Live Mesh .. we barely knew ye ..

That’s actually not true .. but it was so catchy.

I’ve been using Windows Live Mesh since it first came out in Technology Preview in 2008. Originally the brainchild of Ray Ozzie (some would say the master of sync), Microsoft has made the decision to discontinue the service in favor of SkyDrive, another product with similar synchronization functionality.

Live Mesh offered folder synchronization with Mesh Synced Storage (under several other names, but essentially an early version of SkyDrive), and the capability to connect multiple machines into your provide synch network (a “device mesh” in 2008 terminology). Mesh or SkyDrive, synchronization has some great features:

If you’re a user of multiple PCs or other devices, synchronization gives you the ability to drop files into synched folders:

• Very handy if you leave a desktop machine at your work and want to manage those files when you get home. Your work is waiting for you when you arrive.
• Also handy for working on the go .. Mesh had a Windows Phone component.
• World-wide accessibility, either by PC, device or by downloading files from the web.

The coolest of the cool: synchronization with cloud storage effectively eliminated the need to do PC backups .. all you need to do is sync the folders you want to protect and your backup worries are over.

• Buy a new PC? No problem .. install the sync software first, and your files (including driver and device drivers) will follow you to the new machine.
• Need to rebuild your old machine? See the above.
• Lose your machine entirely? Your work is safely stored in the cloud.

I’ll follow the masses to SkyDrive and give it a good shakeout .. will be interesting to see if it will satisfy my use cases:

• A root folder called ‘sync’ under which I have a number of folders, each shared with different people or machines. I use this for various virtual connections .. pulling files onto cloud servers, and so on.
• A desktop shortcut into which I can simply drop a current file to ensure it will find it’s way to my next machine.
• The ability to share individual folders with specific people or teams .. all while keeping other folders secure for myself or other teams.
• Synchronization of my Email signatures and web favorites.

So, join the crowd and grab SkyDrive. Navigate to http://skydrive.live.com, log in with your LiveID and set up some folders to sync or share. While you’re there, investigate the SkyDrive apps for various devices and applications (including a SkyDrive-synchronized OneNote). There is also a SkyDrive Pro version (call it SkyDrive’s bigger brother) with more capacity (and a price tag).