Along with MobileMe’s launch came the lack of a feature that was in .Mac: Web Bookmark access.
Now, most would say that Apple’s primary excuse for gutting the feature would be that most people didn’t use it. And, I’m sure parsing sync data to display bookmarks in a web format might have taken some adaptation (not much, but some).
However, I think the main reason that Web Bookmarks was removed was in order to promote sales of Apple mobile devices (iPhone and iPod touch). Think about it, web bookmarks are to be used for when you don’t have access to your Mac. If you have one of Apple’s mobile devices on you, you don’t need the feature.
I think that this was a bad move on Apple’s part. Now, I only signed up for MobileMe for the push sync functionality… even Back to My Mac would work fine with perpetual 60 day trials. However, that was one feature I might actually have used.
Remember, in an emergency, you might want to access your bookmark library on someone else’s computer… there are many times when I have press room computer access as part of publishing duties, and having all my Safari bookmarks magically be accessible on any computer would be more than helpful. It should be considered an emergency feature, not a popular one.
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I think it sucks that they pulled the bookmark feature. I did not use it all the time, but having access to your bookmarks across all the platforms rocked. They need to bring it back.
D.
I only noticed this now. I’m really annoyed since just 3 weeks ago it saved me when I set up work at my parents home and discovered I couldn’t connect my parents non-USB keyboard to my Mac mini. I worked for 3 days on my parents Vista machine using my online bookmarks. It could have cost me a bundle (I’m a freelancer) if I couldn’t have accessed my bookmarks at that point.
That is the one feature I use the most and is a major problem. What a let down.
It makes me cRaZy they removed it. I didn’t use it much but it’s invaluable when I need it. It was there and they removed it. It even opened up in a weird popup that didn’t match everything else, it would just fit in.
I’m working a way to just have my computer automagically export it and toss it into my .Mac/MobileMe account so I can get to it…
Gary
I miss it too!
As a workaround, I exported my bookmarks and then dragged that html file to a new iweb page and published that as a (rather ugly) webpage. I suppose I could even have password protected it but there doesn’t seem any need. Somebody with the know-how might even be able to applescript these steps?
Another reason I used bookmarks was when I was using a browser other then Safari (like Firefox). I really miss not having access to my bookmarks online.
While I agree about the SMS tool, I think that was done for a different reason. Apple’s iPhone has been widely panned for lacking Bluetooth features (OBEX, contact transfer, FTP, etc). This is, of course, a control mechanism imposed by Apple.
And I still believe Apple will seed these features out over the course of the next couple of years (particularly with Bluetooth accessories)… perhaps with their own “Made for iPhone” encoding/licensing requirements. Much like Boot Camp was ready on day one, most of these features are finished and good to go, only waiting for the right time to “announce” them to boost stock values… and morale.
I’m not saying Apple’s evil for doing it either, they have a great product and they are slowing down the rate that it improves, so that the competition doesn’t ever see the whole picture at once.
The bottom line with the Address Book integration was that it proved this point. And, since it proved the point, Apple’s best choice was to erase the feature, and act like it was never there. Like in 1984, Apple never offered Bluetooth SMS/contact support, and they never will.
You can still sync bookmarks over air from mobileme, even if the feature is not visible in mobileme. When enabling syncing, it will sync all boookmarks first time. However, it seems that syncing new bookmarks does not work well.
I found a workaround:
Adding Safari bookmarks to MobileMe