original form and is not placed within another frame.[9]
SOURCES
1. The second coming
2. AppleInsider | Apple accidently ships MobileMe boxes; Google Talk for iPhone
3. Apple to .Mac Subscribers - Sync Bookmarks by Sunday - NYTimes.com
4. MacDailyNews - Apple: MobileMe is coming soon; Remember to sync your .Mac bookmarks by July 6th
5. Sync .Mac Bookmarks by July 6th - Mac Rumors
6. MobileMe Retail Boxes Shipping to Customers - Mac Rumors
7. Macworld | Sync your personal data
8. Weekend project: Sync your .Mac bookmarks one last time | Webware : Cool Web apps for everyone - CNET
9. .Mac Bookmark Sync Deadline Extended to July 6 || The Mac Observer
10. Web 2.0 Examiner - MobileMe: Cloud computing for the rest of us - Examiner.com
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