How long will Apple's iCloud last?

Apple has a poor track record when it comes to internet services. It has launched them almost like clockwork every three years and has then shut them down and abandoned them. Anyone remember .iTools, .Mac. Mobile Me, Ping? OK, Ping is still with us, but it is on its deathbed. There has been talk of poor numbers of people using it and little enthusiasm. It's only two years old, so it has one more year at most and then it will be closed. All the news stories around the web can't be wrong.

The problem Apple has is a clash of cultures. The internet is open and Apple is closed. Anyone can use the internet from anywhere, any operating system, any computer, any software and any device. Apple like to lock things down, reduce the options to a minimum, and totally control everything. It doesn't work with the internet.

Take Ping for example. It can only be accessed from within iTunes and there is no web access, no third party clients, no access on devices, computers and operating systems that don't have iTunes. It is not the only reason Ping is failing, but it is probably the biggest one. How do I check Ping or post a comment when all I have on me is my Android phone, or when I'm on my lunch break at work and my computer doesn't have iTunes? It's bad enough having to run iTunes just to access Ping.

iCloud has similar problems and unless Apple changes it, it will fail like all of the company's previous internet efforts.

There are two parts to iCloud and one is the syncing of calendars, notes, reminders, and so on. This mostly works, although I've had to turn it off on my iPad, but that's another story. It is the online file storage that Apple has got completely wrong and it must change significantly if it is to be useful.

The problem is that Apple has simplified and locked down online storage to such a degree that it is unusable. Run TextEdit for example, and you can store files online in iCloud. No other application can access those files, only TextEdit. Run Preview and you can store files online in iCloud, but no other application can access those files. So TextEdit can't open a file stored by Preview and vice versa.

You can't access the files of either app on an iPhone or iPad because they don't have Preview or TextEdit. You can't access the files by logging in to iCoud with a web browser, you can't access them from a Windows PC or an Android phone or tablet. You can't even access them from another Apple Mac unless you're logged in to iCloud with your own ID, which may not be possible if the Mac isn't yours.

Storing files online in iCloud is only useful for Pages, Numbers and Keynote. These are available on iOS devices and so can share files with the Mac. What's more, you have internet access through the iCloud website. There's an iWork section in iCloud that enables you to view your files and download them or even upload files. (iWork is another abandoned internet service.)

I see no reason to use iCloud for file storage except for rare occasions where I want to work on the same file in Pages, Numbers or Keynote on my Mac and iPad at the same time. This is actually quite rare. To make internet services useful Apple has to open them up. All apps with iCloud access should be able to see all file stored on iCloud. There should also be access to your files through a web browser, the ability to restore deleted files or even previous versions of files. Other services do this, why can't Apple?