Microsoft sends Live Mesh execution-date reminders

Perhaps it is just me, but Microsoft's decision to take Live Mesh off of life-support has hit especially hard. We knew this was coming of course, but still, I like having my files synced between multiple computers and, while I love SkyDrive, I do not need the cloud as an intermediary within my own home -- that is ridiculous overkill and would cost me money as well.

Today the company dispatched email reminders that began "Dear Mesh customer, Recently we released the latest version of SkyDrive, which you can use to..." Yes, thanks a lot. I know what I can use it for, but syncing between computers in my home is not something I should be compelled to use it for.

At any rate, regardless of my rant or your complaints, the outcome is clear and Live Mesh is dead on February 13th -- a bit less than one week from now. (How ironic if Microsoft then used Valentine's Day as marketing ploy to fall in love with SkyDrive.) Your emails and my humble post here are not going to change the direction of one of the biggest companies in the world.

However, there are alternatives. First, if you have less than 7GB of files to sync then you can certainly use SkyDrive -- it really does work well. However, if you have more than that, and do not need the cloud as a middle-man, take a look at the free alternatives. SyncBack SE works great, and I recently learned that, ironically enough, SyncToy is still available.

There are also countless other alternatives. In other words, let us not allow Microsoft to dictate the direction of our computing lives.

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