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I really don't understand any advantages of Crate over Dropbox, which also has file sharing through URLs and folder sharing. I asked this question the last tim

I really don't understand any advantages of Crate over Dropbox, which also has file sharing through URLs and folder sharing. I asked this question the last time Crate was on HN and got a vague response.

bdclimber14 16y ago
I found the original response from the last comment to my question (the response is now dead): * Nothing to download. * Easy to use. * Its the next New Big Thing. Dropbox is incredibly easy to use, and "The next Big Thing" is not an advantage. Not having anything to download is nice, but the side-effect is that everything has to manually be uploaded instead of automated.
- theli0nheart 16y ago
  The API should be done by the end of this weekend. When that's done you'll be able to upload your files however you'd like, provided that you are willing to write some code :)
  - bdclimber14 16y ago
    I'll be honest, I don't think I could possibly even think of a way to improve the Dropbox workflow. An API is great, but I can't think of what to code that would be better than what's available for free.
- statictype 16y ago
  but the side-effect is that everything has to manually be uploaded instead of automated. What's the difference between dragging from one folder to another and dragging from one folder into the browser page? Same amount of effort. There's a definite use-case for this type of service. Even if you use Dropbox, there are times when you want to transfer files from someone else's machine and they don't use Dropbox.
  - bdclimber14 16y ago
    I don't do any dragging. I just store everything in Dropbox to begin with. Sometimes I forget what Dropbox is, it's that good. Dragging is a pain point. I do see the use case for non-dropbox users. Unfortunately, I don't think that others not having Dropbox is a strong competitive advantage.
bdclimber14 16y ago
I actually can see the use-case of asking someone for a large file. Having them download Dropbox is a pain, but something that is one-time use would be ideal.
- sahillavingia 16y ago
  Yeah, that's definitely one of the things we're going to be adding to the service. Person 1: "Hey, send me that file, use this: url" Person 2: "Oh!" drag and drop All updated in real time (so you could potentially link a whole group of friends something and see them all drop in files for an event or some-such). Perhaps a school trip or something to that extent.
- berberich 16y ago
  I've used AirDropper[1] for this a few times when clients needed to send me web design files, and it worked beautifully. Just connect it to your Dropbox account, send a file request email to the other person, and the files show up in the sandboxed AirDropper folder in your Dropbox account. It's like magic. [1] http://airdropper.com/ http://airdropper.com/

bdclimber14 16y ago

I found the original response from the last comment to my question (the response is now dead): * Nothing to download. * Easy to use. * Its the next New Big Thing. Dropbox is incredibly easy to use, and "The next Big Thing" is not an advantage. Not having anything to download is nice, but the side-effect is that everything has to manually be uploaded instead of automated.

theli0nheart 16y ago
The API should be done by the end of this weekend. When that's done you'll be able to upload your files however you'd like, provided that you are willing to write some code :)
- bdclimber14 16y ago
  I'll be honest, I don't think I could possibly even think of a way to improve the Dropbox workflow. An API is great, but I can't think of what to code that would be better than what's available for free.
statictype 16y ago
but the side-effect is that everything has to manually be uploaded instead of automated. What's the difference between dragging from one folder to another and dragging from one folder into the browser page? Same amount of effort. There's a definite use-case for this type of service. Even if you use Dropbox, there are times when you want to transfer files from someone else's machine and they don't use Dropbox.
- bdclimber14 16y ago
  I don't do any dragging. I just store everything in Dropbox to begin with. Sometimes I forget what Dropbox is, it's that good. Dragging is a pain point. I do see the use case for non-dropbox users. Unfortunately, I don't think that others not having Dropbox is a strong competitive advantage.

bdclimber14 16y ago

I actually can see the use-case of asking someone for a large file. Having them download Dropbox is a pain, but something that is one-time use would be ideal.

sahillavingia 16y ago
Yeah, that's definitely one of the things we're going to be adding to the service. Person 1: "Hey, send me that file, use this: url" Person 2: "Oh!" drag and drop All updated in real time (so you could potentially link a whole group of friends something and see them all drop in files for an event or some-such). Perhaps a school trip or something to that extent.
berberich 16y ago
I've used AirDropper[1] for this a few times when clients needed to send me web design files, and it worked beautifully. Just connect it to your Dropbox account, send a file request email to the other person, and the files show up in the sandboxed AirDropper folder in your Dropbox account. It's like magic. [1] http://airdropper.com/ http://airdropper.com/