Dropbox-A great way to collaborate

For the last few weeks I have been working with someone from a distance and we have been sharing files in such a great way!  Dropbox is a program that you can download to your computer, iPhone, Blackberry, Android or  iPad. It creates what looks like another Folder or Drive on your device. It is a place where you can put files that you want to share with someone else OR that you just want to be able to access in more than one location on more than one computer. You can even go to a computer you have never used and log into Dropbox online to access all of your files.

My friend and I were trying to figure out how she could share a bunch of photos, that we had agreed I would resize and crop, with me. There were a lot of photos and we wanted to start out with the largest sizes we could so that the quality was good. First she copied them all onto a thumb drive and I tried to put them onto my computer, but we had some problems. Either the thumb drive was not good or it was because she is working on a PC and I work on a Mac. So, we decided to try Dropbox as a way to share files.  Here is how it works:

1. My friend uploaded all of the pictures into the SHARED folder in her Dropbox.

2. She invited me to share the files with her. I got an email and accepted.

3. Now when I open my shared folder the folder that she uploaded there appears. I can access all of the pictures that she sent me and work on them.

4. I edit the pictures for her and then put them in other folders inside the folder that we are sharing. She can access them and let me know if they are OK or what else needs to be done on them.

It is amazing and easy!

p.s. You remember 'the cloud' that everyone talks about? Well, that is how this works. The files in the dropbox are actually stored on a server (computer) somewhere and by sharing that folder more than one person can access it OR you can get your files from any computer that has WiFi access.

What is Cloud Computing?

If you have not heard the words "the cloud" yet I want to know where you have been.  Even frequently run commercials are talking about "the cloud" as if it is a really good thing. But what is it?

"The cloud" is a way of describing a huge bank of servers somewhere that store data for you. It is not really a magical place, but it is a place that is hard to visualize. When you save something to your computer you know where it is. You might also have some files, or data on a thumb drive or a CD Rom. When your data is in one of these places you can put your hands on it. However, if your data is in one of those places and you are in a different place you cannot just pick up any computer and access the information.

"The Cloud" describes computers that are called SERVERS and are designed to store and "serve" huge amounts of data to other computers. This blog is on a server that Google's Blogger is on somewhere and so it is easier to say that it is on "The Cloud". If you do genealogy you can benefit by having your information on "The Cloud" so that you can learn from what others are finding and they can learn from you. Facebook is on "The Cloud" and so are many more programs and websites where you need to login for access.

So, "The Cloud" can be a good thing, but it also brings up lots of questions:
Who owns the data on the cloud?
Is my stuff that is saved on "The Cloud" private?
Is there a way that I can lose everything that is out on "The Cloud"?
and
Is this the same cloud where heaven is?

If you are interested in learning more here are some links that might help you:
InfoWorld-What Cloud Computing Really Means
20 Things I Learned about Browsers and the Web
Wikipedia Article on Cloud Computing