Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, the world's largest traditional software company, has begun testing a  so-called cloud computing Web-oriented software platform, called Live Mesh, that combines a person's digital information such as pictures, music and application documents, and makes them manageable online, Microsoft announced Tuesday. The two-way file synchronization platform aims to ease access to data stored across computers and mobile devices, and represents a sea change of sorts for Microsoft, which has previously resisted the growing trend towards information hosted primarily on the Web. To Work With Apple, Other Devices Live Mesh will display a personal desktop page using a Web browser that acts as a hub for managing most popular types of files such as MP3 music, word processing documents and spreadsheet files, making them accessible from any computer or device a user has set up within the Live Mesh system. Ray Ozzie, who helped Microsoft fill the void left when company co-founder Bill Gates left his leadership role, and who is now one of the firm's two chief technology officers, sees the Web playing a greater role in Live Mesh than it has with most previous Microsoft services. "The Web is the hub of our social mesh and our device mesh," Ozzie said recently. Ozzie, who is also Microsoft's chief software architect, is regarded as the primary force driving the company's new Live Mesh platform. In an initial test Live Mesh will be limited to 10,000 United States Microsoft Windows users, who will each have access to 5 gigabytes of free information storage, Microsoft said Tuesday. During the next few months Microsoft plans to expand the Live Mesh test to include those using various other Web-connected devices and computers, such as Apple Macintosh devices and mobile phones, however it did not reveal pricing information. Microsoft Joins Cloud Computing Race At Back Of Pack With Live Mesh Microsoft aims to walk a fine line between promoting a Web-based Live Mesh platform and at the same time advocating its traditional personal computer-based desktop software applications such as its Microsoft Office suite, however the need to do so has likely been prompted by the success of rival firms offering  software services hosted in the online cloud, such as search leader Google, Salesforce.com and others. "As our industry has evolved because of this Web-catalyzed services transformation, so too has Microsoft," noted Ozzie in a Wednesday memorandum to Microsoft employees. The Live Mesh platform allows family members, co-workers and friends to share and collaborate using a wide variety of data, Microsoft said, and noted that it expects to release the service in a broader test version before the end of 2008. Live Mesh includes a free utility called Live Mesh Remote Desktop that allows online control of computers and devices, along with news and notification features, Microsoft said. "Live Remote Desktop builds on the capabilities of Windows Remote Desktop, giving you the ability to directly access and control other devices within your mesh," noted Live Mesh general manager Amit Mital in a Tuesday blog posting on Microsoft's Live Web site. The Live Mesh system will use Windows Live ID information for access, and the initial test will be limited to an English language version. Related Links:
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