I use Resilio Sync for some files between two machines but that only works when they are both on at the same time. What are some good alternatives?
Dropbox
Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
31–40 of 263 posts
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#32iCloud Drive it is I guess.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#33After Dropbox introduced the 3 machine limit to free tier accounts back in March. I decided to migrate to Nextcloud. The migration was easy: 1. Setup a directory on my VPS for storing files 2. Install Nextcloud 3. Configure security 4. Install clients on (Mac/ Windows and Androd phone) 5. Starting adding files
I've switched to Syncthing, which just syncs files and not all the other that Nextcloud does (which I'm not interested in). https://syncthing.net/
I have used Syncthing for projects at work and can attest that it is a solid and simple Dropbox replacement. Though I'm not sure they support Android/iOS yet.
Edit: it is clear from the comments that there is at least an Android client.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#34I use Resilio Sync for some files between two machines but that only works when they are both on at the same time. What are some good alternatives?
Run it in daemon mode on a server as well. It even has an encryption option so that the server can't read or write to the files, just keep them available for your clients.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#35This seems like a good time to resurface the worlds best Quora answer, by Michael Wolfe. Answering “Why is Dropbox more popular than other tools with similar functionality?”: Well, let's take a step back and think about the sync problem and what the ideal solution for it would do: There would be a folder. You'd put your stuff in it. It would sync. They built that. Why didn't anyone else build that? I have no idea. "B…
I still think this is 100% true and that's still exactly what I want, as a paying Dropbox customer. What they're trying to build now are all things I'll never use.
Same. I bailed when they started shoving their paper thing down my throat.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#36This seems like a good time to resurface the worlds best Quora answer, by Michael Wolfe. Answering “Why is Dropbox more popular than other tools with similar functionality?”: Well, let's take a step back and think about the sync problem and what the ideal solution for it would do: There would be a folder. You'd put your stuff in it. It would sync. They built that. Why didn't anyone else build that? I have no idea. "B…
Based on anecdata I'd say that a bigger and bigger chunk of people do in fact sit at Chrome all day long:
- At Google everyone had linux, and non-developers effectively only used web-apps.
- My girlfriend is at a startup but has a similar workflow on a Mac.
- I recently rejoined a gym I was a member of in '14, at that time they had some native windows CRM type app that their employees used, when I glanced at the screen recently it was just a web app in Chrome.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#37Dropbox current direction just makes me sad. I struggled with file management for a long time - balancing accessibility from phone, highly effective programming environments, backing up large quantities of not-small photos, that stuff. So I sat down one afternoon, drafted a directory structure, subbed to Dropbox and...it worked so well. Synced my configs between machines, got an Android app which could preview lot's…
>Please go back to being a folder that syncs
A simple, effective utility can't support a multi-billion valuation. Where else will the VC Ponzi dollars go?
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've switched to Syncthing, which just syncs files and not all the other that Nextcloud does (which I'm not interested in). https://syncthing.net/
I have used Syncthing for projects at work and can attest that it is a solid and simple Dropbox replacement. Though I'm not sure they support Android/iOS yet. Edit: it is clear from the comments that there is at least an Android client.
I use the android client. Does the job.
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#39Has anyone clicked the link at all? Dropbox says this was a feature in testing that got accidentally deployed, not an intended update.
> Update 4:06pm ET: Dropbox says this was a mistake. "We recently announced a new desktop app experience that is now currently available in Early Access. Due to an error, some users were accidentally exposed to the new app for a short period of time. The issue has been resolved, though there might be a short lag for some users to see resolution. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused."
Re: Dropbox silently installed new file manager app on users’ systems
#40This seems like a good time to resurface the worlds best Quora answer, by Michael Wolfe. Answering “Why is Dropbox more popular than other tools with similar functionality?”: Well, let's take a step back and think about the sync problem and what the ideal solution for it would do: There would be a folder. You'd put your stuff in it. It would sync. They built that. Why didn't anyone else build that? I have no idea. "B…
> "But," you may ask, "so much more you could do! What about task management, calendaring, customized dashboards, virtual white boarding. More than just folders and files!"
>
> No, shut up. People don't use that crap. They just want a folder. A folder that syncs.
This argument is a good one but it only covers the rise of Dropbox. We are now in a different era.
Dropbox's functionality is now table stakes and not something new. Windows by default has cloud sync, macOS does as well. We switched at our company from Dropbox to Google Drive Stream. Box is really focused on enterprise solutions -- lots of permissions, probably too much in my opinion but C-suite like that shit.
This quora answer is irrelevant in the current context. Dropbox needs to figure out how to stay in a commoditized market where their special sauce is being integrated into OSes and larger offerings (G-Suite.)
Maybe a return to simplicity is it? But we moved away from the simple solution because it wasn't sufficent for our needs. And others are just never adopting it in the first place because it is built into their OS or their app suite. Dropbox has a long-term relevancy problem here that they have not cracked.