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Apple Buys Me.com? .Mac's New Name?

Well, if they were to rename the whole line, maybe Steve could get very vain?

StevePod, SteveBook, SteveBook Pro, StevePhone, iSteve, Steve (is) Pro, .Steve, StevePort, SteveCapsule, SteveTV etc...
 
WWDC this year seams to be shaping up very nicely, especially since the past 2 were not that amazing. We have some great stuff it seems: iPhone 2, iPhone Software 2.0 w/ Apps Store, re-haul of .Mac, and potentially a redesigned Mac Mini or Macbook/Macbook Pro (the Cinema Displays are long overdue for an update as well). No rumors yet on Apple's next OS though, probably not till next year. Should be interesting to see if Apple addresses the recent Touch implementation in Windows.

I am not sure where I stand on the me.com. Clearly Apple can't use .Mac for the mobile devices, and give their "i" fixation, it makes sense for them to choose something like "me," so I think this story is legit. I prefer telling people @mac.com rather than @me.com. I think most people will think I am joking with them if I use the latter.

Just really curious as to if our .Mac email address will be transfered over or if we simply get first dibs at registering our names with the new service.

Still hoping for iPhoto Synching, and for Back To My Mac to actually work.
 
.me is embarrassing

The .me name change would be a horrible idea. It reeks of Microsoft Bob.

I dropped .Mac two years ago because it sucked so bad. I have no plans on returning unless it dramatically improves and this would just loose it for me. I would find the .me address embarrassing.

I understand that Apple wants to attract more Windows users to the service who might be turned of by the .Mac moniker, but .me is a bad substitute.
 
Remember when iPhone.org was acquired?


http://forums.ilounge.com/archive/index.php/t-62615.html


Domain ID:D15354654-LROR
Domain Name:IPHONE.ORG
Created On:16-Dec-1999 04:59:34 UTC
Last Updated On:27-Jul-2004 18:32:41 UTC
Expiration Date:16-Dec-2005 04:59:33 UTC
Sponsoring Registrar:EmarkMonitor Inc. (R37-LROR)
Status:CLIENT DELETE PROHIBITED
Status:CLIENT TRANSFER PROHIBITED
Status:CLIENT UPDATE PROHIBITED
Registrant ID:mKn-14211604
Registrant Name:Apple Computer , Inc.
Registrant Organization:Apple Computer, Inc.
Registrant Street1:1 Infinite Loop
Registrant Street2:M/S 60-DR
Registrant Street3:
Registrant City:Cupertino
Registrant State/Province:CA
Registrant Postal Code:95014
Registrant Country:US
Registrant Phone:+1.4089961010
Registrant Phone Ext.:
Registrant FAX:+1.4089741560
Registrant FAX Ext.:
Registrant Email:Apple-NOC@APPLE.COM
Admin ID:mKn-14211601
Admin Name:Kenneth Eddings (KE557)
Admin Organization:Apple Computer, Inc.
Admin Street1:1 Infinite Loop M/S 60-DR
Admin Street2:
Admin Street3:
Admin City:Cupertino
Admin State/Province:CA
Admin Postal Code:95014
Admin Country:US
Admin Phone:+1.4089744286
Admin Phone Ext.:
Admin FAX:
Admin FAX Ext.:
Admin Email:eddingsk@apple.com
Tech ID:mKn-14211602
Tech Name:eMarkMonitor, Inc.
Tech Organization:eMarkMonitor, Inc.
Tech Street1:12438 W. Bridger Street
Tech Street2:Ste. 100
Tech Street3:
Tech City:Boise
Tech State/Province:ID
Tech Postal Code:83713
Tech Country:US
Tech Phone:+1.2083895755
Tech Phone Ext.:
Tech FAX:+1.2083895799
Tech FAX Ext.:
Tech Email:ccops@markmonitor.com
Name Server:NSERVER2.APPLE.COM
Name Server:NSERVER.APPLE.COM


And from AllThingsD last year:

Walt: You obviously have a very large Internet business with iTunes and you sell a lot of stuff in the Apple Store, but, you know, you were early with this idea that when you bought a computer from Apple, you had this kind of Internet service back end, and it was called “.Mac”. And I think a lot of people feel you haven’t developed it very much.

Steve: I couldn’t agree with you more, and we’ll make up for lost time in the near future.
 
If there's one thing I would like, is that .mac or a possibly new .me, will be cheaper.
 
Hate it

I am not enthused at all by this prospect of DotMac turning into DotMe or Me or MobileMe....

It sounds too "PC"-ish.

Plus I have way too many contacts that know my DotMac email account. Don't really feel like changing my letterheads or other pieces of printed materials to show an email address that looks generic.

Sad sad day if this is true next week.... :(
 
ingenious said:
What if all of this "MobileMe" and "Me" nonsense is just another service .Mac will offer. I'm in the camp that thinks those two sorry excuses for brands are horrible ideas. Period. :D

".Mac" is way better. Although, I've never understood why it's ".Mac" and "mac.com"... hmm.. strange.

I just became a member a month ago and I really like .Mac. I'm looking forward to a non-name changing upgrade, though. New features are always nice. :)
Click to expand...

I wonder if Steve has tried to have a new high level domain created.... .mac would then be really .mac
 
KindredMAC said:
I am not enthused at all by this prospect of DotMac turning into DotMe or Me or MobileMe....

It sounds too "PC"-ish.

Plus I have way too many contacts that know my DotMac email account. Don't really feel like changing my letterheads or other pieces of printed materials to show an email address that looks generic.

Sad sad day if this is true next week.... :(
Click to expand...

What are you talking about?

Do you honestly believe that Apple would cut the .Mac email domain? ReallY?
 
Maybe @me.com is an acronym for "Mobile Experience" or "Mobile Environment" or "Mac Environment" or "Mac Experience."

Then again if they go with @mobileme.com it could stand for "Mobile Mac Experience" or Mobile Mac Environment."


You can decide which sounds best. :)
 
arn said:
I think it's because the iPhone and iPod Touch are not Macs. So it doesn't make sense to provide a service called ".Mac" to people who might not even own a Mac.

arn
Click to expand...

Well they SHOULD own a Mac. :)
 
koobcamuk said:
Makes sense, but I prefer .Mac.

It's easy to spell out as an email address and I just like what it assocaites me with. @me.com sounds stupid to me.
Click to expand...

"<your name here>@me.com" sounds incredibly stupid to me... even juvenile. Unless that's your target demographic, of course. I'll go a step further - I think it's lazy. I'm sure if the me.com change is true that some high-priced firm has a long-winded explanation wherein they wax eloquent on how it embodies "simplicity and elegance, the center of the user's experience: themselves." <insert heavenly choir here>

Blah. I need my coffee.
 
bretm said:
Except they specifically changed the name of all their products to contain Mac instead of "Power" since the Power stood for PowerPC. The i now stands for Intel I guess. When the iMac came out he said it stood for internet. Internet Mac. The goal of the first iMac was to be incredibly easy to set up and get on the internet. Now I guess the i is just an i.
Click to expand...

The "i" didn't just stand for internet, it also stood for:
individual
instruct
inform
inspire

See here.
 
!¡ V ¡! said:
Maybe @me.com is an acronym for "Mobile Experience" or "Mobile Environment" or "Mac Environment" or "Mac Experience."

Then again if they go with @mobileme.com it could stand for "Mobile Mac Experience" or Mobile Mac Environment."


You can decide which sounds best. :)
Click to expand...

that's a good thought. But then again. Mobile experience could be possible, but Mobile Mobile experience would be stupid. So then Mac environment or mac experience, but then the iphone and ipod touch would again actually be excluded.
 
nlivo, ElectricHermit and kiwi031 you are all too kind, especially kiwi031 who calls me a gentleman. :)

Of course what I am saying is nothing new (so I can't take the credit!), but what perhaps is new is a company of Apple's size launching a cloud product for the consumer market.

Also, the fact that, as ever, they control not just the software (the cloud) but also the hardware - a 360° complete solution.

Even though @me.com sounds self-indulgent, Apple is pragmatic about names (ref: MacBook - it's not classy but it works). Me.com is supremely simple and easy-to-use, and we all know how much Apple loves that.

Another thing about names: people don't really care if the service is innovative and reliable (you heard us in the UK, right, Steve?). The most ridiculous name I saw was a computer company called a FRUIT!

ElectricHermit you are right to mention Windows. I think the 'a-browser-is-all-you-need' approach, as dotmac already is, is good enough, but I wonder what the iTunes tie-up might be given that iTunes is Mac + PC. Or they could even make some aspects of it 'Safari only' to entice more Windows users to dip their toe in the Apple water (or should that be juice? :rolleyes:).

Personally I remain a bit nervous about cloud computing as I like the idea that my data is on my hardware thank you very much. But then to be honest I don't live like that - I build websites and trust other companies to host them. I use Facebook, Skype and eBay. So I guess trust is the operative word - there's a lot of sky but whose cloud (as it were) do I trust the most? Apple's not perfect, but by and large I trust them.

I have no idea if such a product will be launched at WWDC, but you'd have to say it could be a great fit for a developers' conference. Sure it leans more towards web applications rather than iPhone or Mac platforms specifically - but in a way it is a whole new paradigm that embraces them both.

Interested in everyone else's input in the discussion too - sorry if this long post sounds a bit me, Me, ME!

jonharris200 said:
This whole thing is basically 'welcome to cloud computing' - one user account for all devices with personal information stored on Apple's servers.

From there your data syncs seamlessly with your iMac, iPhone, MacBook, :apple: TV, touch-screen tablet and any internet-browser.

Dotmac won't be overhauled - it will be completely replaced. Exciting to see what Apple unveils when they're ready.
Click to expand...

nlivo said:
I think this post is closest to the money.
Click to expand...

ElectricHermit said:
I'm sure this is right. If this also works with Windows, it's even further down that line than you suggest.

There is one major area of cloud computing that hasn't quite been realised for home users, which is identity management. If I can create a 'me' account, which contains a series of variable permissions to access my contact information, websites and public directories, I can grant (and withdraw) secure access to this information to other people. Then if my email address or mobile number changes, I would update my profile, and the changes would be distributed to my 'subscribers'. In turn, my account is given permissions by other users to access their data. Eventually, we would stop thinking about contact details and just get used to contacting a person (via whatever 'channel' seems appropriate - email, phone, IM) - a dynamically updated 'ID' which we have hold across all our devices.

I doubt that Apple have this planned for us yet, but being able to sync our own data wirelessly across all our computing devices, including iPhones and iPods, is a significant step towards it.
Click to expand...

kiwi031 said:
I like this gentlemen's idea.

This concept is clearly the next big thing. Our digital lifestyles supported by fully linked devices and seamless integration. :cool:

There's hundreds of billions in this concept and Apple are continuously adding products and services to bring this dream to a reality. I've considered the .Mac service but found it a little confusing and useless really. But if they can make it an integral part of the Mac - iPhone - AppleTV - Wifi combination then it has huge potential. :D

I reckon WWDC 08' going to be huge. Although many people would disagree, stating the WWDC is purely for Developers etc.. But you see, the direction for Developers this year appears to be this integration concept. Apple needs to delivery nifty gadgetry for the developers to work with.

Bring on WWDC 08'. Hope Macrumors will post a spoiler-free link to the Keynote once it's available!
Click to expand...
 
I don't really like the name but don't really care as long as they add some good functionality to the service.
 
lofight said:
that's a good thought. But then again. Mobile experience could be possible, but Mobile Mobile experience would be stupid. So then Mac environment or mac experience, but then the iphone and ipod touch would again actually be excluded.
Click to expand...

"Media Experience"

make something up that can utilize the acronym "me."

Reminds me of "Windows ME." :D
 
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