# Anyone use Dropbox (online storage for files)?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 29, 2012, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139 "2012-03-29T12:40:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/21 "2012-03-29T20:09:49Z")

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> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> I create a Word document on my desktop, titled “SDMB folks I want to see nekkid”. I copy it to my Dropbox icon on my desktop.
> 
> Does this mean that, if I fire up my laptop, I will have that same file appear on the hard drive of my laptop? Or do I have to access the doc from my laptop’s Dropbox first for it to sync.

Yes, it will appear in your dropbox folder, which is on your hard drive.

The sequence of event is:

[ol]  
[li]You create your document.[/li][li]You copy it to your dropbox folder (Note: nothing dropbox-y happens in this step, it’s just a standard copy operation).[/li][li]A few moments later, the little bit of dropbox software that monitors that folder says, “look! There’s something new in here! I better upload it to the dropbox server”.[/li][li]A few moments after that, the little bit of dropbox software on your laptop says, “look! There’s something new on the server! I better download it into the folder I’m monitoring”.[/li][/ol]

The only thing that makes your dropbox folders different from any other folder on your hard drives is the little bit of software that keeps monitoring them and the server, and keeping them all synced. The folder itself is just another folder.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/22 "2012-03-29T20:54:51Z")

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> [@leahcim](#):
>
> 1. A few moments after that, the little bit of dropbox software on your laptop says, “look! There’s something new on the server! I better download it into the folder I’m monitoring”.

Does the laptop monitor the server, causing continual (though small) internet traffic? Or does the server push out a message to your laptop that something new showed up.

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**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/23 "2012-03-29T21:27:08Z")

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You’re asking some basic questions about Dropbox - is there some reason you’re hesitant just to install it and try it?

One other thing you may not be clear on is that even if you don’t have Internet access, for example if you’re on an airplane, you can still access your files in the Dropbox folder and edit them. It’s just that the copy on the cloud won’t be updated until next time that computer connects to the Internet.

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**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/24 "2012-03-29T21:43:49Z")

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I have dropbox set up on my cell phone so that any photo I take automatically appears on my computer. No more manually downloading/uploading photos.

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**Author:** ![Roadfood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@Roadfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roadfood)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/25 "2012-03-29T22:59:31Z")

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> [@leahcim](#):
>
> The only thing that makes your dropbox folders different from any other folder on your hard drives is the little bit of software that keeps monitoring them and the server, and keeping them all synced. The folder itself is just another folder.

“Little bit of software”? I liked the image of the little guy you used in post 16 better 😉

Not to hijack this thread, but as a user of Dropbox’s free service, I wonder about their business model. I mean, there must be thousands (hundreds of thousands? millions?) of us “moochers”. There are no ads on their website, so I’m assuming the only way they make money is from people who opt to upgrade to the paid service. Are there enough of those for Dropbox to be profitable? Will there continue to be enough for it to be profitable in the long run? What sort of ratio between paid and free subs do they need to maintain in order to pay for their infrastructure?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/26 "2012-03-29T23:20:26Z")

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> [@Roadfood](#):
>
> Not to hijack this thread, but as a user of Dropbox’s free service, I wonder about their business model. I mean, there must be thousands (hundreds of thousands? millions?) of us “moochers”. There are no ads on their website, so I’m assuming the only way they make money is from people who opt to upgrade to the paid service. Are there enough of those for Dropbox to be profitable? Will there continue to be enough for it to be profitable in the long run? What sort of ratio between paid and free subs do they need to maintain in order to pay for their infrastructure?

According to [this](http://www.forbes.com/sites/victoriabarret/2011/10/18/dropbox-the-inside-story-of-techs-hottest-startup/) it’s 96% moochers, but they’re still profitable.

I think that once you have working infrastructure, the marginal cost of a 2GB account is pretty low so you only need a few paid accounts for it to work.

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**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\
**Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/27 "2012-03-30T02:33:40Z")

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> [@CurtC](#):
>
> You’re asking some basic questions about Dropbox - is there some reason you’re hesitant just to install it and try it?

I have installed it, but I have only just barely begun to mess with it. I just want to understand how it works. My only hesitation was that I now have to (slightly) alter the way I organize and save my files.

But it’s all good now, I think.  
mmm

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**Author:** ![Tommy123](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@Tommy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tommy123)\
**Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/28 "2012-03-30T06:08:41Z")

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> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Question:
> 
> 1. Is there anything similar (better) out there that I may be unaware of?

I have been using Zukmo since it helps me manage almost all my content, not just files and folders, but with bookmarks, notes, and lot others. [www.zukmo.com](http://www.zukmo.com)

> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Question:  
> 2. Some files, when I drag them to the desktop Dropbox shortcut, are _moved_ to Dropbox; others are _copied_ there. I can’t seem to figure out how to make sure all are copied, not moved. It seems pretty random.

Thats the way it works, it follows the simple copy files mechanism. The best way to manage effectively is by moving your active files to the folder and work on them.

> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Question:  
> 3. If you do multiple revisions of a document, say, over a period of several days from different computers, is it easy to keep track of the latest revision? I envision nine different versions of a document floating about with me scratching my head to determine which is the current one.

Multiple versions of the files can be stored which would help you if in case you need some reference to the older versions. The active file will be updated with the latest versions and the older versions will be categorized by dates (The way it works in Zukmo).

> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> 1. Thanks.

Welcome

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**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\
**Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/29 "2012-03-30T10:55:34Z")

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I like [Syncplicity](http://www.syncplicity.com/products/personal-edition) for auto-syncing and backup between multiple computers.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\
**Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/30 "2012-03-30T22:42:53Z")

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And on Ars Technica today, the possibility of another [option](http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2012/03/google-drive-leaked-screenshots-show-up-to-5gb-free-storage.ars) soon.

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**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/31 "2012-03-31T11:44:42Z")

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> [@ZenBeam](#):
>
> Does the laptop monitor the server, causing continual (though small) internet traffic? Or does the server push out a message to your laptop that something new showed up.

Both.

You can share a dropbox folder. When I save a file to that folder, it shows up in my writing partners almost instantly. And a little notification window pops up to tell him so.

When I fire up my PC in the morning, i get a little popup that tells me “dropbox has downloaded three new files,” and I have a copy of files he saved last night.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Harmonix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/32 "2012-03-31T13:46:31Z")

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1. Dropbox Competitors with similar (and sometimes better) functionality are Sugar Sync (5gb free), [CX.com](http://CX.com) (10gb free) and [box.com](http://box.com) (up to 50! gb Free, but doesn’t offer live syncing like dropbox, sugar sync and [cx.com](http://cx.com) unless you pay for it.) Personally, I use dropbox almost exclusively. It’s dead simple and it just works.

2. A handy feature for Dropbox is that if you goto the website, you can download previous revisions of your saved file just in case you need it. You can also undelete files you accidentally deleted. Incredibly handy.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/33 "2012-03-31T15:20:23Z")

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Another neat feature of Dropbox is that if you put HTML files in your Public folder, other people can view them in-browser as a web page.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Carptracker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ac91a4/32.png) [@Carptracker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carptracker)\
**Post date:** [April 9, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/34 "2012-04-09T22:05:03Z")

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> [@JSexton](#):
>
> Another neat feature of Dropbox is that if you put HTML files in your Public folder, other people can view them in-browser as a web page.

I want to do this, and I am not certain how it works. It says to rightclick the file, choose “copy public link” and it will make a web page, then you can just send the link to your friend. I try this, and my computer makes a noise like it is working for a split second, but where do I find the name of the link to this file?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\
**Post date:** [April 10, 2012, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/35 "2012-04-10T14:12:34Z")

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It doesn’t make a web page when you do that, it just copies the public address for that file to your clipboard. You want to send it in an email to your friend, just paste the clipboard contents into the email.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\
**Post date:** [April 10, 2012, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/36 "2012-04-10T15:56:09Z")

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> [@Carptracker](#):
>
> I want to do this, and I am not certain how it works. It says to rightclick the file, choose “copy public link” and it will make a web page, then you can just send the link to your friend. I try this, and my computer makes a noise like it is working for a split second, but where do I find the name of the link to this file?

Quick tutorial.

Within the “public” folder in my Dropbox folder i have created a file called “sdmb.html”. It is a very, very basic web page using this code:

```auto

<html>
<head>
<title>
SDMB Test
</title>
</head>

<body>
This is a test from amanset.
</body>
</html>

```

Now, if I right click on the file and choose DropBox-\>Copy Public Link I get this in my clipboard:

```auto

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/sdmb.html

```

If I paste that into the address bar in a web browser - or send the link to another person - it works as a website. Try it now by clicking on this:

[http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/sdmb.html](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/sdmb.html)

Additionally, if you want to share a file with other people, for example a picture, you do the same thing. Take this link:

[![](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg) ](http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg)

It is a picture from a few seconds before the Cataclysm happened in World of Warcraft. I dropped it into my public folder so a friend could see it. You can now either click on it (and it opens in your browser) or Right Click and choose “Save Target As” and save it to your own computer. You can share any sort of file that way, but just remember that the public folder is exactly that: public. Don’t put sensitive stuff there.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\
**Post date:** [April 10, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/37 "2012-04-10T21:34:27Z")

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> [@amanset](#):
>
> Additionally, if you want to share a file with other people, for example a picture, you do the same thing. Take this link:

So in this case, there’s no web page, but the Jpeg has to be in your public folder? And if you had a webpage in your public folder that referenced an image in DropBox that’s _not_ in your public folder, that won’t work?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\
**Post date:** [April 11, 2012, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/38 "2012-04-11T09:54:41Z")

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> [@ZenBeam](#):
>
> So in this case, there’s no web page, but the Jpeg has to be in your public folder? And if you had a webpage in your public folder that referenced an image in DropBox that’s _not_ in your public folder, that won’t work?

Exactly. The public can only access stuff that is in your public folder.

For example, this works:

```auto

<html>
<head>
<title>
SDMB Test
</title>
</head>

<body>
This is a test from amanset.
</body>

<img src="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2346328/WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg" />
</html>

```

As does this:

```auto

<html>
<head>
<title>
SDMB Test
</title>
</head>

<body>
This is a test from amanset.
</body>

<img src="WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg" />
</html>

```

Notice the difference in the IMG Tag. The first one is an _absolute_ URL, it gives the full web address for the image file. The second one is a _relative_ URL, it looks in the same directory as the HTML file (this can get a bit more complex regarding the “root” of the web space, but for our example that’s how it works). I could even move the image to a subdirectory called, say, img and have it there:

```auto

<html>
<head>
<title>
SDMB Test
</title>
</head>

<body>
This is a test from amanset.
</body>

<img src="img/WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg" />
</html>

```

What I cannot do is move it to a folder outside of the public one and access it there. For example, if I make a copy of the file in the directory above the public folder (commonly called “DropBox”) and try to access that it doesn’t work:

```auto

<html>
<head>
<title>
SDMB Test
</title>
</head>

<body>
This is a test from amanset.
</body>

<img src="../WoWScrnShot_112410_030041.jpg" />
</html>

```

Note that I have to do it as a relative URL (.. means “the directory above this one”) as there is no way to have an absolute URL for things outside the public folder. The URL for the files are set up like this:

```auto

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/<user ID code>/<name of file in public folder>

```

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\
**Post date:** [April 12, 2012, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/39 "2012-04-12T17:31:07Z")

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On thing that Dropbox is absolutely great for is to have it available on your mobile.

You edit and work on document etc on a full size screen and store it on Dropbox, then when you go to a meeting you can have literally years worth of documents ready to refer to without having to lug around a laptop or even paper based files.

If you are a degree student, you really need to have it for all your course work - you must have a safe way of ensuring that if the worst happens then you will not lose everything, especially crucial dissertation notes and references.

One thing that has not been mentioned is that you can also access your Dropbox storage on any computer with web access, you just use it in a similar was to web based mail. Which means that even if you are without your personal IT, you can still get to those important files.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\
**Post date:** [April 13, 2012, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139/40 "2012-04-13T09:59:55Z")

</div>

> [@casdave](#):
>
> On thing that Dropbox is absolutely great for is to have it available on your mobile.
> 
> You edit and work on document etc on a full size screen and store it on Dropbox, then when you go to a meeting you can have literally years worth of documents ready to refer to without having to lug around a laptop or even paper based files.
> 
> If you are a degree student, you really need to have it for all your course work - you must have a safe way of ensuring that if the worst happens then you will not lose everything, especially crucial dissertation notes and references.
> 
> One thing that has not been mentioned is that you can also access your Dropbox storage on any computer with web access, you just use it in a similar was to web based mail. Which means that even if you are without your personal IT, you can still get to those important files.

Agree with all of that. I’d start paying right now if they decided their business model requires it, I find it that useful. It is just that I have no need for the few GB that I actually have.

Oh and shared folders are great. I have one shared with my parents, one with my girlfriend and one with a guy I am in a band with. Drop a file in a folder and your friend gets it too, no messing with other ways of sharing. I get all sorts of photos from Mum and Dad, mp3s and text files with lyrics, chords etc from the band mate and all sorts of stuff with the girlfriend.

I also use it for moving files between machines. Machines that are in the same room as each other. I could use a local file server or a USB stick or something, but DropBox, assuming it is not a huge file, is easier.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-use-dropbox-online-storage-for-files/617139.md?page=1)