Online storage with a twist: DropBox Beta

DropBox Beta
http://www.getdropbox.com/

A few weeks ago, my friend Kevin at work turned me onto DropBox as a way to upload/backup files and share them with others.

The whole online storage thing has been pretty overplayed in my opinion, but this service is a little different so I thought I would talk about it. I've definitely heard of DropBox, mind you, but I've never actually spent the time and actually tried it out. After Kevin showed me how he used it, I decided to give it a try (also, I told him I wouldn't post before he did on his blog).

Now, DropBox isn't like every other online storage service - - or at least not like the Microsoft SkyDrive service which I do use...DropBox works like this:

• You sign up for service, install client utility on computer 'A'
• Client utility creates 'My DropBox' folder under 'My Documents'
• Client copies/synchronizes contents of My DropBox to your DropBox account
• You install client utility on computer 'B'
• Client brings all files down from your DropBox online account to your 'My DropBox' folder on this computer (B)
• You change a file on Computer B, files get uploaded and then synchronized to Computer A as soon as the client utility connects from that computer

The files and folders inside your DropBox directory get a handy little sync indicator showing if the file has been uploaded or if it is pending upload to the online service. Nice!

Share your DropBox files

The beauty of DropBox is that you have the ability to share an individual file or a whole folder to a user. Simply right-click a file or folder under the 'My DropBox' directory to see the option.

• You share a folder with another user (who has a DropBox account and client loaded)
• Your contents are dropped to their computer - any changes made by them or you is synchronized to/from all computers that are shared (I'm not sure how it handles conflicts as of yet).

When you share a file, you do so via your Public folder. You drop a file into your public folder, right-click it > DropBox > 'Copy public link' then email your recipient the link and thats it! Your recipient can click the link on their side and download the file.

FYI: When you share a folder, your recipient will get a local copy of your shared folder - so, it goes without saying to try and not share a folder with more contents than what your recipient has in free drive space!

Download your folders as a ZIP file

A cool feature that the web site provides is the ability to download a shared folder as a ZIP file. So, if you don't have DropBox installed on a PC, you could download your folders as needed.

Refer to DropBox, get more space

The only downside to DropBox is that the free account is limited to 2Gb - but there is a cool offer for those who send referrals to DropBox. When you refer other users to sign up for the service and they create an account and download the client, you and your friend automatically get an additional 250Mb of free space!

Referral-related free space is limited to 3Gb total, so if you exclusively use a free account, you are limited to 5Gb. You can sign up for a 50Gb plan for $99 a year, which really isn't bad, so if you have a lot of data to synchronize, this might do the trick for you!

Idea: Pyramid scheme!

I would like to see a bit more space for the free users - hey, how about a pyramid scheme type of system for referrals? User 'A' refers 'B', User 'A' gets 250Mb of space, User 'B' refers User 'C' - User A gets 125Mb, B gets 250Mb? Or, if a referral purchases a year's worth of space, the referring member gets a significant increase in space?

I still use SkyDrive, but DropBox is kind of like an Internet attached USB drive where I can keep all my stuff that I really need synchronized (and backed up if my system crashes!).

Tip: Use a laptop SATA drive in a desktop computer

Just last week I had to work on a laptop - specifically, I had to clone the drive so I could install a larger disk. For some reason, my boot CD wasn't finding the storage controller, so it would not detect the hard drive.

If I can't find the drive, then I can't make a clone.

What to do?

Since this was a new-ish laptop, it had a SATA 2.5" drive installed. The beauty of SATA (note not eSATA) is that the plugs for power and the data interface for a 2.5" drive are exactly the same as their 3.5" counterparts. So that means you can easily take a drive from a laptop and slap it into a desktop (as long as you have a free SATA port).

So, that's what I did - I knew my boot CD worked on my desktop, so I installed the drive, booted to my Reatogo disc, then ran a disk imaging tool to backup from the old drive, then restore to the newly installed drive.

What to do with the old drive? Buy an external enclosure and use it as a backup device.

The other benefit? If you have a laptop SATA drive lying around that is bigger than your existing hard drive, you could perform a swap on your desktop - of course, being cognizant of the difference in drive speeds (RPM). I would guess you might need a mounting kit, but overall, you get a little extra ventilation room in your desktop, less power consumption and less heat.

Sometime, I need to update my disc with new storage drivers, but that is another post.