Preparation for MobileMe

Switching from .Mac to MobileMe

Syncing data is a tricky business as many of you hove found out using the .Mac Sync services. In addition to those standard .Mac services, are those added problem that came with the OS X 10.5.3 update. There is much hope pinned on tonight’s switch over from the .Mac services to the newMobileMe services. The good news is that you will still be able to use your current @mac.com email address. What is still unknown is how the new sync services will work with the current .Mac preferences, especially since the new services are using push technology.

After much research I have decided to delete my current .Mac sync service until the switch-over is completed and details have been made public how to best use the new services. The only disadvantage of deleting the current services would be if you sync with more than one Mac. Until such time that you reactivate the (MobileMe) sync services there is a potential that the slave Mac(s) will not be updated. The advantage is that you protect your current master Mac from possible data corruption because of sudden problems surfacing with the new MobileMe services.

If you want to deactivate your current .Mac sync services, follow the steps below starting with your designated Master Mac:

1. Open the System Preferences
2. Click on the .Mac icon under the Internet & network section
3. Click on Sync tab
4. Deselect (uncheck) the “Synchronize with .Mac” option
5. Click on Advanced button
6. Select each computer in the list, one at a time, clicking on Unregister after each one and confirming that you do indeed want to unregister them
7. When you’ve unregistered your last computer, another window will appear, asking whether you’d like to delete unused information from .Mac. Put a check mark in each of this window’s check boxes, and click on “Delete” to completely erase your sync data from the .Mac servers

That’s it for now, you no longer are syncing with the .Mac servers. I will post a followup Tips & Hints page after having figured out how to reactivate the sync services using the new MobilMe servers.