5 ms·

May I ask, why?

scarface_74 3y ago
Like Steve Jobs said, DropBox is a feature not a product. They are barely profitable and in 2023, there are much better integrated solutions for most users - GSuite, Office365, iCloud, etc. Why for instance would I pay $120 a year for 2TB of storage when I can get Office 365 for 6 users + 1TB for each user or combine the storage for $99 a year? Apple and Google both also offer a better value proposition.
- pdntspa 3y ago
  Dropbox's desktop client is STILL the only desktop client that doesn't suck or choke on multiple git repos. Aside from syncthing it is the only program that I can count on to get file synchronization right
  - scarface_74 3y ago
    Why would I use Dropbox for my git repos instead of just using - a purpose built hosted git server?
    - pdntspa 3y ago
      You're not hosting the repos on there, you're syncing changes between computers you frequently have to switch back and forth on, without all the git command ceremony When I was doing embedded linux development I'd frequently have to get up from my seat to go test something on actual hardware. Necessitating a laptop and a desktop.
      - scarface_74 3y ago
        What git ceremonies? git add . git commit -am “…” On the other computer git pull. I know that I have all of my changes synced to and from the server as one “transaction”. With Dropbox you are dealing with eventual consistency. And besides you get all of the affordances of purpose built tools and hosting your git repository at a place that understands git.
        pdntspa 3y ago
        A couple of things: git add ., git add -u, etc, etc... bulk adds like that are bad git hygiene Nonconstructive commit messages like "..." are similarly awful. And don't forget to git stash/git stash pop Put yourself in the shoes of another developer who has to parse all that crap in the commit log. At my last job that sort of thing would never pass code review. To say nothing of the fact that you're typing all these commands potentially several times an hour, sometimes every day, for years, and adding an additional distraction to something that I got down to a pretty tight feedback loop. One alternative, the one I like the most, is you link your folders with some kind of sync mechanism (Dropbox) and can then freely (within limits) switch back and forth, and you can do all your surgical commits at once, at your leisure, once the code is ready to be backed up. If the system is reliable it is quite pleasant to experience. As a bonus you're not encoding every harebrained idea into your organization's permanent memory
        rahkiin 3y ago
        Why not use branches, and squashing in the end? Then it is not permanent, your commit messages do not matter, but you also do not need external synchronization with a third party.
        DelightOne 3y ago
        5 commands that when you forget them or when they go wrong you have to manually fix. And where when you automate them you realize on your laptop that something went wrong and you have to go back and fix it, possibly losing hours depending on where your other computers are. Who would want that, possibly over many repos? Git isn't even working well with large files to be synced. Think about git submodules. So much can and does go wrong because Git is not designed to sync that way. Not worth the hassle for most people.
        scarface_74 3y ago
        You sound like the old guys (I’m 50) who are saying who needs all this git stuff instead of just putting the code on a network share. > So much can and does go wrong because Git is not designed to sync that way. Not worth the hassle for most people. Git isn’t worth the hassle for most developers??? And you really don’t see the issue with non atomic syncing for code repositories using DropBox?
- adaml_623 3y ago
  GSuite. Do you trust Google to not shut it down? ICloud. Does it have good clients for Android, Linux and Windows?
  - scarface_74 3y ago
    Do I trust DropBox not to implode when it’s always on the edge of profitability and losing money? I purposefully mentioned four alternatives to not get into an OS holy war.
- jonathantf2 3y ago
  Sounds like you’ve never used OneDrive. The sync client sucks on every platform, will eat all of your memory and delete your documents.
  - FearlessNebula 3y ago
    I haven't used OneDrive but the iCloud Drive and Google Drive clients are similarly terrible. I one time had 5 GB of complex nested file structure in iCloud Drive and it totally froze up. I tried 2 different Mac's, an iPhone, and an iPad and none of them were able to sync up with the server to get those 5 GB out of the cloud. I had to request a GDPR to get a .zip file of my data... this was the impetus for me to switch to Dropbox although after the way they handled their layoffs I am looking to switch to Syncthing as soon as I have the time to set it up and get familiar.
- kobalsky 3y ago
  dropbox is a marvelous piece of software. I have installed it once and forgot about its existence, it’s happily churning in the background without driving any kind of attention to itself. none of those alternatives supports linux, and on mac google’s equivalent software didn’t exist for years and deprecated not one but two clients in that timeframe. dropbox is an example to be followed, it’s software that just works and doesn’t assume that your lifestyle revolves around them.
  - paleotrope 3y ago
    I agree. I've been using dropbox for years now and it just works for me. I never have to think about it and I've used it across multiple laptops and desktops over the years. I know they tried to chase other business products over the years to little success but their core product just works.
cynicalsecurity 3y ago
Dropbox is thoroughly analysing every piece of your data in real time. If you rely fully on them to back up your data, just wait until they block you for some silly reason without any possibility to recover.
- FearlessNebula 3y ago
  Hence why I use Cryptomator to encrypt my data. Apparently OneDrive marks this as ransomware and sends you scary emails but does not lock your account. So far Dropbox does not seem to care about Cryptomator at all. Edit: Not to defend Dropbox, but just saying there is a mitigation if you need it.
  - cynicalsecurity 3y ago
    It hugely negates all the convenience of using it.

May I ask, why?

Like Steve Jobs said, DropBox is a feature not a product. They are barely profitable and in 2023, there are much better integrated solutions for most users - GSuite, Office365, iCloud, etc. Why for instance would I pay $120 a year for 2TB of storage when I can get Office 365 for 6 users + 1TB for each user or combine the storage for $99 a year? Apple and Google both also offer a better value proposition.

pdntspa 3y ago
Dropbox's desktop client is STILL the only desktop client that doesn't suck or choke on multiple git repos. Aside from syncthing it is the only program that I can count on to get file synchronization right
- scarface_74 3y ago
  Why would I use Dropbox for my git repos instead of just using - a purpose built hosted git server?
  - pdntspa 3y ago
    You're not hosting the repos on there, you're syncing changes between computers you frequently have to switch back and forth on, without all the git command ceremony When I was doing embedded linux development I'd frequently have to get up from my seat to go test something on actual hardware. Necessitating a laptop and a desktop.
    - scarface_74 3y ago
      What git ceremonies? git add . git commit -am “…” On the other computer git pull. I know that I have all of my changes synced to and from the server as one “transaction”. With Dropbox you are dealing with eventual consistency. And besides you get all of the affordances of purpose built tools and hosting your git repository at a place that understands git.
      - pdntspa 3y ago
        A couple of things: git add ., git add -u, etc, etc... bulk adds like that are bad git hygiene Nonconstructive commit messages like "..." are similarly awful. And don't forget to git stash/git stash pop Put yourself in the shoes of another developer who has to parse all that crap in the commit log. At my last job that sort of thing would never pass code review. To say nothing of the fact that you're typing all these commands potentially several times an hour, sometimes every day, for years, and adding an additional distraction to something that I got down to a pretty tight feedback loop. One alternative, the one I like the most, is you link your folders with some kind of sync mechanism (Dropbox) and can then freely (within limits) switch back and forth, and you can do all your surgical commits at once, at your leisure, once the code is ready to be backed up. If the system is reliable it is quite pleasant to experience. As a bonus you're not encoding every harebrained idea into your organization's permanent memory
        rahkiin 3y ago
        Why not use branches, and squashing in the end? Then it is not permanent, your commit messages do not matter, but you also do not need external synchronization with a third party.
        DelightOne 3y ago
        5 commands that when you forget them or when they go wrong you have to manually fix. And where when you automate them you realize on your laptop that something went wrong and you have to go back and fix it, possibly losing hours depending on where your other computers are. Who would want that, possibly over many repos? Git isn't even working well with large files to be synced. Think about git submodules. So much can and does go wrong because Git is not designed to sync that way. Not worth the hassle for most people.
        scarface_74 3y ago
        You sound like the old guys (I’m 50) who are saying who needs all this git stuff instead of just putting the code on a network share. > So much can and does go wrong because Git is not designed to sync that way. Not worth the hassle for most people. Git isn’t worth the hassle for most developers??? And you really don’t see the issue with non atomic syncing for code repositories using DropBox?
adaml_623 3y ago
GSuite. Do you trust Google to not shut it down? ICloud. Does it have good clients for Android, Linux and Windows?
- scarface_74 3y ago
  Do I trust DropBox not to implode when it’s always on the edge of profitability and losing money? I purposefully mentioned four alternatives to not get into an OS holy war.
jonathantf2 3y ago
Sounds like you’ve never used OneDrive. The sync client sucks on every platform, will eat all of your memory and delete your documents.
- FearlessNebula 3y ago
  I haven't used OneDrive but the iCloud Drive and Google Drive clients are similarly terrible. I one time had 5 GB of complex nested file structure in iCloud Drive and it totally froze up. I tried 2 different Mac's, an iPhone, and an iPad and none of them were able to sync up with the server to get those 5 GB out of the cloud. I had to request a GDPR to get a .zip file of my data... this was the impetus for me to switch to Dropbox although after the way they handled their layoffs I am looking to switch to Syncthing as soon as I have the time to set it up and get familiar.
kobalsky 3y ago
dropbox is a marvelous piece of software. I have installed it once and forgot about its existence, it’s happily churning in the background without driving any kind of attention to itself. none of those alternatives supports linux, and on mac google’s equivalent software didn’t exist for years and deprecated not one but two clients in that timeframe. dropbox is an example to be followed, it’s software that just works and doesn’t assume that your lifestyle revolves around them.
- paleotrope 3y ago
  I agree. I've been using dropbox for years now and it just works for me. I never have to think about it and I've used it across multiple laptops and desktops over the years. I know they tried to chase other business products over the years to little success but their core product just works.

cynicalsecurity 3y ago

Dropbox is thoroughly analysing every piece of your data in real time. If you rely fully on them to back up your data, just wait until they block you for some silly reason without any possibility to recover.

FearlessNebula 3y ago
Hence why I use Cryptomator to encrypt my data. Apparently OneDrive marks this as ransomware and sends you scary emails but does not lock your account. So far Dropbox does not seem to care about Cryptomator at all. Edit: Not to defend Dropbox, but just saying there is a mitigation if you need it.
- cynicalsecurity 3y ago
  It hugely negates all the convenience of using it.