.Mac

Infobox Software
name = .Mac



caption = The main page of .Mac when signed in.
developer = Apple Inc.
released = January 5, 2000
latest_release_version =
latest_release_date = January, 2006
operating system = Mac OS X / Web Based
genre = Internet suite
license =
website = [http://www.apple.com/dotmac/ www.apple.com/dotmac/]
status = Replaced (July 9, 2008)

.Mac (pronounced and sometimes written as "Dot Mac") was a collection of online services and software offered by Apple Inc. Originally and collectively provided as a free service called iTools (and at the time offered exclusively to Mac OS users), .Mac became a subscription-based service with features applicable to users of all current, major computer platforms. On July 8, 2008, .Mac was replaced by MobileMe. [ [http://www.apple.com/mobileme/ Apple - MobileMe ] ]

History of .Mac

The original Internet software and services today known as .Mac were first called "iTools"; it had no relation to Tenon's Web application with the same name. Announced and released at Macworld Expo San Francisco on January 5, 2000, iTools was made available free of charge for Mac OS 8 and 9 users. While some features of iTools were accessible via non-Mac platforms (such as modifying HomePage content with Internet Explorer on a Microsoft Windows-based PC, or accessing an iDisk via WebDAV in later iterations), iTools was primarily a Mac-only offering and provided only limited, discussion board-based technical support.

As costs rose (most particularly due to iDisk storage space; the wide demand for e-mail accounts ending in "@mac.com"; and increasing support needs), iTools was relaunched as a subscription-based suite of services with a dedicated technical support team and was renamed as ".Mac" at Macworld Expo New York on July 17, 2002 [ [http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2002/jul/17dotmac.html .Mac announcement] ] . The new .Mac initially offered several new or upgraded tools to subscribers:

* HomePage - a personal web hosting service
* iDisk - an online disk storage service
* @mac.com - e-mail service provider offering both POP and IMAP protocols
* Backup - a personal back-up solution that allows users to archive data to their iDisk, CD or DVD.
* iCards - an online greeting card service

As iDisk made use of WebDAV technology and mac.com was an IMAP service, these services could be accessed from any other computer platform (although a Mac was needed to establish an account).

On September 17, 2002 Apple announced that more than 100,000 .Mac users had subscribed to the company’s .Mac suite of Internet services and software since its launch in July. [ [http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2002/sep/17dotmac.html .Mac users] ]

On September 30, 2002, the iTools service was discontinued, though .Mac continued as a subscription service. This move generated a mixed reaction among the Macintosh community, with some believing that .Mac was overpriced. ["Net surfers are getting the message: Pay up" Seattle Post-Intelligencer Reporter, August 13, 2002] Until June 15, 2005, .Mac subscribers received a free copy of McAfee's Virex virus scanner.

In October 2006, Apple launched an update to its .Mac Mail service that now closely resembles the experience of the Mac OS X Mail application. The new functionality is built on top of AJAX and provides rich user experience such as drag-and-drop, a live-updating three-way split view, and ability to resize panels. [ [http://www.mac.com/1/webmail.html .Mac mail] ]

In a special event in August 2007, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the following changes to .mac:
* A new Web Gallery feature, similar to Flickr and YouTube combined
* 10 Gigabytes of total storage for all standard customers (meaning that 1GB customers now have 10GB) for no additional charge; 2GB/5GB users now have 20GB/30GB respectively
* 100/200/300 GB transfer at no additional charge

Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard" uses .Mac to provide dynamic DNS services for its Back to My Mac feature, a remote desktop service.

At WWDC on June 9th, 2008 Apple announced that .Mac would be replaced by MobileMe in early July 2008.

.Mac ceased operations at 8:00 PM Pacific Time, July 9, 2008. [ [http://www.mac.com/ MobileMe ] ]

Pricing

.Mac was a subscription-based service priced at $99.95 USD per year. Existing iTools accounts were transitioned to .Mac accounts during a free trial period that ended on September 30, 2002. As of August 7, 2007, each .Mac account came with 10 GB of storage space that could be divided between E-mail storage for an "@mac.com" email address and the user's iDisk. An account preference allowed the user to decide how much storage space to allocate to either service as they see fit. Users who desired additional storage capacity could purchase some for a higher annual fee, up to 30 GB total (before August 7, 2007 it was 4GB). The storage space for both E-mail and an iDisk could be used in any manner the user deemed necessary, subject to the terms of the .Mac license agreement). The iDisk could be mounted as a normal volume on any Mac OS desktop, and it was also accessible to any computer able to connect to a WebDAV-enabled volume.

.Mac was also offered in a boxed version, available at stores and online (as a physical product). The box contained an activation code that was entered when registering or renewing a subscription. The average price of the boxed version was around $99 USD, or $149 USD for the family pack.

Apple also offered a US$30 Instant Savings off the cost of the first year of a .Mac membership with the purchase of a new Mac. [ [http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=E107CAB7&fnode=home/shop_mac/mac_accessories/applecare_dotmac&nplm=MA927Z/A The Apple Store (U.S.) - .Mac - Your life. On the Internet ] ]

Mac OS integration

.Mac was closely integrated with the Mac OS, and having .Mac extended the functions of many programs, most notably within the iLife suite. Among the most notable:
* iDisks could be mounted as any other volume on the Mac OS desktop. Furthermore, it was possible to mount the public portion of another user's iDisk. This mechanism was one of the early ways to receive free software as part of .Mac. It was possible to queue files for upload to an offline iDisk, though actual uploading was done only when the iDisk is mounted. iDisk commands were located in the 'Go' menu of the Finder.
* Address Book entries, iCal events and to-do entries, Safari bookmarks and, as of Mac OS X 10.4, keychains, mail accounts, mail rules, mail signatures, and smart mailboxes could be synced with the iDisk through iSync (prior to 10.4) or .Mac syncing (in 10.4), allowing easy synchronization between multiple computers.
* iWeb allowed users to create web pages that could be uploaded to iDisk and published.
* Similarly, the iMovie, iPhoto, GarageBand, and iTunes libraries could easily be uploaded to iDisk (subject to various licensing agreements).
* Backup could be used to make backups to iDisk or local media.
* iPhoto could be used for one-click web-publishing of photo albums. Although support of iPhoto 2 has been dropped, this feature still worked for versions of iPhoto shipped with iLife '04 and later. [ [http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306929 .Mac Support] , Article dated 19 December 2007]
*iCal could be used to publish calendars to the web. [ [http://www.mac.com/1/learningcenter/Modules/dmCalendar_index.html Sharing Your Calendar ] ]

Security

.Mac connections were secured by SSL encryption. In addition, iChat users using a .Mac account could encrypt their chats with other iChat .Mac users.

References

External links

* [http://www.mac.com/ .Mac Home Page]
* [http://www.apple.com/dotmac Apple: .Mac Features]
* [http://www.apple.com/dotmac/webgallery.html Apple: .Mac iLife Integration]
* [http://developer.apple.com/internet/dotmackit.html Apple: .Mac Developer Kit]