Access in the Cloud: Beta Testers Required

The Microsoft Sync Framework and SQL Services team are working on a new framework that allows Access developers to store their application and data in a Web 2.0 cloud using SQL Server Data Services, and they are looking for beta testers.

The initiative was announced yesterday at PDC and is code-named Huron, a set of synchronization processes built atop of the sync functionality in SQL Data Services’ cloud database and the Microsoft Sync Framework to provide business database sharing, and offers a a "simple" way to scale data to large numbers of users while not parting from the investment made in current technologies. It also enables users to subscribe and then edit the data locally in the format of their choice whether that is Office Access, SQL Server Express or SQL Server Compact and then push changes into SQL Data Services.

More details are available here on the Access Team Blog.

Live Mesh: The Collaborative Cloud

Live Mesh has left the building. Is this future of the Desktop? Have a look.

At this point it is a shared space in a web browser, with limited collaboration services. Microsoft says it will evolve into browser development platform, where existing (Office?) applications can occupy a browser window.