Microsoft's new version of Live.com is exposed; online hard drive SkyDrive is set to launch.

August 9th, Beijing Time - According to Arlington of the American Internet blog TechCrunch, at a recent meeting in Tokyo, Japan, Tetuya Onoda, director of Microsoft's Live website project, gave a demonstration of the new version of the Live.com interface. It was confirmed that Microsoft's online storage service SkyDrive is about to be launched.

The new personalized Live.com interface has seen significant improvements compared to the current one, with a more aesthetically pleasing design that aligns better with the Vista operating system's interface style.

It was reported that during the introduction of the new Live.com, Live executives did not mention direct integration with Vista Gadgets (small programs). However, on the new homepage, users can still see links pointing to Hotmail and calendar services.

In the middle of the screen, there is a link labeled "XX’s space." Arlington analyzed that this will likely point to Microsoft's upcoming online storage service SkyDrive.

In another slide, Microsoft executives confirmed that the online storage SkyDrive will become an important component of a "seamlessly connected" Live service framework. In a pie chart, SkyDrive was listed alongside blog spaces and online photo services.

Notably, the official name for Microsoft's online storage service has yet to be announced. Initially, it was referred to as "Live Drive," then rumors surfaced about a "Live Folder" name. Recently, users discovered that the Live Folder had been changed to SkyDrive, indicating that Microsoft may adopt SkyDrive as the official name for its online storage service. The name "Windows Live SkyDrive" also appeared in the slides presented by Microsoft Live executives.

Industry insiders estimate that Microsoft's online storage service is expected to offer 2GB of capacity. Currently, the company is conducting trials with a select few, providing 500MB of space. (Linghu Da)