Microsoft Takes Web Synchronization to a Whole New Level

Via FeedSync, Microsoft takes web synchronization to an entirely new level. FeedSync is essentially an extension of RSS and Atom feeds, which was born as a project from Rray Ozzie, one of the two men to replace Chairman Bill Gates mid 2008, and currently the Chief Software Architect of Microsoft. Of course, FeedSync has also evolved since its initial introduction, when it was presented as a model for data synchronization through Atom and RSS feeds, under the name Simple Sharing Extensions. What is important to note here is the fact that Ozzie is the architect of Microsoft's Software + Services long term strategy, and in this context, synchronization is a key aspect of S+S.

"Today we published the final v1 spec for Simple Sharing Extensions, under a new name, FeedSync. The new name is a little simpler than the old one (kind of ironic!) and it captures the intent pretty well.We also kicked off a new site today, feedsync.org, which explains what FeedSync is about. There is a tutorial walkthrough, and pointers to some sample code in JavaScript, VB, and C# for those who are interested. The FeedSync site has pretty much everything you need to get going," revealed Steven Lees, a member of the CSA Concept Development Team at Microsoft.

Building on top of RSS and Atom, FeedSync enables the development of a "decentralized data bus" that would stretch among various websites, providing cross platform feeds. Microsoft stressed the fact that it did by no means want to replace RSS and ATOM with FeedSync. The fact of the matter is that the Redmond company has envisioned FeedSync as the next stage in the evolution of the RSS and Atom notification mechanisms, but it componentizes the two technologies and does not take them out of the equation.

"FeedSync extends RSS and Atom so that FeedSync-enabled RSS and Atom feeds can be used for reliable, efficient content replication and multi-master data synchronization. One of the great benefits of FeedSync is that it doesn�t attempt to replace technologies like RSS, Atom, or Atom Publishing Protocol. Instead, FeedSync is a simple set of extensions that enhances the RSS or Atom feeds that people are already using today," Microsoft added.