Andrew Riedel, SEO Gold Coast
These days we all have multiple computing devices. Laptops, tablets, smartphones, PC and Mac, and it can be a huge issue to ensure that you have the file you need right now on the device you are currently working on.
File sizes these days are larger than ever. Trying to find a way to send files from one user to another user or just to one of your devices can be a big pain.
Dropbox solves these issues rather neatly. It is a rather clever file sharing service that is easy to install, easy to use and comes with a free plan that allows you 2 GB of space. To get more space Dropbox has plans that include $10 per month for 100 GB right up to $50 per month for 500 GB
Dropbox allows access to all your files no matter what device you are working on because it’s an Internet based service. When you download Dropbox you sign up for your own account with your own secure username and password.
With Dropbox it is possible to gain fast access to your files. Most files upload and sync quickly. We do a lot of work with videos and these large files can take quite a while to sync.
You can share files remotely which means that Dropbox is suitable for outsourcers, contractors, remote employees, family or anyone who has Internet availability. If “free” is what you’re looking for then Dropbox is for you The free plan give you 2GB of storage space. You can get more space by inviting other users to share your files. Each additional user that you invite earns you 500 MB of extra space up to 16 GB.
Dropbox works on all platforms; Mac, PC and Linux and it works on all mobile devices; iPhone, iPad, Android and Blackberry.
SEO Web Magic has a $10 per month plan which gives us 100GB as a starting point. As we work with a large number of outsourcers and contractors from all over the planet, our storage is currently at 115 GB without extra cost. We believe that the $10 plan is great value. We are extremely heavy and constant users and we’re still only using 35% of our available space. Basically DropBox stores synchronized files in the cloud. So, wherever you are in the world, as long as you have access to the Internet, you have access to all of your files. Dropbox is a fantastic way to sync the files that you work with on a regular basis. For instance, imagine you are on a business trip interstate or overseas and you’re using your Mac to write a report for your next staff meeting. You save the report into your Dropbox folder and it is automatically backed up. When you get back to the office the report is available to you on your PC where you can finalise the report for your meeting.
Or maybe you just want to get out of the office and head off to your favourite coffee shop (ours is Taboon Café at the Easy T in Robina). Take your laptop, iPad or mobile device and continue to work on your files (or not!). As a side note, we find that getting out of the office can give you a whole new perspective about your business and we often come up with genius ideas for moving our business forward.
You’re probably wondering about file sharing with other users and how that works.
When you invite another user (in our case if we’ve hired a new outsourcer say) the process is you set up a new folder within your account.
Now here is the best bit. Only those files that you want to share need be transferred to the new folder. In the new folder you have the facility to invite one or more people depending on your intentions. Simply enter the email address or addresses of anyone you want to share with and Dropbox sends out an invitation automatically.
The invitee then accepts the invitation and any files in that folder can now be accessed.
Just go into your documents (PC) or finder (Mac) and drag or copy the relevant files to the new folder.
What we do is allocated tasks to outsourcers. So only the file or files relating to that task are copied into the outsourcers folder.
The outsourcer works on the task, updates the file and we can then check the work for accuracy, make changes and give feedback.
Dropbox doesn’t have to all about work. Dropbox allows you to share photos, music and videos with family and friends wherever they are in the world. No more struggling with sending and receiving large files by email. I don’t know how many times over the years I’ve had major problems with Outlook because someone is trying to send my photos by email. Dropbox eliminates these issues.
The only negative I can find with Dropbox is that you cannot collaborate on files synchronously with other users. Therefore you need to be highly organised.