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Dropbox's core offering boils down to file sync + cloud sync. There's many use cases where that's what you want - access on whatever devices you have the app in

by mcintyre1994 14y ago

Dropbox's core offering boils down to file sync + cloud sync. There's many use cases where that's what you want - access on whatever devices you have the app installed on, and also over the web. Cloud sync leads to storage limits (which don't make sense as a consumer for file sync, but are necessary for large scale cloud sync) and centralisation (desirable for vast access, not so much for some situations). BT sync isn't a Dropbox replacement, it's a file sync replacement that's superior in some ways, but lacks the benefits of being combined with cloud sync.

pessimizer 14y ago
Is there anyone interested in cloud sync for its own sake? In other words, if the entire thing works seamlessly and identically in-house, and assuming a disciplined backup strategy, is there anybody going "But if it were in someone else's data center, that'd be so much better!" BT sync sounds like a complete replacement for dropbox for people with the skills and willingness to set it up.
- ephoz 14y ago
  Pushing this, for a hacker setting up a VPS is a matter of minutes... BAM cloud-sync! ;)
- mcintyre1994 14y ago
  It's a fair point, but if we consider the GP's claims, they're pretty much all benefits of cloud sync. You get a web-based view for your albums, you can share easier outside of your own devices, you can - as he says, compete with the top services for photo, video and music sharing. Cloud sync makes you a media company. Personally, I use cloud sync for a lot of backup stuff. Granted, it's mostly Git to BitBucket, but in school I used to push documents to Dropbox or Box just to have a backup. I wasn't interested in having my essays synced to my phone, just that if my other versions died I could download my work again to another device. If you're referring to companies though, no I doubt they'd want a seamless and perfect system in somebody else's data center. That said, a data center and a perfect seamless cloud backup solution is a considerable cost, especially for a startup. But yep, I agree, BT sync would be perfect if you didn't want/need Dropbox remote backups or web services.
- sirclueless 14y ago
  I have taken advantage of Dropbox's cloud sync features quite often. For example, my school's printers are attached to library computers but not my laptop. So I can just log in to Dropbox from a library computer to download and print a file from their web interface. The only real alternative would be to first send myself an email with the file as an attachment, which would require me to have the forethought to send that email from my laptop first, instead of knowing I can print any file I want whenever I want. Also, I often share individual files by using the "Get a public link" feature in Dropbox, and it's comforting to know they can just access those files whenever they want no matter what devices are attached and syncing.
- AndrewDucker 14y ago
  I don't have both my laptop and desktop on at the same time most of the time. Therefore syncing between them would happen very intermittently if there wasn't a cloud in the middle. Additionally, I wouldn't be able to get access to my files when I was at my parents without my laptop - which I can do with Dropbox.

pessimizer 14y ago

Is there anyone interested in cloud sync for its own sake? In other words, if the entire thing works seamlessly and identically in-house, and assuming a disciplined backup strategy, is there anybody going "But if it were in someone else's data center, that'd be so much better!" BT sync sounds like a complete replacement for dropbox for people with the skills and willingness to set it up.

ephoz 14y ago
Pushing this, for a hacker setting up a VPS is a matter of minutes... BAM cloud-sync! ;)
mcintyre1994 14y ago
It's a fair point, but if we consider the GP's claims, they're pretty much all benefits of cloud sync. You get a web-based view for your albums, you can share easier outside of your own devices, you can - as he says, compete with the top services for photo, video and music sharing. Cloud sync makes you a media company. Personally, I use cloud sync for a lot of backup stuff. Granted, it's mostly Git to BitBucket, but in school I used to push documents to Dropbox or Box just to have a backup. I wasn't interested in having my essays synced to my phone, just that if my other versions died I could download my work again to another device. If you're referring to companies though, no I doubt they'd want a seamless and perfect system in somebody else's data center. That said, a data center and a perfect seamless cloud backup solution is a considerable cost, especially for a startup. But yep, I agree, BT sync would be perfect if you didn't want/need Dropbox remote backups or web services.
sirclueless 14y ago
I have taken advantage of Dropbox's cloud sync features quite often. For example, my school's printers are attached to library computers but not my laptop. So I can just log in to Dropbox from a library computer to download and print a file from their web interface. The only real alternative would be to first send myself an email with the file as an attachment, which would require me to have the forethought to send that email from my laptop first, instead of knowing I can print any file I want whenever I want. Also, I often share individual files by using the "Get a public link" feature in Dropbox, and it's comforting to know they can just access those files whenever they want no matter what devices are attached and syncing.
AndrewDucker 14y ago
I don't have both my laptop and desktop on at the same time most of the time. Therefore syncing between them would happen very intermittently if there wasn't a cloud in the middle. Additionally, I wouldn't be able to get access to my files when I was at my parents without my laptop - which I can do with Dropbox.