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Doesn't Dropbox achieve exactly that, and in almost the perfect way possible? But yes I get your point, there are surely some areas for which no good solutions

Doesn't Dropbox achieve exactly that, and in almost the perfect way possible? But yes I get your point, there are surely some areas for which no good solutions exist yet and users don't know that it would be very useful.

TeMPOraL 10y ago
Dropbox is great (I've been a happy user for many, many years, and for the last year I've been also a paying happy user). But it solves a different problem - the problem of keeping your files accessible between many machines. Machines you own. The problem of direct file transfer, aka. "I want this file to get from this device to that device (any device - whether mine or my friend's) as fast as possible" remains unsolved.
- blakeyrat 10y ago
  That's not true, it used to exist in the form of FolderSync, a productized version of Microsoft's SyncToy, which later became part of the Windows Live brand (IIRC as Windows Live Sync.) Then it went away and never came back. Why? Because Microsoft released OneDrive, a DropBox-like cloud storage system, and the 100% free FolderSync was a competitor to it. Microsoft can make money selling OneDrive, they can't make money selling FolderSync, so it's gone. Basically, the product you're lamenting doesn't exist used to exist, but no longer does because nobody can make money from it. I used to use FolderSync to exchange multi-gigabyte video files with my friends while we were doing video editing, and it was an amazing awesome product. It was dead-easy to set up, traversed NAT and firewalls without any troubles, maxed-out whatever internet connection it had access to, and used the LAN connection if possible. Now we'll never see anything like it again. ... anyway, TLDR: the problem doesn't "remain unsolved", it was solved but is now no longer solved.
vetinari 10y ago
Dropbox solves entirely different problem - it's my files stored on someones else machine. Seamless transfer among my machines only is a different problem.
- Capt-RogerOver 10y ago
  Bittorrent sync?
  - msoucy 10y ago
    Or SparkleShare, which is essentially a Dropbox clone backed by git. IIRC it doesn't use anybody else's servers

TeMPOraL 10y ago

Dropbox is great (I've been a happy user for many, many years, and for the last year I've been also a paying happy user). But it solves a different problem - the problem of keeping your files accessible between many machines. Machines you own. The problem of direct file transfer, aka. "I want this file to get from this device to that device (any device - whether mine or my friend's) as fast as possible" remains unsolved.

blakeyrat 10y ago
That's not true, it used to exist in the form of FolderSync, a productized version of Microsoft's SyncToy, which later became part of the Windows Live brand (IIRC as Windows Live Sync.) Then it went away and never came back. Why? Because Microsoft released OneDrive, a DropBox-like cloud storage system, and the 100% free FolderSync was a competitor to it. Microsoft can make money selling OneDrive, they can't make money selling FolderSync, so it's gone. Basically, the product you're lamenting doesn't exist used to exist, but no longer does because nobody can make money from it. I used to use FolderSync to exchange multi-gigabyte video files with my friends while we were doing video editing, and it was an amazing awesome product. It was dead-easy to set up, traversed NAT and firewalls without any troubles, maxed-out whatever internet connection it had access to, and used the LAN connection if possible. Now we'll never see anything like it again. ... anyway, TLDR: the problem doesn't "remain unsolved", it was solved but is now no longer solved.

vetinari 10y ago

Dropbox solves entirely different problem - it's my files stored on someones else machine. Seamless transfer among my machines only is a different problem.

Capt-RogerOver 10y ago
Bittorrent sync?
- msoucy 10y ago
  Or SparkleShare, which is essentially a Dropbox clone backed by git. IIRC it doesn't use anybody else's servers