Been using LocalSend for a few years, it works great even when sharing files between devices sharing a mobile connection.
Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
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Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#22It’s not as slick as AirDrop and you have to sort of “prep“ both devices whenever you want to send/receive anything, it’s never just ready to go, but it’s incredibly reliable and will move anything from one machine to another. Just having that consistency across literally any device is so nice.
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#23I love local send. It’s ridiculously fast for sending large amounts of media too.
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#24Excuse my ignorance but why are there so many solutions like this? Especially if they aren't intercompatible (which I'm assuming they're not)
Because none of them actually match the capabilities of AirDrop, since they essentially require controlling the full stack (UI, low-level networking including Bluetooth for discoverability, Wi-Fi peer to peer connections without dropping any existing infrastructure connection etc.)
Many have tried, I don't think anyone has succeeded.
Supposedly the EU interoperability mandate will make this possible going forward, though? (The tricky part is usually not getting your device to speak some protocol, but to get Apple devices to actually respond to your attempts.)
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#25I used it, but it prevented my mac from sleeping. After some investigation I found it's local send.
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#26I used it, but it prevented my mac from sleeping. After some investigation I found it's local send.
Does it run in the background?
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#27Really cool! I used it a couple of times and did not expect it to work. But it worked. :D
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#28My problem is that all these alternatives require the devices to be on the same local network.
One beauty of Airdrop is that it creates and handles that local network automatically under the hood (as far as I understand). So you could be out on a hike with friends and Airdrop something.
The workaround I've found after switching to an Android device has been to teather my connection to my friend's device, which ends up creating a LAN that Localsend can work through, but this is not as nice an experience.
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#29I use it on all my devices and tbh it's the absolute best option I found.
Previously I was using syncthing or had to install ftp server, used wormhole after packing all my files into one, etc. Android QuickShare never worked for me (wouldn't help me much with sending to the pc either).
It has some rough edges (ie: on multi-homed devices it's less that ideal to see the one octet that matters, when the list is very long scrolling whilst sending will cause the process to crap out), but other than that it's always reliable.
I'm very happy with it too.
Re: Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
#30One of the most convenient aspects of Air Drop for me is that it selects the fastest available connection between the devices and ability to work without both devices being on the same network. I wonder if any of the alternatives do the same.
Quickshare does
Never worked for me, not even once.
I tried on three phones, two of which are using the same account, I'm reasonably confident I am technically competent to not make silly mistakes, though the best I've achieved was endless wait.
I had better success with IR and BT file transfers. Hell, even spinning a local http server (with python -m http.server) works better than quick share.