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Apple's .Mac Service to be Renamed, Revamped?
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That would be HUGE, but I don't even list it as a "hope for feature" b/c I just think it's pipe dreaming.
I have Google Gmail for email, it's free, offers gigs of space, has decent search tools, POP access.
Photos are posted on my Facebook profile, which is not the best place for public sharing, but it works, it's also free and unlimited.
I would love a service like .Mac for quick and easy publishing of photos, syncing contacts, etc. But, I just can't justify paying for it when I already have other tools available.
levitynyc: I know everything can't be free, but the reality is I can't justify paying someone for a service I can already get free elsewhere. Unless that paid service is REALLY that much better than the free stuff.
Now, if were to capitalize on the iPhone/iPod halo effect, and offer added incentives, they could make the new service just as useful on Windows PCs and iPhones, and make it FREE for Mac users... Just another great reason to switch to Mac!
I like the idea of "free for five years" when you buy a Mac... since I'll probably be buying a new Mac every five years anyway.
I can dream...
Photos are posted on my Facebook profile, which is not the best place for public sharing, but it works, it's also free and unlimited.
I would love a service like .Mac for quick and easy publishing of photos, syncing contacts, etc. But, I just can't justify paying for it when I already have other tools available.
levitynyc: I know everything can't be free, but the reality is I can't justify paying someone for a service I can already get free elsewhere. Unless that paid service is REALLY that much better than the free stuff.
Now, if were to capitalize on the iPhone/iPod halo effect, and offer added incentives, they could make the new service just as useful on Windows PCs and iPhones, and make it FREE for Mac users... Just another great reason to switch to Mac!
I like the idea of "free for five years" when you buy a Mac... since I'll probably be buying a new Mac every five years anyway.
I can dream...
My main concern and fear is that they'll take away some of the functionality I am using now, in order to appeal to a new market that I am not even a part of, as if their old market wasn't good enough to them; or that they'll make the fee for the services currently offered to me higher, and offer the newer but more basic iPhone services at the current cost, effectively making me pay more for less.
I hope if anything Apple lowers the price a little bit. The current services work for me very nicely. If they upgraded them a bit again I'd be fine with that too, but what is currently offered works, and with the obvious PUSH support coming to iPhones and that lot of devices, I really couldn't ask for much more.
I don't see why not, the iPhone in itself is basically a mac. As well as offering additional online services to iPhone users I don't see why there'd be a problem with the name.
Everyone wants a good email account that works properly, why call that email address anything else. Do you suggest @windows instead for windows users' of iPhone's?
That seems a bit silly when the plan is to make iPhone users switch to macs too.
I thought the last upgrade was good, but some new features would be nice, as long as they didn't remove anything useful from the current features.
Back to My Mac has come in useful a number of times, but I don't use it much right now.
I find my email is used a great deal, even more so since I have started university and am very happy with the performance of it.
I now publish my blog through iWeb and the new domain name stuff has really come in useful. I am so much happier with it now.
I recently upgraded to a family account and my sister now has email and a website, so she is happy with the service too.
I use Time Machine primarily for backups, while I had used Backup (from .Mac) before. However, that being said, I use it to backup important files like my keychain and university documents every weekend and it's doing a great job.
I really hope this is not the case either. I think it'd be stupid to change the email, the name of the service doesn't have to match it after all, and I think the "mac" part of it really brings it home to the user that your getting a quality product because of the platform you have chosen.
That sounds good actually, and looks good too. Also brings it in line with the whole Apple Computer Inc to Apple Inc name change. Keeping the Apple name first and foremost.
I don't see how that'd help add value to the service over time. Remember you can add google ads to your website and if your getting enough traffic, probably make enough to cover your membership each year.
I hope if anything Apple lowers the price a little bit. The current services work for me very nicely. If they upgraded them a bit again I'd be fine with that too, but what is currently offered works, and with the obvious PUSH support coming to iPhones and that lot of devices, I really couldn't ask for much more.
I don't see why not, the iPhone in itself is basically a mac. As well as offering additional online services to iPhone users I don't see why there'd be a problem with the name.
Everyone wants a good email account that works properly, why call that email address anything else. Do you suggest @windows instead for windows users' of iPhone's?
That seems a bit silly when the plan is to make iPhone users switch to macs too.
I thought the last upgrade was good, but some new features would be nice, as long as they didn't remove anything useful from the current features.
Back to My Mac has come in useful a number of times, but I don't use it much right now.
I find my email is used a great deal, even more so since I have started university and am very happy with the performance of it.
I now publish my blog through iWeb and the new domain name stuff has really come in useful. I am so much happier with it now.
I recently upgraded to a family account and my sister now has email and a website, so she is happy with the service too.
I use Time Machine primarily for backups, while I had used Backup (from .Mac) before. However, that being said, I use it to backup important files like my keychain and university documents every weekend and it's doing a great job.
I really hope this is not the case either. I think it'd be stupid to change the email, the name of the service doesn't have to match it after all, and I think the "mac" part of it really brings it home to the user that your getting a quality product because of the platform you have chosen.
That sounds good actually, and looks good too. Also brings it in line with the whole Apple Computer Inc to Apple Inc name change. Keeping the Apple name first and foremost.
I don't see how that'd help add value to the service over time. Remember you can add google ads to your website and if your getting enough traffic, probably make enough to cover your membership each year.
eWorld has been considered by some to have been the source of Apple's failed Internet opportunity. While the Web was in its infancy and looking for a great interface and content, Apple was competing with the likes of TeleFinder for private bulletin boards.
As I recall, eWorld had the appearance of a hand-drawn b+w Disneyland. Clicking on different areas allowed entrance to a particular service. 'Twas many years ago. Fast forward to 2008 and eWorld has morphed into iTunes.
Daring Fireball via 9 to 5 mac is claiming that they may rename the service to "Mobile Me"
http://www.9to5mac.com/mobile_me
http://daringfireball.net/
http://www.9to5mac.com/mobile_me
http://daringfireball.net/
GEnie
And I still have my GEnie coffee mug.
Wonder if it will be worth a lot more next week?
-hh
Meaningless, they have a zillion things registered in patents that will never see the light of day.
"Mobile Me" just sounds so.... microsoft
I really want updates to .mac, though. I like the service, but I don't love it, and I want to love it. I do find the iDisk pretty useful though. And I love the mail.
i reckon limited access to iphone only features if you dont buy the whole package.
I use it for web hosting, mail, contacts and cals over 4 macs, bookmarks, keychain, back to my mac, many things.
All of that 'seamless integration' exists when you use iWeb to "publish to a folder", then FTP the whole thing onto any domain.
The only difference is that iWeb will do incremental updates if you're using .mac, which saves you bandwidth (and thus time)
But that's not honestly a feature - - let's call a Spade a Spade: that is purely crippleware within iWeb that's intended to push you to .mac services, because there is utterly no technical reason why that feature can't be domain-host insensitive.
When Apple has to underhandedly employ crippleware to get me to buy one of their Services, that's acting like Microsoft and is motivation enough for me to avoid said product like the plague.
-hh
To Apple execs: how about a pricepoint of < $40 for this overpriced underdelivered item of yours...
I tried to use .Mac and really wanted to like it....but it was so deathly SLOW that it was unusable for my needs. I got a regular server and my own .com name and that was much cheaper and a LOT faster and it does most of what .Mac could have been doing for me. Apple needs to concentrate on getting the SPEED up to what other providers have available for users now
All I want from this update is hassle free multi mac file syncing.... iDisk is fine for storage but it isn't too great for keeping any kind of level of continuity between multiple machine...
I think this is a valid point that Apple should address as a large percentage of the mac using community use more than one machine (laptop+desktop combo)
I think this is a valid point that Apple should address as a large percentage of the mac using community use more than one machine (laptop+desktop combo)
Tell me we won't have to change our email address to mobileme, or memobile, sounds like doctor evils side kick mini me.
Some spoke about headless mac code in the .3 update? Finally a machine better than mini not as much as Mac Pro, say 2-4 cores with upgrades available? Heck, why not ask for 4 core now, then add 4-8 cores down the road...now that would be sweet.
Please no mobileme.com
Its all in your name!
I was the same way. I paid for my .mac account 2 years before I even owned a mac. I wanted the @mac in my email, and I like not having advertisements sent out in my emails.
I am stoked for any kind of update as long as I keep my @mac.com
Your love or hate of .Mac probably depends on a few things:
1) - how much $99 is worth to you. The higher your income, the less of a concern the price becomes. Harsh, but true.
2) - how geeky you are. There may be free services, or cheaper services to accomplish all the same tasks, but if you're not interested in figuring them out (whether lazy or technically challenged), .Mac provides a pretty good all in one package for the those who don't mind the added expense.
3) - how many Macs you're using and how important it is for you to have them all synced up seamlessly in terms of bookmarks, address book, calendar, dock icons, widgets, password keychains, mail account settings, and even third party stuff like TextExpander snippets, and Transmit options. Please before you flame me for this one, go back to 1 & 2.
Generally, how I value this convenience is based on my own needs, disposable income, and interest in seeking other alternatives. Your mileage may vary, and there's nothing wrong with that. If it's of value to some, why hate on them just because you don't find the value?
1) - how much $99 is worth to you. The higher your income, the less of a concern the price becomes. Harsh, but true.
2) - how geeky you are. There may be free services, or cheaper services to accomplish all the same tasks, but if you're not interested in figuring them out (whether lazy or technically challenged), .Mac provides a pretty good all in one package for the those who don't mind the added expense.
3) - how many Macs you're using and how important it is for you to have them all synced up seamlessly in terms of bookmarks, address book, calendar, dock icons, widgets, password keychains, mail account settings, and even third party stuff like TextExpander snippets, and Transmit options. Please before you flame me for this one, go back to 1 & 2.
Generally, how I value this convenience is based on my own needs, disposable income, and interest in seeking other alternatives. Your mileage may vary, and there's nothing wrong with that. If it's of value to some, why hate on them just because you don't find the value?
I have a .Mac family account and I use email, BTMM, and sync services. I have found iDisk to be almost totally useless because of its (lack of) speed, and I don't use iWeb or iPhoto so I don't get any use out of those parts of the .Mac service. My major complaints have been speed (or lack thereof) and downtime; it seems like .Mac email has had quite a few outage problems of late. If this revamp fixes some of these problems, I may renew my subscription, but if these problems continue, I may be forced to look for another service. We shall see.
$99.00 for life would be more accurate....or maybe free with purchase, 9.99 a year......this would get more .mac users in a flash.
.mac is pretty cool. I have my own website, so know what .mac is missing but for web gallery and insta-website, its pretty cool.
iweb needs more control, flash, (integrated) and ability to make your own templates like dreamweaver, iweb needs to be deeper but still easy to use.
Something tells me, .mac and iphone along with revamped iweb is in store.
I would really like broader syncing abilities (ala SugarSync and dropbox) I use .Mac to sync iCal, Address Book and bookmarks and it works (mostly) but I would really like to sync other files (iWeb, checkbook register program) between my home iMac and macbook. I shouldn't have to buy other services to do what .Mac and iDisk should do well. (I have made attempts at syncing using funky iDisk configurations, but it is very unreliable and slow)
GEnie
I remember using my mom's AppleLink account back in '85 as well (she was an employee, and I was spoiled with whatever the latest and greatest machine in pre-production at the time like the mac luggable LOL). If I remember right, they switched from GE to Q-link (AKA AOL) in like 89 or so
iphone idisk access!
I think this would be a home run for apple: provide idisk access for the iphone. Apps on the iphone would access idisk as though it were a mounted volume. This would open up the possibility for iphone apps to save files and edit existing ones without having to open up file access directly on the iphone.
Though, I would think this would be dependent on speedy idisk access- if it is really as slow as everyone says, it wouldn't work out all that well. It probably would be a no-go for edge users.
I think this would be a home run for apple: provide idisk access for the iphone. Apps on the iphone would access idisk as though it were a mounted volume. This would open up the possibility for iphone apps to save files and edit existing ones without having to open up file access directly on the iphone.
Though, I would think this would be dependent on speedy idisk access- if it is really as slow as everyone says, it wouldn't work out all that well. It probably would be a no-go for edge users.
