I have been using Dropbox (dropbox.com) for years and I love it. Dropbox is software that syncs your files online and across your computers. You put your files into your Dropbox on one computer, and they’ll be instantly available on any of your other computers (home, work, etc.) that you’ve installed Dropbox on. You can even access Dropbox from your mobile device or from an un-registered computer by going to the Dropbox website.
Here’s how it works: If you’re editing a document at home and you save it to your Dropbox, it will automatically sync the file to all your other computers as if you saved the document to all of your computers. I used to use thumbdrives to copy files I’m working on to the thumbdrive and carry it with me. In addition to current files I’m working on, I also put into Dropbox several reference files that I may need to access from other computers.
You can also share files with others by putting them in a shared folder or photo album. You can then send people links to specific files within your Dropbox.
Files you put into your Dropbox folder are automatically backed up to their servers. Therefore, if your computer crashes, you can restore the files. (I don’t recommend this as a substitute for a serious backup of your computer, like using Carbonite.) Dropbox also keeps a history of every version of the files, so you can undo any mistakes or even undelete files. They keep a 30-day history of your files.
Their 2GB account is free–which lets me sync plenty of files that I may need across my home and work computers. They offer larger accounts for $10 or $20/month. Dropbox works on Windows, Mac, and Linux.
No more e-mailing file attachments to yourself or carrying around a thumb drive! This has simplified my life, and that’s what I expect from technology.
Here’s another shout out for Dropbox. I use both Dropbox and a jump drive for everything I need. Dropbox works great with the document’s I’m working on that I want to share with others (using the Public Folder feature), and the jump drive works for the additional space. Highly recommended.
It is also worth mentioning that there is a DropBox iPhone and iPad app. I don’t have an iPad (waiting for Gen 2), but hear that the app is really good. The iPhone app is great because I can access all the files on my phone that is in the Dropbox. Not only that, but I can also email the file (specifically a link to the file) from the iPhone app.
There is also an app for Android and Blackberry (http://www.dropbox.com/anywhere).
Great Stuff!
Hi there – we use DropBox for sharing files with our Public Affairs council – it is especially good if you want to have photos and other documents available for others to select from or to view, rather than worrying abot only being able to attach one or two to an email. Great article, Melanie