Internet have you seen this? (DropBox)

Moach

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hey...

just thought i'd share about this phenomenal tool i've been working with for the last coouple of years... it's called "DropBox"...

whut?

yep! - think of having a folder in your PC that is continuosly sync'd with others! it's really something - and has saved my behind on more than one occasion, as it constantly bbacks up any changes you make to files in that folder


it's a real hoot for collaborating on projects as well... a LOT more user-friendly than GIT or SVN... it integrates to windows explorer in a way you don't even notice it's there :thumbup:

i think this is really cool for addon devs working together on a project...

i found today it works best if you create NTFS symbolic links to your project's folder inside the Dropbox folder - then you don't even have to move the files...
for those who don't know, "symbolic links" are a somewhat hidden, yet VERY awesome feature of windows Vista and newer.... they can only be created via cmd, and they work like "shortcuts on steroids" (it's like a wormhole from a folder to another)

this and dropbox make for a killer combination... now i have my addon project folders (which are inside my orbiter dir) constantly backed up and sync'd to my work rig and laptop...

without the linking thing, i'd have to place my whole orbiter install inside the dropbox... which, obviously, would quickly overrun the 2GB limit for the free version...

but creating a link enables a folder to effectivelly exist in two locations at the same time - so now i can have only the needed files placed in the dropbox, whislt keeping the file structure unchanged for Orbiter


here's where you can get your Dropbox

and here's info on [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NTFS_symbolic_link"]how to create NTFS links[/ame]


just thought i'd share... it really helps and makes life easier :cheers:
 
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Juanelm

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I started using it about a week ago. There is a Dropbox App for the Iphone; whith the app you can take pictures and save them directly to the dropbox. That way my family and friends can have the pictures instantly on their computers, and I don't have to periodically upload photos to my desktop. It works well.
 

Jarvitä

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No way I'm moving my files to some random server on the internet. I sync files between my computers using my own SFTP server and rsync, with on-the-fly strong encryption. Dropbox and similar sites are a privacy breach just waiting to happen. It's no better than facebook and other antisocial networking sites, really.
 

cinder1992

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for any major transfer between computers over the internet (I have an FTP server that I set up in my dad's office... in dallas, TX), I use VNC. It's fast and it's encrypted. (VNC is basically windows remote desktop in a candy-coated shell)

also, I ditto what Jarvitä said, Dropbox and similar sites are a privacy breach just waiting to happen.
 

Moach

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well, i didn't say it was safe, i just said it's -convenient- :p

i too wouldn't put my nuclear launch codes there...

though, i never had any problems of that sort and they do say it runs on some secure transfer protocol which's name evades my memory... :rolleyes: and anyways... it's not like i have anything to hide - hackers would find my data pretty uninteresting, as most of my cool stuff i have released as open-source :lol:

it's not a privacy breech unless you have your "privates" up for display
 

Jarvitä

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Oh look, it's the "nothing to hide" argument. If you've nothing to hide, please post your full real name ans social security number, address, credit card number, photos of your passport and driver's licence, and all of your browsers' histories for good measure.

That argument is invalid. And while you could argue that you can protect yourself from privacy breaches by just not posting private info on an antisocial networking site, that isn't the case with Dropbox, because you're deliberately installing an application on your computer that you know will communicate with an undisclosed server. And you can only hope it only takes what you nicely asked it to take.
 

Face

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it's a real hoot for collaborating on projects as well... a LOT more user-friendly than GIT or SVN... it integrates to windows explorer in a way you don't even notice it's there :thumbup:

i think this is really cool for addon devs working together on a project...

Hm. Dropbox is plain file-sharing, no? Just a cloud-hosted network-drive, isn't it? If so, I fail to see how it is comparable to GIT or SVN, both being version control systems.

Dropbox combined with GIT or Mercurial... now that's another kind of story...

regards,
Face
 

Moach

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Dropbox combined with GIT or Mercurial... now that's another kind of story...

that should be simple enough to do... just init a GIT repo in there and you're gold! :hmm:


and as for security... i once heard someone say:
"the best way to protect your data is to put it on reduntant drives, detach them from your computer and place them in a box in your bank"...

this could go on and on... let's not open that door, shall we? :thumbup:
 

Hielor

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No way I'm moving my files to some random server on the internet. I sync files between my computers using my own SFTP server and rsync, with on-the-fly strong encryption. Dropbox and similar sites are a privacy breach just waiting to happen. It's no better than facebook and other antisocial networking sites, really.
Or you could, you know, not put anything you don't want shared into the dropbox...

If you don't want to share something, don't share it. It's that simple.
 

Face

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that should be simple enough to do... just init a GIT repo in there and you're gold! :hmm:

Indeed. OTOH there are dedicated free hosters for this job like github and bitbucket, so why bother with a slower solution? IMHO team development without version control (e.g. via shared drives) is a pain, anyway.
 

Face

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Dropbox is closed-source on both server and client side. I don't see how I could possibly confirm that it only shares what I ask it to.

In theory you could do that by analyzing the net-traffic from/to your computer. Wireshark FTW
 

Moach

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Indeed. OTOH there are dedicated free hosters for this job like github and bitbucket, so why bother with a slower solution? IMHO team development without version control (e.g. via shared drives) is a pain, anyway.

true... it kinda defeats the purpose...

both methods have their pros and cons, you see:

dropbox:
-constantly keeps ANY changes updated, without the need for user action
-great for working solo from multiple machines or with small teams of people you have close contact with
-practically NO learning curve

GIT (or any optehr version-control)
-safer, with commit control and branching... non-automatic sync'ing IS oodles more organized
-GIT has larger repositories for free
-best for TRUE open-source projects, including those in which you may not have close contact with your contributors



as i see it, Dropbox is the "cowboy coder"''s way of keeping a shared project - git is for "heavier" projects :hmm:
 

Face

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both methods have their pros and cons, you see:

dropbox:
-constantly keeps ANY changes updated, without the need for user action
-great for working solo from multiple machines or with small teams of people you have close contact with
-practically NO learning curve

GIT (or any optehr version-control)
-safer, with commit control and branching... non-automatic sync'ing IS oodles more organized
-GIT has larger repositories for free
-best for TRUE open-source projects, including those in which you may not have close contact with your contributors

I understand what you say, but it is important to point out that Dropbox is nowhere near a version control system.

For development, you need a way to save old code-bases. In the development method you described above (small team, close contact), the use of a shared drive might be practical for some time. But sooner or later the members of the team will start littering the drive with something like "moach_backup_1.0.zip".

I think Dropbox is a nice solution for file-exchange, but not for team development, even if it is a small and close group.
Today, there are great open-source tools for version control, available in all shades from simple (SVN) to complex and powerful (GIT). There is simply no excuse to not use them (especially) for team development. IMHO, not even for stand-alone development.

regards,
Face
 

Moach

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I understand what you say, but it is important to point out that Dropbox is nowhere near a version control system.


it's not supposed to be :thumbup: - that's the whole point... it's just quick 'n simple file sharing without any hassle... sometimes, just what a project needs...

but true - i learned it the hard way during my college graduation project that DropBox is NOT a version control tool by ANY means, and using it as such is prone to invite certain disaster :lol: - trust me, i would know :uhh:

in turn... it did save my skin a couple of times when stupid awake-for-way-too-long mistakes result in the going away of several critical files or other events of similar nature... while it syncs automatically, it also does versioned backups EVERY TIME you hit ctrl+s (needless to say, this can be a real life-saver)


there's really no tool that can keep you safe from yourself, you know... specially after that 30th waking hour :facepalm:
 

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While it isn't automated, RoboCopy and some networking could do this. Its not a perfect solution, but it is a solid way to move files around. Especially moving them inside your home network.

At a company a few years back I used it to migrate gigs of data nightly from the US based office to the MX based factory for the company. A few years later I migrated a few 100 terra worth of NAS data with it, really solid bugger.
 

Mandella

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Been using dropbox since it was in beta. It's great for quick sharing/syncing all your non-sensitive files between not just your own, but with the computers of friends too. It's especially handy for quickly syncing files between multiple computers on a casual network. (Such as impromptu LAN parties.) *Very handy.*

It's not the only solution for this type of task, nor even the best, but its ease of use means that it is my preferred option when working with my Liberal Arts Major friends. :)

Now, the thing is if you are an uber geek you've already been running VPN and file sharing software for years and you'll have no use for this. But it's a great app for the more casual user base -- heck, it's even installable on an IPad!

As for the security issue, I'll be kind and assume that dropbox is being erroneously equated with some shady peer-to-peer app. That is not its function at all. And as for the "what if it just starts scanning your computer and uploading *anything it wants*!??" -- well, the same could be said for any of the dozens (hundreds?) of instances of internet connected commercial software I have currently installed. Hell, even my virus checker could be doing that and I would not know it.

But the thing is there are plenty of paranoid network geeks who constantly monitor their netflow to catch that sort of thing when it happens, and I try to keep up with the news. (And in fact, it does happen. As far as I know, the World of Warfare software still scans your machine for certain "illicit" apps, and that is one reason (among several!) that I will not play that game.
 
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