.Mac becomes MobileMe

Now we're talking! As one of those oddballs who's always liked the .Mac online service, I'm excited to see the next iteration: MobileMe, announced at the WWDC event on June 9.

Granted, I'm not – make that, no one is – excited about the service's name. But here are the welcome points:

• Increase in storage from 10GB to 20GB
• New, web-based versions of Contacts, Mail, Gallery, Calendar, and the iDisk interface
• "Push" synchronization of email, contacts, calendars, bookmarks, and many preferences, for multiple Macs, PCs, the iPhone, and the iPod touch
• Near-complete support for Windows PCs and MS Outlook
• Easy emailing of large files, using iDisk download links

The $99 price tag stays the same; the value goes up aplenty - especially if iDisk and oh-so-promising features like Back to My Mac start working properly. There'll be lots to inspect and write about as the service comes online in just a month.

For now, here are a couple of great posts immediately following the announcement of MobileMe:

From iTools to MobileMe
A look at the history leading up to Apple's new MobileMe

MobileMe: .Mac's iPhone-Friendly Replacement
Accolades, disappointments, and questions from Merlin Mann