lifehacker: "How to Use Dropbox as a Killer Collaborative Work ToolIf you work with a group of people, you've most likely needed to share or collaborate on files from time to time. It's rarely as easy and straightforward as it ought to be, but using file-syncing utility Dropbox, you can configure a collaborative shared file space that removes most of the hassle from the equation. It's simple to set up and could save you a ton of time. Here's how to do it.
Monday, April 18, 2011
How to Use Dropbox as a Killer Collaborative Work Tool
lifehacker: "How to Use Dropbox as a Killer Collaborative Work ToolIf you work with a group of people, you've most likely needed to share or collaborate on files from time to time. It's rarely as easy and straightforward as it ought to be, but using file-syncing utility Dropbox, you can configure a collaborative shared file space that removes most of the hassle from the equation. It's simple to set up and could save you a ton of time. Here's how to do it.
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4 comments:
Dropbox really is awesome for working with other people. Currently I do file sharing for group projects and for myself between my desktop and laptop. As long as the files are located in the dropbox folder, I don't have to deal with emailing myself or using a flash drive. You can also provide download links from drop box for mass sharing if needed.
Really handy and I recommend it.
The truly great thing about Dropbox is that it is really easy to access your files anywhere with an internet connection. You don't need special software, you can just get them through a web browser, and everything syncs just the same. For personal and small-group project use, Dropbox is great.
The major downside the article lists is a real killer for larger business use - the files don't lock when in use, and it doesn't store unlimited revisions. At JR Clancy, they use software called Adept, which requires you to "check out" a file before you edit it, and check it back in when you're done. This makes it easy to track who is using a file and when the revisions were made, as well as store copies of the old revisions. This is crucial in a manufacturing/ISO-9001 certified environment like Clancy.
I Love DropBox. I've been using it since high school as a way to store my computer science files since we couldn't guarantee we'd be on the same computer each time we worked in class. The best uses i've found however, are in co-design situations. My co-designer and I shared a folder across our dropboxes for a show we did together, and were able to add research, change files, test cues, etc. The one drawback was that we would have to text each other whenever we were done working on a particular file to avoid undoing each other's work and making conflicted copies. but other than that, fantastic, FREE collaborative tool, especially when andrew quota is so easy to use up.
Never used dropbox before. To be honest Jimmy tried to get me to sign up for it so he could have more space in his dropbox account and I was a little leary of storing my files somewhere else. Not that I was worried about loosing data, I can do that just fine myself. I wasn't sure how open it was. Who can look at the information you share with drop box? I'd imagine it works like a self-storage company, you are leasing the space from the agency.
Though I'm not sure dropbox is for me just yet, I can really this being a great alternative to a internal/central server for small businesses and companies that dont' have the money to pay for space like that.
I'm still suspicious of Big Brother though.
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