Windows Live Drive

Infobox Software
name = Windows Live Drive



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developer = Microsoft
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genre = File sharing, remote access
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Windows Live Drive, also known as LiveDrive, is a codename for file sharing and remote access service, a part of Microsoft's Windows Live range of services. It is not clear if it is the same project as Windows Live SkyDrive released in 2007 (temporarily known as "Windows Live Folders" [http://www.liveside.net/blogs/main/archive/2007/04/21/hints.aspx New storage service - Windows Live Folders] ] [http://www.liveside.net/blogs/main/archive/2007/08/09/windows-live-folders-renamed-to-skydrive-gets-update-too.aspx Windows Live Folders renamed to Skydrive] ] ), is still in development, or is just an inactive brand.

Early announcements

On 2006-04-19 this service was officially acknowledged by Microsoft's chief technology officer Ray Ozzie in an interview with Fortune Magazine. [ [http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,2180,1951173,00.asp "Microsoft Readies Storage Service to Rival Google's 'Gdrive'" on Microsoft Watch] ] Ray Ozzie stated in the interview: [ [http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/05/01/8375454/index.htm "Microsoft's new brain" on CNNMoney.com Fortune Magazine] ]

And according to Microsoft's global public relations director Adam Sohn: [ [http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-6062971-7.html "Microsoft plans online storage service" on News.com Blog] ]

On 2006-07-11, it was reported at LiveSide blog that Windows Live Drive will only allow files shared on a system to be accessed remotely over the Internet, á la FolderShare, with Windows Live Search Center being used to index and search the remote files. Windows Live Drive, however, will not include any hosted storage, and the shared files will be available as long as the host system was online and connected to the internet. Hosted storage was announced to become part of another Windows Live initiative named Windows Live SkyDrive. [cite web | url = http://www.liveside.net/blogs/main/archive/2006/07/11/Windows-Live-Storage_3A00_-Live-Drive_2C00_-Sky-Drive_2C00_-SDrive_2C00_-Project-M_3F00_.aspx | title = Windows Live Storage: Live Drive, Sky Drive, SDrive, Project M? | author = Kip Kniskern | publisher = LiveSide | accessdate = 2007-06-27]

On 2006-08-24, Microsoft announced at Tech Ed conference in Sydney, that the service would provide free online storage (initially 2 gigabytes), with additional storage available for purchase. It was unknown at this stage whether Windows Live Drive will integrate with FolderShare or not, but the service can be mapped to using Windows Vista. [ [http://news.com.com/Microsoft+reveals+more+about+Live+Drive/2100-1032_3-6109441.html?tag=nefd.top "Microsoft reveals more about Live Drive" on News.com] ]

On 2007-04-21, after several months of silence, the online storage service earlier known as SkyDrive has been released under the name of Windows Live Folders (not to be confused with FolderShare). This is not entirely clear whether Windows Live Drive was merged to this project, [ [http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/windows_live_second_generation.php Windows Live Second Generation] Quote: "the product names continue to chop and change, or there is more than one product doing similar things. e.g. LiveDrive has become Windows Live Folders. And then there is FolderShare, which Microsoft acquired in 2005"] or still is in separate development. [ [http://www.liveside.net/blogs/main/archive/2007/05/12/windows-live-folders-part-iii.aspx Windows Live Folders Part III] "I admit that I used the codename "Live Drive" as opposed to the correct name "Sky Drive" [...] We tried before to correct this error but it didn't work."] [ [http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=631 You say SkyDrive, I say LiveDrive] "Microsoft execs — including Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie himself — led folks astray a while back by using the LiveDrive codename to refer to a 'cloud storage service'. In fact, that service was code-named SkyDrive."]

On 2007-08-09, Windows Live Folders changed its name to Windows Live SkyDrive.

ee also

*Windows Live
**Windows Live FolderShare, a different service
**Windows Live SkyDrive
**Windows Live Messenger

References