What is Live Mesh?
6th December 2008
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Live Mesh is a synchronisation utility that lets you keep those all-important files and folders synced between your different computers and workstations by creating a virtual desktop. It is part of Microsoft’s venture into the new phenomenon that is ‘cloud computing’. Mesh builds on the existing Live FolderShare service but is more advanced with its promise of multi-device synchronisation, remote desktop functionality and online storage of up to 5GB.
Branding it with the ‘Live’ moniker underlines Microsoft’s desire to continue building on its platform of software and services to try and out-innovate the current online leaders, Google. As usual with Live software, you can get free access to the service by using your Windows Live ID.
The user interface borrows a lot from Microsoft’s already burgeoning supply of Live applications. It looks and feels like Live Messenger with pop-ups in your system tray updating you with changes to your files and folders. This is useful for identifying which files have been updated, know when changes have been made to a file, or if anyone has anything to say about a presentation, file or picture that you may have shared. The RSS feed is unique to the Mesh interface and gives the user that feeling of control over their files.
Microsoft has gone for a simple and familiar look for Mesh’s interface. Users will be either happy or angry to find that Vista’s Windows Explorer has influenced the virtual desktop greatly from its folder template to its file icons.
Syncing is simple. Just nominate the folder you want and add it to your mesh. This can be done both from your Live Desktop and from any of the devices in your mesh. Windows users will see the icons for their synced folders change to blue, while Mac users will see the Mesh logo stamped into the folder icon.
Another feature that Live Mesh enables is integration of remote desktop functionality. This will allow you to view or control any of the machines in your Live Mesh providing it’s switched on and has the Live Mesh application running. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to test the remote desktop feature, due to my systems firewall restrictions.
Installation was quick and painless, all I had to do was add my personal computer to my list of devices and voila: Mesh was installing itself on my desktop. My first test was to add a folder filled with pictures, documents, PDF’s and one music file to the Live Desktop, which took about 20 minutes to complete. Once the upload was finished, I found the news feed notification summarising the list of files I had just uploaded.
On accessing my Live Desktop I discovered that some of the files I had uploaded were missing. I was only able to access five out of the 27 files that were supposed to be synchronised. The second attempt proved to be more successful with all of the files accounted for.
Remote Desktop and drag-and-drop facilities only work on Windows computers right now and only through Internet Explorer with ActiveX controls. To enable this feature, installation of a plug in was required. The tech preview for the Mac doesn’t include the ability to drag and drop files to your Live Desktop but does allow for file synchronisation to take place. Only problem with the Mac tech preview was that it needed two installs before I could get it to work.
There are many things wrong with the Mesh beta, simple yet fundamental things which I would like to see in the final product. The only way to recognise files that have the same name is by the file extension. No thumbnails, properties or metadata are copied to your Live Desktop. This creates the next problem when you are working remotely to where the original file is stored. There’s no capability to open or edit the files stored on your Live Desktop. The only way to get access to them is to download a local copy and then uploading again.
The Mac preview shows that Microsoft is trying to become a better citizen in the Apple ecosystem. The objective for Live Mesh is universal access from any number of devices including mobile devices, which again is in early beta stages.
Microsoft faces stiff competition, where alternatives have already made their name. Products like DropBox, BeInSync, SugarSync and Syncplicity are all web-based services, which keeps your data accessible and up-to-date.
If you’re not quite ready to trust Microsoft with your files, DropBox is a free alternative service available today. Like Mesh, it allows you to synchronise and share files. It’s available cross-platform for Windows, Mac and Linux users.
Live Mesh is a work in progress, but with Microsoft’s commitment to challenge Google for the crown of all things PC, expect to see better versions and more additions to their Live platform, especially since they have opened it up to the development community with no holds barred.
by Ahsanul Islam on 06/12/2008
