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05/30/2008, 10:15am, EDT

Friday, May 30th

.Mac service to be renamed?

Apple's .Mac online service -- which provides functions such as web hosting, file storage and data sync -- may be nearing a substantial revision, code exploration indicates. Buried within the new v10.5.3 update for Mac OS X are several strings of code which imply that the .Mac name will be dropped, although a new name has not yet been chosen. In iCal's Localizable.strings file, for example, code can be found that reads: "/* Label of .Mac button in iCal’s General preferences. %@ is the new name of Apple’s online service (was .Mac) (remove -XX02)."

This ambiguity extends to the Localizable file for Safari: "/* Title of .Mac alert sheet, with .Mac brand name subsituted */
"You need a %@ account that has syncing enabled" = "You need a %@ account that has syncing enabled";
."

Finally, Mail's Prefs.strings file has been altered, and now contains:

"/* Title of button used to open the .Mac system preference pane. */
“AOS_SYNC_BUTTON_FORMAT” = “%@…”;"

"/* Descriptive text for .Mac Sync. */
“AOS_SYNC_FORMAT” = “Use %@ to synchronize Accounts, Rules, Notes, Signatures, and Smart Mailboxes.”;
."

Apple may be intending to announce a revised .Mac at its WWDC conference on June 9th, but no evidence to this effect has so far appeared. This could also require a v10.5.4 update to the Mac OS, which would likely take at least one or two months to implement.


Filed under: networking, Apple
Other story tags: Mac OS X, .Mac

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oops

-4
05/30, 10:37am, EDT

Or, it could be Apple's engineers playing games on the mac community. Punk'd!

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Aug 2001
User is offline

Big

2
05/30, 10:39am, EDT

Big overhaul with functionality that gives push OTA sync calendar!

Mac Enthusiast
Joined Jul 2003
User is offline
05/30, 11:04am, EDT

what they need to overhaul is iWeb.

Dedicated MacNNer
Joined Aug 2003
User is offline

maybe

5
05/30, 11:12am, EDT

maybe they'll make it worth the $99 :)

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Feb 2004
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.Mac

1
05/30, 11:12am, EDT

If all they do is rename the service, this will be a huge yawner.
If they give it a major overhaul, with a significant capacity increase, new services and must-have features, then it may just get me to keep my .Mac account when it's due to renew in Fall this year. I've been on the fence about whether or not I want to keep paying the amount they ask for it, since Apple has done so little with it in the last year.

Let's hope something big is in store for the service to keep it relevant!

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Apr 2005
User is offline

alternative explanation

0
05/30, 11:14am, EDT

Maybe Apple will allow to synch with services other then .Mac? Latest Address Book already supports synching with gmail. What if this functionality will be expanded across other parts of Mac OS X?

iWeb

-3
05/30, 11:34am, EDT

iWeb = Part of iLife
iLife = iWeb, iPhoto, iMovie, iDvd, Garageband
Standalone Cost = $79
Free on your new computer

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Oct 2007
User is offline

Re: iWeb

3
05/30, 11:48am, EDT

Uhm... this article is about .Mac, not iWeb. THe poster that said $99 is referring to the $99/year price tag for .Mac - which is well worth it for some, not for others.

Professional Poster
Joined Sep 1999
User is offline

Here we go again with $99

-3
05/30, 11:50am, EDT

Retail is for suckers.

- Cosmo Kramer

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Aug 2001
User is offline

@hayesk

1
05/30, 11:52am, EDT

I stand corrected. I combined two comments.
Well worth it for some and not others. Like everything in life.
We'll never be able to please everyone.

Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Oct 2007
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