Latest Opera 19 Dev update introduces data synchronization

There is still a lot that is not working right in the new version of the Opera web browser, especially if you compare it to what Opera 12 has to offer.

Even if you take the obvious ones out, Mail for example which was moved to its own application, you end up with a long list of features that are not available at all, or only in experimental stages.

Features like theme support, developer tools that match Opera Dragonfly or proper bookmarks support are just the tip of the iceberg.

Opera has released an update for the developer channel of the browser which is available now via the web browser's internal updater or as a download on the Opera Desktop Team blog website.

It is the first version with data synchronization, and while labeled as experimental, appears to be working just fine for the most part even though it is limited in comparison to Opera 12's synchronization option.

Word of Warning: Syncing is an experimental feature, and Opera Software notes that data may be lost or corrupted, or that servers may be made inaccessible at a later point in time. It is essential to keep a backup of the data on the local system to avoid data loss.

Opera Synchronization

Basically, what you can sync right now are Speed Dials, Stash items and custom search providers. Everything else won't be synced right now, but it is likely that this will change in future releases.

You need to enable the experimental sync flag before you can make use of the feature. Here is how this is done:

1. Load opera://flags/#sync in the browser. The Synchronization feature is disabled by default.
2. Change it to Enabled in the pulldown menu.
3. Restart Opera.

Once you have restarted the web browser, you find the synchronization option in the main Opera menu. When you select it, you are taken to a screen where you are asked to sign in to sync your data.

Options are available to sign in with Facebook, Twitter or Google, or use an Opera account for that.

Once you have signed in, you can click on Continue to start the syncing process.

To sync the data on another computer, you need to sign in with the selected account to do so. It is not working if you sign in with a different account, so make that choice wisely.

There are not many other change sin this release. The Quick-Access Bar has been renamed to the Bookmarks Bar, and you may receive a request to share data with Opera Software (opt-in). According to the blog post, it will share data on the configuration and how often features are used, but not any personal data.

Now Read: Enable Opera's Power Mode

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