Documents in the Cloud
The biggest addition is called Documents in
the Cloud. This feature allows the app you’re using to store your documents in
the cloud, wirelessly and remotely; you can then access them from any computer
or iOS device you’ve linked to iCloud that has that app installed.
Unlike the traditional Finder, Documents in
the Cloud puts each app in its own iCloud Document Library; the service has no
master list of all your cloud-based documents. That could create some confusion
if you use multiple apps – various text-editing programs, for example – to edit
the same kinds of documents.
When you open a file in an iCloud-supported
app, the Document Library window pops up. It looks similar to the template
selection window of apps such as Pages, consisting of a single-pane window with
the dark-linen background showing files as icons or in a list (your choice).
When it’s in Icon mode, you can organize files by name or date; List mode lets
you sort by size, too. At the top of the window, you’ll find a search bar (in
case your list of files grow unwieldy) and a toggle that switches from your
Document Library to the standard Open dialog box for files on your Mac.
The first time you use an iCloud-enabled
app, its library will be empty. You can populate it by dragging files from your
Mac or from the Document Library of another application into hat library
window. By default, files you drag move to the Document Library – just as they
would if you dragged the file from one folder on your hard drive to another
folder.
If you want to put a copy of the file in
iCloud rather than moving it, you must hold down the Option key as you drag the
item into or out of the Documents Library. You can duplicate a file within your
Documents Library by holding down the Option key, dragging it out, and then
dragging it back into the window; alternatively, you can Control-click (or
right-click) the document in question and select Duplicate.
It’s possible to organize your files into
folders in a Document Library. You do so iOS-style, by dragging one file’s icon
on top of another’s to create a folder containing both items. Unfortunately,
you can’t nest folders, but you can drag them from a Document Library to the
Finder (or to another Document Library) just as you would a file.
Opening a file in the Document Library is
as simple as double-clicking it. Files stored in iCloud retain their full
version history, so you can use Auto Save, restore past versions of your files,
and duplicate them with ease.
Back in the Document Library, you can share
files by selecting them and clicking the share button (or by control-clicking
[or right-clicking] the file). Though you can’t share folders, you can select
multiple files; not all sharing services support such selections, though.
(Twitter only lets you share one picture at a time).
If you no longer want a file you can move
it to the Trash by dragging it there or by Control-clicking) it and selecting
Move To Trash. Once you do so, that file will be inaccessible from all
iCloud-connected devices.
When Mountain Lion initially shipped,
Apple’s TextEdit, Preview, and iWork suite all supported Documents in the
Cloud. Third-party developers can also integrate if those programs are sold in
the Mac App Store; apps that aren’t in the Store can’t support Documents in the
Cloud.
App
library: With Documents in the Cloud, each compatible app gets its own library
of cloud-based documents.
Files
and folders: As in iOS, you can create folders by dragging one item on top of
another– in this case, a pair of TextEdit documents. Unfortunately, you can’t
create folders within folders.
Files
and folders: As in iOS, you can create folders by dragging one item on top of
another– in this case, a pair of TextEdit documents. Unfortunately, you can’t
create folders within folders.
Now your tasks and text snippets sync
through the new Reminders and Notes apps, respectively.
Syncing system
Mountain Lion also supports several new
iCloud syncing options. Your mail, calendars, and contacts still sync that way.
Now, however, your tasks and text snippets sync through the new Reminders and
Notes apps, respectively, rather than by way of Calendars and Mail, which
handled those chores in Lion.
Speaking of Mail, iCloud syncs a bit more
of your data now, covering recent senders, favorites, signatures, flag names,
smart mailboxes and mail rules (across OS X only), and your account
information.
Safari also gets an iCloud boost: Synced
tabs allow you to start browsing the Web on your iPhone and immediately pick up
where you left off on your Mac. Macs running Mountain Lion have cloud icon in
the Safari toolbar; click it, and you’ll see a list of your iCloud-enabled
devices and any open Safari tabs or windows below them.
Unfortunately, you can’t manually refresh
this list, so you have to wait for iCloud to catch up and perform a sync
operation if you’ve just opened a new browser tab on one device; that said, the
process is usually fairly quickly, talking no more than a minute or two.
Gone,
gone, gone: Delete a file from a Document Library and it disappears from all from
iCloud-connected devices, too.
Sharing
One of the many features that Mountain Lion
has borrowed from iOS is the idea of system-wide sharing. In many apps you’ll
see a Share button (an arrow popping out of a box), which makes it easy to
disseminate whatever you’re viewing – files in the Finder, websites in Safari,
and the like. While in the past you might have copied and pasted a URL into
your Twitter client, now you can share that link right from your browser.
Social sharing
By default, Mountain Lion lets you share
items through built-in OS X apps and services, such as Mail or iMessage. But
sharing is extensible in a couple of different ways.
For one thing, you can add accounts for
Flickr, Twitter, Vimeo, and (later this year) Facebook in the Mail, Contacts
& Calendars preference pane; those accounts then become available as
options in Share menus. You can enter multiple accounts for some services, such
as Twitter, and pick on a per-post basis which one you want to use.
Visual
cue: When you share a file, OS X provides a handy reminder of the file type and
the person you’re sharing it with.
What happens when you choose Share varies
depending on what you’re sharing and the service you’re posting to Twitter or
Facebook, you get a sheet on which you can fill in your post, and a button that
adds your location. When adding photos to Flickr or videos to Vimeo, you can
add a title, description, and tags, and set the permissions levels. Apple also
provides a handy visual cue to show what files or information you’re sharing –
it attaches a thumbnail of the content to the sheet with a paper-clip graphic.
