- How will Docs in the Cloud sync back to the desktop? Tom Reestman and I have been a lively discussion about this on Twitter, and the best we seem to have is assumptions. Jobs said it’ll “work on PCs and Macs” but the details are fuzzy. Will it go back to the Documents folder, or what?
- Will Applications be limited to their own area in Docs in the Cloud, or will we have true data sharing between apps? Can I access the same PDF in both iBooks and GoodReader?
- With WiFi syncing, how will iTunes file transfers work? Call it a hunch, the Apps tab will go away. I hope not, because it’s a great way to get docs onto your iOS device without a network connection.
- Can I tell it to not download iPhone-only apps to my iPad via “automatic downloads?” God I hope so.
And my observations:
Lion will be the last Apple OS with a filesystem. Jobs stuck a fork in that one today. I also believe that the next OS will be OS XI, not OS X. OS XI will be as close to a unification of iOS and OS X as possible. I think the Mac App Store will be the only way to install apps.
I think this is the only way to combat a lot of malware, and by then we simply won’t care about that final loss of control. We’ll have iCloud, our Time Machine backups and what have you. App Store rules will be lessened somewhat for apps like 1Password, or Apple will simply build that into OS XI.
From what I’ve seen in Lion, I welcome the bits of iOS coming in. It looks like the Dock will function as the Springboard in iOS. Crucial, day-to-day apps will go there. My second-tier apps will go into the Launchpad.
Mark Crump 