We are sadly seeing the brand of Windows Live gone but having a new brand called Account that migrates two old brand name Windows Live ID and Passport seem to make sense and fit well for the up coming cloud focused Windows 8.
Along with the emerge of Microsoft Account, Microsoft also announced a number of changes and laid out their cloud service plan for both Windows 8 and Windows Phone, but mostly for the future as well.
And here is the break down of the cloud service in the new world of Windows 8:
Service | Windows 8 | Windows Phone | Web/HTML 5 (live.com) | API (dev. live.com) | Earlier Versions |
Account | Microsoft account | Microsoft account | Account.live.com | OAUTH | Windows Live ID, Passport |
Storage/ Docs | SkyDrive app, SkyDrive Desktop | SkyDrive app, Office app | SkyDrive.com | REST, JSON | FolderShare, Live Mesh, Windows Live Mesh |
Mail app | Mail app | Hotmail.com | EAS | Windows Live Mail, Outlook Express | |
Calendar | Calendar app | Calendar app | Calendar.live.com | EAS, REST | Windows Live Mail, Windows Calendar |
Contacts | People app | People app | People.live.com | EAS, REST | Windows Contacts |
Messaging | Messaging app | Messaging app | Integrated in Hotmail and SkyDrive | XMPP | MSN Messenger |
Photos/ Videos | Photos app, Photo Gallery, Movie Maker | Photos app, Camera Roll | Photos.live.com | REST, JSON (via SkyDrive) | Windows Live Photo Gallery, Windows Live Movie Maker |
As you can see, Microsoft Account is the only thing changed but it’s also the most significant change as well. It’s Microsoft’s identity service for individuals who use Microsoft products and services. For example, you can use your Microsoft account to sign in to your Windows 8 PC, and then use the same account to check your billing for services like Xbox LIVE, Zune, and the Windows 8 app store. You can sign up a Microsoft Account with any email address but with an additional verification information including your mobile phone to add another level of security.
One of the tool I use on daily basis to keep this website active is the Windows Live Writer but since it wasn’t mentioned in the plan the fate of this awesome blogging tool is uncertain. Hopefully, it’s rather overlooked in the table above than being dropped.
[via Building Windows 8]