Dropbox - free extra space, referral codes

[Mama Zappa]

Want to try the Dropbox (www.dropbox.com) cloud-storage tool? Use one of the referral links in this thread to sign up, and both you (and the refer-er) get an extra half gig of free storage.

Already a Dropbox user and want to earn more space? Post your referral URL here and maybe a fellow Doper will use it.

FYI, I have heard that if you sign up using a .edu address, you get double the space for free.

[Mama Zappa]

And my own link: http://db.tt/ji5ghfb

[leahcim]

That is a great idea. My link is: http://db.tt/WfmuUJGA

[MannyL]

And mine http://db.tt/f2PCRYs9

[Askance]

Great idea, thanks Mama! http://db.tt/CEB3aH5y

[voltaire]

If you use someone's referrer link, make a post saying so, so that people can try to spread it out.

[Green Cymbeline]

Can you tell us more about Dropbox? How much space do you use, how much do you pay, and how does it work?

[Ionizer]

Here's one from me if it can help anyone - http://db.tt/oKOXq6DL

Pretty sure I copied it from right place...

[Mama Zappa]

Can you tell us more about Dropbox? How much space do you use, how much do you pay, and how does it work?
The initial 2 gig is free, and you can get more by doing a few intro steps - then of course earn more free space by referrals (hence this thread).

Right now I've got 6.3 gig, of which 4.3 (roughly) is used. I got 3 gig by setting my phone up to do camera uploads, which means that every photo gets automatically uploaded (when I'm connected to wireless). I can clear those out from my computers by copying them to another directory, then the 3 gig will be free again.

How it works: It's a cloud storage service. You set up a specific directory on your computer, then every file that you put in that directory gets synched up to their servers, then to any other devices you put on the same Dropbox account. I have, among other things, copies of our medical insurance cards, my 1Password files (put a password in on the PC, it's automatically on the phone's password vault), and oodles of other stuff.

You can get more space by paying - 10 a month or 100 a year for 100 gig, which someone might need but I don't do that much volume.

[Mama Zappa]

More goodies: There are phone tools that integrate it - for example some of the Office programs (Documents To Go, QuickOffice). A notepad app called PlainText. CamScanner.

Other tools I have that don't directly integrate, I can make a backup on the phone then use the phone's tools to navigate to the backup location to manually force Dropbox to upload it (or use a third party tool, Dropsync, to do so automatically).

I can log in to the website on another computer entirely (one not linked for automatic synching, that is), and download files to that computer directly from the website.

And, it's cross-platform. My husband has it on his iPhone. I have it on my Droid. We both have it on our work PCs (obviously, I would advise anyone thinking of that to make sure their employer permits it).

Other things we keep: copies of our medical power of attorney documents (so for example if I'm in an accident, Typo Knig can pull that up and the doctors can talk to him). Notes on medications we take.

I have our Quicken file on there - so we can enter stuff using either my work laptop or the desktop computer.

[Seanette]

If anyone else wants a referrer link, here's mine: http://db.tt/behALqg

[Seamack]

Here's mine
http://db.tt/BqR1Kcfr
thank you

[Seamack]

I've used Mama Zapa's link btw

[Mama Zappa]

I've used Mama Zapa's link btw
Thanks! Did it give you the extra 500 meg storage? You can follow the "get free space" and "view bonus space earned" links and it should list it. Mine doesn't show any new bonus space. So if there's a problem with how I posted my link, others might be affected as well and I'd hate for folks to lose out.

[Seamack]

I got 250mb and another 250 for giving feedback. So I'm very happy. Thanks again.

[Mama Zappa]

I got 250mb and another 250 for giving feedback. So I'm very happy. Thanks again.
Cool - though they *should* have given you 500 meg. I haven't seen it on my account yet either.

Posting a new link in case the old one got stale somehow (though folks looking here, please use others' upstream before mine).
http://db.tt/ji5ghfb

Huh - nope, that's the same one as before.

[leahcim]

Huh - nope, that's the same one as before.

I wonder if the links expire after a while, just to prevent them from being blindly traded (like we're doing here).

[Mama Zappa]

I wonder if the links expire after a while, just to prevent them from being blindly traded (like we're doing here).
Dunno, though the one I'd posted earlier matches the one pulled up today.

Dropbox shouldn't care that much, since they want to encourage people to join, get hooked, and pony up for the paid version. They do have things in place to reduce true abuses - for example. when we signed my son up (new iphone, new laptop arriving shortly), we did it on my computer, and the referral was found ineligible because of that. I later contacted them, explained the situation, and we both got credit, but I couldn't have blamed them if they'd said "too bad, so sad", as it was my own fault.

[leahcim]

Dunno, though the one I'd posted earlier matches the one pulled up today.

Maybe then it's just new because the old one was used by Seamack?

Maybe they're just delaying your extra space for a while to see if Seamack is using his space is is not just your sockpuppet? They seem to give away space for pretty much anything, but maybe there's at least some light controls. :dubious:

[Mama Zappa]

Maybe then it's just new because the old one was used by Seamack?

Maybe they're just delaying your extra space for a while to see if Seamack is using his space is is not just your sockpuppet? They seem to give away space for pretty much anything, but maybe there's at least some light controls. :dubious:
No, the code is actually the same (and it's the same code I've sent out before).

They might well have controls in place that delay it, also Seamack might not have clicked on the link correctly or something (hence the 250 vs 500), or something. I'm not going to sweat it; since I moved my camera stuff offline I've got enough room for the time being... though once I'm done digitizing our old financial records, I might be singing a different song :).

I do wish they had an intermediate level of paid storage: 100/year (or 10/month) for 100 gig is too much storage for my needs and while extra space is nice, I'd rather pay 50/year for 40 gig, for example.

[leahcim]

I do wish they had an intermediate level of paid storage: 100/year (or 10/month) for 100 gig is too much storage for my needs and while extra space is nice, I'd rather pay 50/year for 40 gig, for example.

I know google drive has plans for 25Gb at $2.50/month and 100Gb at $5/month. I think dropbox hands-down wins for ease-of-use, but if raw storage per unit cash is an issue, there are better deals farther afield.

(Personally, I've been looking at google drive to move my pictures to from flikr.)

[Seamack]

My understanding of the 250mb I was awarded is that. I received that as an award for being referred, and that the referrer should be due a 250mb reward too. The 500mb award is misleading marketing speak. Yes there is 500mb available but only as a split. It's all good though, and it encourages the promotion to go viral.

[Mama Zappa]

My understanding of the 250mb I was awarded is that. I received that as an award for being referred, and that the referrer should be due a 250mb reward too. The 500mb award is misleading marketing speak. Yes there is 500mb available but only as a split. It's all good though, and it encourages the promotion to go viral.
It used to be 250 meg apiece (500 total) but a couple of months ago, they doubled it. If you look at your "view bonus space earned", what's the description next to the 250 mb? I have a couple of lines saying 500 mb, with "referral" and the friend's email address. I also have one that says 250mb for doing "get started".

Not a big deal from my end, I'd just hate for you to lose out on your free space.

https://blog.dropbox.com/index.php/dropbox-referrals-are-now-twice-as-nice/

[Princhester]

Huh, didn't see this thread before I signed up. Anyway my referral link is http://db.tt/wM8gQFb3

[gardentraveler]

My referral link is: http://db.tt/TGH5Er6p

[Seamack]

I've realised that in fact I didn't pick up the 500mb referral bonus because I already had an account. I did however receive 500mb for giving feedback, linking to Facebook and completing 'getting started' (whatever that means) so if someone would be so kind as to use my referral - I'd be ever so grateful...
http://db.tt/BqR1Kcfr
Thanks in advance!

[olivesmarch4th]

I love Dropbox, and I have a question I was hoping someone could answer.

I've been trying to use Dropbox for a specific work folder, so that I can always have the files I need with me when I am working from home. I guess I expected, that once files were saved to dropbox, or to the folder in question on the computer's hard drive, they would automatically sync to each other. So, for example, if I changed a document and saved it to Dropbox, it would automatically sync to the corresponding document in my C drive.

This doesn't appear to be happening. The only real option I appear to have is to save the files both to dropbox and to my computer every time I alter a document. It's kind of tedious and unreliable since I forget a lot. It's important for the files to match because they come from a shared drive.

Is there any way to do what I want to do, or do I just have to continue saving twice?

[Mama Zappa]

I've realised that in fact I didn't pick up the 500mb referral bonus because I already had an account. I did however receive 500mb for giving feedback, linking to Facebook and completing 'getting started' (whatever that means) so if someone would be so kind as to use my referral - I'd be ever so grateful...
http://db.tt/BqR1Kcfr
Thanks in advance!
Bummer - but I know you'll enjoy the service as you get into using it. If you have a smartphone, turn on camera uploads in the Dropbox app and that'll earn you an extra 3 gig as you go (not instantly - it increases as you upload the photos).

And that said, I'll add my code back into the rotation if someone wants to use it: http://db.tt/ji5ghfb

[Mama Zappa]

I love Dropbox, and I have a question I was hoping someone could answer.

I've been trying to use Dropbox for a specific work folder, so that I can always have the files I need with me when I am working from home. I guess I expected, that once files were saved to dropbox, or to the folder in question on the computer's hard drive, they would automatically sync to each other. So, for example, if I changed a document and saved it to Dropbox, it would automatically sync to the corresponding document in my C drive.

This doesn't appear to be happening. The only real option I appear to have is to save the files both to dropbox and to my computer every time I alter a document. It's kind of tedious and unreliable since I forget a lot. It's important for the files to match because they come from a shared drive.

Is there any way to do what I want to do, or do I just have to continue saving twice?
Are you saving it to your My Documents folder as a matter of course? If so then yes, you'd also need to save it to the computer's Dropbox folder.

What I'd suggest is, Just save it once in your dropbox folder, then when you need to access it, use that copy. Don't go to "My Documents" for that file, ever.

There are ways of making your "My Documents" point to Dropbox, but you don't want to do that unless you want *everything* synched.

[olivesmarch4th]

Are you saving it to your My Documents folder as a matter of course? If so then yes, you'd also need to save it to the computer's Dropbox folder.

What I'd suggest is, Just save it once in your dropbox folder, then when you need to access it, use that copy. Don't go to "My Documents" for that file, ever.

There are ways of making your "My Documents" point to Dropbox, but you don't want to do that unless you want *everything* synched.
Thanks for responding.

The thing is, if I never go through My Documents to save, I'll never have the latest version of the file on the shared drive of my work network. At least, that's how I understand it. Right? I DO want everything in that folder synched (and it's a LOT of stuff) all the time between Dropbox and my work computer's shared drive. But not every document on the computer, no. I don't even think I have that much space in Dropbox. The size of the folder I'm syncing is 1 G, which IIRC is half of the total free capacity available.

[Askance]

Dropbox only syncs the stuff you put in Dropbox folders, it does not sync anything else.
I guess I expected, that once files were saved to dropbox, or to the folder in question on the computer's hard drive, they would automatically sync to each other. So, for example, if I changed a document and saved it to Dropbox, it would automatically sync to the corresponding document in my C drive.
I don't know where you got that expectation from, but it's simply not the case. As Mama says, anything you want synced just leave in a Dropbox folder all the time, not in MyDocuments (or anywhere else) at all.
if I never go through My Documents to save, I'll never have the latest version of the file on the shared drive of my work network. At least, that's how I understand it. Right? I DO want everything in that folder synched (and it's a LOT of stuff) all the time between Dropbox and my work computer's shared drive.
Dropbox does not sync between folders on the same PC, it syncs between the Dropbox folders ONLY between all PCs you have Dropbox installed on. If you put stuff in your work network's shared drive, Dropbox has no way of knowing that and no interest in it. It's an entirely separate and disconnected system to the Dropbox infrastructure. Either use Dropbox on every machine you log into, work or home, and ignore the shared drive at work, or you'll have to manually copy stuff between Dropbox and your work shared drive.

[olivesmarch4th]

Dropbox does not sync between folders on the same PC, it syncs between the Dropbox folders ONLY between all PCs you have Dropbox installed on. If you put stuff in your work network's shared drive, Dropbox has no way of knowing that and no interest in it. It's an entirely separate and disconnected system to the Dropbox infrastructure. Either use Dropbox on every machine you log into, work or home, and ignore the shared drive at work, or you'll have to manually copy stuff between Dropbox and your work shared drive.
Thanks for clarifying.

[Mama Zappa]

Dropbox only syncs the stuff you put in Dropbox folders, it does not sync anything else.

I don't know where you got that expectation from, but it's simply not the case. As Mama says, anything you want synced just leave in a Dropbox folder all the time, not in MyDocuments (or anywhere else) at all.

Dropbox does not sync between folders on the same PC, it syncs between the Dropbox folders ONLY between all PCs you have Dropbox installed on. If you put stuff in your work network's shared drive, Dropbox has no way of knowing that and no interest in it. It's an entirely separate and disconnected system to the Dropbox infrastructure. Either use Dropbox on every machine you log into, work or home, and ignore the shared drive at work, or you'll have to manually copy stuff between Dropbox and your work shared drive.
Is the work drive a shared drive (as in, colleagues need access to it also)? If so, then yeah, you would need to do something manual to get your work PC's copy over to the shared directory, or make your work PC's drive accessible to others on the network, or something.

Alternately you can save the document to the public folder in your Dropbox directory and share the link with colleagues. There should be a "how to" file there already with a RTF (rich text) extension describing how to do so. As I understand it, this works file-by-file, so you can't share the entire folder all at once, you have to share the files inside one by one.

Dropbox also offers paid "for groups" tools, though I don't think those are what you want.

[LonnieS]

How long does 2 gigs usually last?

[Mama Zappa]

How long does 2 gigs usually last?
Not sure what you mean: the account is permanent. If you mean how long does it take to fill that up, that depends on how much stuff you upload.

[Švejk]

Here's my code.

http://db.tt/HzITjBz

[Little Bird]

I've run out of space with all my cute baby videos. :(
http://db.tt/HG915ZS

[Hockey Monkey]

Here's my link. I just signed up last night, but I didn't see this thread before hand. I would have wanted to help someone out. :( http://db.tt/97Ic3q9L

[Mama Zappa]

FYI - don't anyone use my code; I've gotten all the referrals I need. Not from this thread, actually - google "dropbox adwords" for discussions on how to basically set up your own Google ad.

[picker]

Here is my referral code
(http://db.tt/wfLEVNZ)

[Rico]

Thank you all. The OP has run out of codes. I'll close this now.