Guide to Microsoft's SkyDrive

The day has come when you can start a task on your phone in the middle of nowhere (with cellphone data connection) and wrap it up on the computer in the comfort of your own home. This takes no effort opposed to the older way of doing it involving emailing it to yourself. There are ways to do this on most major mobile and desktop operating systems. This is great for setting appointments on a phones calendar or stating a homework assignment. For me it's great for writing. Using a Windows Phone 7 device brings a mobile version of the famous Microsoft office, which is great when you have an idea on a topic to write but are nowhere near a computer.

This magnificent thing is thanks to the clouds, well cloud computing that is. This is based on the visualization of storing data in the clouds for instant access from the sky. SkyDrive is Microsoft's version and, in my opinion, the most valuable incarnation of this heavenly storage. It only requires a Windows Live account (Xbox live and Hotmail accounts Work too). SkyDrive far exceeds the others due to the free 25 GB of free storage to any of its users, opposed to rival apple's 5 GB with its newly launched iCloud.

Using SkyDrive may seem so easy that it can be intimidating, but after taking a step back, it really is that easy. If using a windows phone, the first time you open your photos you'll be prompted to sync with SkyDrive. If you're like I was, this will seem a little unnecessary, but it's totally worth it. Through SkyDrive on your mobile device you can save pictures to Facebook, Windows live, twitter and many other social media recourses directly from your picture album. This skips a few steps necessary to other Mobile platforms. Also with SkyDrive's seamless integration with Windows Live it allows you to link it with all of your favorite Social networks. You can access your live feeds all in one pre-installed application on your Windows Phone 7 device called the 'people' app.

If you're one of the millions of people who require Microsoft Office, at home or the office, you can easily back up all of your documents to SkyDrive to be easily accessed from any other computer or Windows Phone 7 device. All it requires is to click file, share and SkyDrive in that order. Quite simple if you ask me.

Accessing your SkyDrive is easier than you could imagine from another computer, and even easier from a Windows mobile phone. Just visit SkyDrive.live.com and sign in with your windows live account. Right there you can check your email, message people from many different social networks and access your SkyDrive (which is set up like the familiar Windows Explorer). Office documents can even be accessed and edited form a bowser-version of Microsoft Office. As far as seamless integration goes for devices, Microsoft has nailed it with SkyDrive and Windows Live.

Accessing your Documents from a you're Windows Phone 7 is easier than you could ever imagine. All WP7 devices have office pre-installed. You can make quick notes in One Note or start and edit Word and Excel documents. You can even edit PowerPoint on your Mobile device (though a new PowerPoint document cannot be started).

Always on the move? Now you can keep working while you're going. Edit your presentation on your phone while on a subway. You can even write a grocery list on the computer to be accessed from the grocery store. Stuck in a waiting room or ever-dreaded DMV but have a new idea for a book? Go ahead and start. All of this is made possible by Microsoft's invention of SkyDrive.