iCloud vs. Microsoft and Others
I don't remember what cloud service I started using first. It was either DropBox or SugarSync and they are still the primary file sync services I use. To be honest, I think Apple not only missed the boat, but missed the bus that took them to the boat when it comes to cloud services.
I can only speak of what's currently available as I don't yet know what Mavericks will look like when it's released, presumably, on September 10th alongside iOS 7.
In my previous entry, I noted that I had to step backwards out of Windows 8.1 due to some rather annoying issues revolving around the keyboard and mouse on my Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11s - namely that when it was flipped around into Kiosk Mode, the keyboard wouldn't turn off. I didn't blame anybody in that post, if you'd like to go read it, I just jumped back to Windows 8 and have been happy (though anxiously awaiting Windows 8.1).
When I logged into the freshly imaged Yoga with my Microsoft Account, all my settings remained exactly as they had been. My color scheme, Start Screen Background and Desktop Background remained. While it didn't magically install all my applications, it did remember the settings those applications had when I downloaded them from the Microsoft Store.
Currently, iCloud doesn't have that capability. You log into a new device with your Apple ID and it will setup Mail, contacts and Calendars, but it doesn't remember your desktop background, it doesn't remember you settings, it doesn't really remember much of anything aside from Mail, Contacts and Calendars.
Now here are where things get a little confusing...
While it does ask if you want to sync documents between devices, it can only be done in the Application Interface for the Document you want to sync. That means if you have a Pages document you want to sync between devices, you have to have Pages installed on both devices. The interface for those documents is beyond terrible as well. You can't nest folders - meaning that were you like me, you'd have thousands of documents you needed to find a new organizational structure for. I write fiction as well as this blog and have for many years. I have tens of thousands of pages and multiple stories and novels I need to keep track of. It is for this reason that I find SugarSync to be my favorite cloud sync service because it preserves my folder structure across devices.
While DropBox and SkyDrive are both good, I feel they suffer from the same issue: they are specialized folders that sync anything you put into them. Again, I find myself loving SugarSync because it preserves my folder structure.
iCloud syncing suffers from Apple's hubris regarding devices as well. There is no Application you can make use of for Windows to sync files across different platforms - you need to login to the iCloud web interface and drag and drop the document you want out of there. DropBox and SugarSync are platform agnostic and therefor allow you to sync your documents across any device, including Android and, to a degree, iOS.
iOS is another place where document synchronization fails with Apple. The only real way to sync within iOS is iCloud because of how sandboxed everything is. While there are DropBox and SugarSync apps for iOS, your only option to work with documents is to open them through the iWork suite, which won't change the document in DropBox or SugarSync - you have to re-export your document when you're done with it.
The same apps on Android allow you to open the document, work with it and save it all without moving it or have to re-export it. SugarSync even preserves the file structure.
What this entry was supposed to be about was the ease with which I was able to bring back my settings through the use of my Microsoft Account. This has obviously sprouted roots and grown beyond my original scope, but I believe everything I've said here is important to the end user.
The cloud is quickly becoming a turning point for all computing. Google is betting on it with their Chrome OS (which I hate and should be an entirely different entry), Apple tries to show off their hamstrung iCloud service as the next Achilles and Microsoft is making use of SkyDrive. Even Ubuntu's next generation OS is going to have cloud integration.
Using Windows, the best possible experience is to use your Windows Account to synchronize settings and SugarSync to maintain your file structure and keep your documents current between accounts. As an aside, SugarSync offers 5gigs of free storage - well beyond the 2 gigs offered by DropBox.
Either DropBox or SkyDrive will work well for files you just need to have quick access to that don't need to be immediately filed (and give you extra free storage space to boot) or you can build a file structure within those folders if you prefer.
Anyway, I'm obviously not much of a fan of iCloud at this point. If Apple wants to stay relevant, they'll need to fix that within the next five years.
I can only speak of what's currently available as I don't yet know what Mavericks will look like when it's released, presumably, on September 10th alongside iOS 7.
In my previous entry, I noted that I had to step backwards out of Windows 8.1 due to some rather annoying issues revolving around the keyboard and mouse on my Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11s - namely that when it was flipped around into Kiosk Mode, the keyboard wouldn't turn off. I didn't blame anybody in that post, if you'd like to go read it, I just jumped back to Windows 8 and have been happy (though anxiously awaiting Windows 8.1).
When I logged into the freshly imaged Yoga with my Microsoft Account, all my settings remained exactly as they had been. My color scheme, Start Screen Background and Desktop Background remained. While it didn't magically install all my applications, it did remember the settings those applications had when I downloaded them from the Microsoft Store.
Currently, iCloud doesn't have that capability. You log into a new device with your Apple ID and it will setup Mail, contacts and Calendars, but it doesn't remember your desktop background, it doesn't remember you settings, it doesn't really remember much of anything aside from Mail, Contacts and Calendars.
Now here are where things get a little confusing...
While it does ask if you want to sync documents between devices, it can only be done in the Application Interface for the Document you want to sync. That means if you have a Pages document you want to sync between devices, you have to have Pages installed on both devices. The interface for those documents is beyond terrible as well. You can't nest folders - meaning that were you like me, you'd have thousands of documents you needed to find a new organizational structure for. I write fiction as well as this blog and have for many years. I have tens of thousands of pages and multiple stories and novels I need to keep track of. It is for this reason that I find SugarSync to be my favorite cloud sync service because it preserves my folder structure across devices.
While DropBox and SkyDrive are both good, I feel they suffer from the same issue: they are specialized folders that sync anything you put into them. Again, I find myself loving SugarSync because it preserves my folder structure.
iCloud syncing suffers from Apple's hubris regarding devices as well. There is no Application you can make use of for Windows to sync files across different platforms - you need to login to the iCloud web interface and drag and drop the document you want out of there. DropBox and SugarSync are platform agnostic and therefor allow you to sync your documents across any device, including Android and, to a degree, iOS.
iOS is another place where document synchronization fails with Apple. The only real way to sync within iOS is iCloud because of how sandboxed everything is. While there are DropBox and SugarSync apps for iOS, your only option to work with documents is to open them through the iWork suite, which won't change the document in DropBox or SugarSync - you have to re-export your document when you're done with it.
The same apps on Android allow you to open the document, work with it and save it all without moving it or have to re-export it. SugarSync even preserves the file structure.
What this entry was supposed to be about was the ease with which I was able to bring back my settings through the use of my Microsoft Account. This has obviously sprouted roots and grown beyond my original scope, but I believe everything I've said here is important to the end user.
The cloud is quickly becoming a turning point for all computing. Google is betting on it with their Chrome OS (which I hate and should be an entirely different entry), Apple tries to show off their hamstrung iCloud service as the next Achilles and Microsoft is making use of SkyDrive. Even Ubuntu's next generation OS is going to have cloud integration.
Using Windows, the best possible experience is to use your Windows Account to synchronize settings and SugarSync to maintain your file structure and keep your documents current between accounts. As an aside, SugarSync offers 5gigs of free storage - well beyond the 2 gigs offered by DropBox.
Either DropBox or SkyDrive will work well for files you just need to have quick access to that don't need to be immediately filed (and give you extra free storage space to boot) or you can build a file structure within those folders if you prefer.
Anyway, I'm obviously not much of a fan of iCloud at this point. If Apple wants to stay relevant, they'll need to fix that within the next five years.
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