The unexampled ambition in computation is keep all of your single file in “ the cloud , ” on remote servers that you’re able to access from anywhere at any time . Apple ’s swarm - found syncing and storage service of process , iCloud , debut in June 2011 . Still , only since the release of OS X Mountain Lion that enough diligence have begin to suffer iCloud document synchronise for this characteristic to be useful . Working with iCloud is fairly simple , but you need to know the dry land rule if you plan to set off storing your documents in the cloud .
Activate Documents & Data
If you do n’t have a free iCloud account , or if you ’re just starting out with it , this articlewill give you an overview of how to set up a new iCloud account . To hive away documents in the swarm — no matter which lotion puts its data file there — you also need to aerate theDocuments & Datasetting in theiCloudpane in System Preferences , as well as in the options of any iOS machine you plan to apply ( to do so , selectSettings > iCloud ) . Once you ’ve done this , any iCloud - compatible app can stash away files in iCloud .
Search out compatible apps
For now , only a limited number of software can store files in iCloud . Byfiles , I mean documents that you create , not datum that an covering such as Calendar stores in the cloud . On the Mac , many of Apple ’s apps do stomach iCloud , including Preview , TextEdit , the iWork ’ 09 cortege ( Pages , Numbers , andKeynote ) , andGarageBand .
Third - company apps that store documents in the cloud let in text editors such asiA Writer , Byword , andSmultron ; the PDF editor PDFpen ; the graphics editorPixelmator ; and some others . At this point , compatible programs can acquire files in Microsoft Office format , but Microsoft Office itself does n’t support iCloud .
Note that Apple letsonlyapps betray through the Mac App Store use iCloud to store documents . If your best-loved productivity app is only sell direct by the developer , you ’re out of luck .
Save documents to the cloud
If you ’re using an app that can save document in the swarm , doing so is fairly simple . Say you ’re using TextEdit . After you ’ve create a Modern document , press Command - S , and verify the Where menu prove iCloud . Name the file and clickSave , and the document will be sent to the cloud .
Once you ’ve carry through a file to the swarm , you could get at it from multiple machine . Say you have a desktop Mac and a laptop ; you could salvage any files you want on the road in iCloud and access them from either computer as long as you use the same app .
Open documents saved in the cloud
To afford files you ’ve save to iCloud , insistency Command - O in an iCloud - savvy program , then select the iCloud button . You ’ll see something like this :
Note that in the above screenshot you see a folder . To create a folder , just drag one data file on top of another , as you would with icons on an iPhone or iPad . Name the pamphlet , and it ’ll be saved on iCloud .
Move existing files to the cloud
You may have a number of files on your Mac that you ’d care to put in the swarm ; this is straight . Just open a file cabinet with an program that can put documents on iCloud , chooseFile > Move To , then chooseiCloudfrom theWheremenu . If you want to move a file from the cloud to your Mac , tap theWheremenu and find the folder where you require to aim the data file . If the folder where you desire to move the data file is n’t in the menu , chooseOtherfrom the bottom of the bill of fare , and voyage to the localization you desire .
Learn to live within one app
iCloud is a great place to store files that you need to get at on multiple Macs . However , there are limits , some of which may be mint - breakers . The primary problem is that files are accessibleonlyto the applications that make them . If you create a filing cabinet with TextEdit , for example , you could save that file in a number of formats , such as RTF and .doc , the Microsoft Word format . However , you ca n’t open those files with Word . In fact , you ca n’t open those file with anything other than TextEdit , at least not from iCloud .
you may , of course , move a file from iCloud to your Mac , as I explained above , and then open it with Word , but this adds an extra step . Frankly , if you require to die files between different applications , you’re in all likelihood better off using Dropbox .
Find files that don’t appear on iOS devices
Apple ’s iWork programs — Pages , Numbers , and Keynote — have iOS equivalents that permit you access file you produce on your Mac on your iPad or iPhone . But , the same is not the case for , say , TextEdit or Preview .
If you redeem a TextEdit file in the cloud , it ’s in a black yap as far as iOS is occupy . When you go to your telephone , for example , there ’s no path you may access it — it ’s in the cloud , but your iPhone does n’t have the keys to open its container . While you’re able to move files from the swarm to your Mac , there ’s no way to do this on an iOS gadget . You ’ll require to go back to your Mac to ascertain your single file and move it .
Depending on what you need to do , a number of third - party text editor can help fill the iCloud gap . For instance , the textual matter editors iA Writer and Byword both have both Mac and iOS version . If you require to write on your Mac , and then switch to your iPad , either of these apps ( along with some other textual matter editors ) will allow you to do this .
Access your iCloud files in the finder
While trusting your files to iCloud means bank them to servers somewhere out in the ethoxyethane , the filing cabinet are also store on your Mac . In fact , they are stash away in a jolly left folder that seems to be for good connected to the swarm , as long as you have Internet access .
you may see this folder from the Finder by choosingGo - > Go To Folderand then typing~/Library / Mobile Documents / and click onGo . In this leaflet , you ’ll see a number of other pamphlet , some oddly name , but all of which carry the names of software .
For exercise , in the com ~ apple ~ TextEdit booklet , you’re able to see some of the files in the 2d screenshot above . If you take to get at any file cabinet that are on iCloud , it ’s a lot prompt to re-create them from this folder than it is to open an software and move a single file . you’re able to even make a fresh booklet that find all the documents in this local iCloud folder : seethis tinge on the Mac OS X Hints websitefor more .
iCloud is a majuscule idea , and can be very useful . As long as you know what its limit are , iCloud can become an essential part of your workflow . We ’d like to see more flexibleness with applications , so that you could create a Indian file in one app and then access it from another . But , for now , you just need to be aware of these limitations .
