I'm beginning a review of online file storage, building on
my prior blog entry. I'm looking for online space to store artifacts for an electronic portfolio, not a standard file backup service. I found the following resources that either listed or reviewed the different services:
Based on this work and
a chart that I downloaded, from an article called
The Online Storage Gang, I am exploring the following services. I pulled together a couple of PDF files and one MP3 file to upload as a test of the system. Here are my requirements: free storage of at least 1 GB of any type of data (including audio files) and able to share files in two ways (email with link to a file and permanent URI that can be added as a link to a web page).
- Box.net (I've had an account for more than a year, but haven't really used the service.) 1 GB free storage, maximum file size 10 MB (would not accept the MP3 file of my 12 minute 11.4 MB presentation) without an account upgrade. I had to edit the file down to less than 10 MB. Even then, it hung up in the middle of uploading the 9.9 MB MP3 file, and I was never able to add it to my account. Requires an upgraded account to create a permanent URI.
Email: YES - URI: NO
- Omnidrive (When I tried to sign up for an account, I received the following message: We have currently reached server capacity and there are no more accounts available during the beta period. We expect to launch Omnidrive 1.0 during April, 2008.) That's too bad. Based on the features and description, it looks the most promising. 1 GB free storage
Email: ? - URI: ? (website says YES to both)
- MediaMax (I read bad reviews, so I signed up with some reservations.) 25 GB free storage. I was able to upload files, either individually or as a batch. I uploaded an MP3 file, but it was too large to be downloaded without an account upgrade. It accepted the smaller file. After I transferred the files into a Hosted Folder, it showed the URL to link to each file. Files can also be shared by email. This was the most trouble-free and intuitive of the sites that I tried.
Email: YES - URI: YES
- esnips.com - A very easy site to set up. I was able to upload my PDF files, but it rejected the MP3 file that I created, with the statement "Publish failed Suspected copyright infringement - upload denied." That won't work if students want to upload audio samples that they create. 5 GB free storage
Email: YES - URI: NO
- Adrive - Very easy to set up and upload both PDF and MP3 files. No file size limit. A single click shares the file, and the list of shared files includes the URI. However, clicking on the link goes to a web page that downloads the file. 50 GB free storage
Email: YES - URI: NO
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14 comments:
I kindly invite you to "test drive" NomaDesk at www.nomadesk.com. It's the first Virtual File Network (VFN) for mobile professionals.
I am not looking for a standard online backup system. I want space to store artifacts for online portfolios which are part of a model of "lifetime personal web space" (see my prior blog entries under the label "archive").
Interesting. Two more suggestions for you are DropBox and Drop.Io. I hear they are both decent. I use ElephantDrive, but it is more of a secure information center as opposed to a publishing engine (they tell me it is coming soon, though).
Also, BeInSync might work - I just heard about them for the first time today here: http://cloudstorage.wordpress.com/.
Good luck - please keep us posted on any new findings...
Hello Helen,
check www.rapidshare.com. You can upload up to 100 MB files.
Georgi
rapidshare.com only holds a file for 90 days of inactivity. That does not qualify for my criteria of "lifetime personal web space" that I am researching.
I've had my students use Box for their 5 to 8 minute MP3s and then link to the files in a blog post, so I and the rest of the class could access them. Worked very well.
I am very interested in reading your work. As a teacher and midwife I have to have a portfolio for both my educator and midwifery roles. I am slowly developing my own eportfolio and hope to model it to both students and midwifery colleagues. best wishes Sarah
Helen, many providers only allow for thirty days so rapidshare 90 day is actually ahead of the possy.
Like you, I see this as a crucial variable and therefore I went with http://www.backupanytime.com who allow configurable and unlimited retention. This is not a free service but it works. Another important issue to watch out for with cheap services is the Hotel California of data backup which means you can upload all you want for free but you must pay to retrieve any usable amount of data due to the anomaly between up and down allowance per month. Again, backupanytime.com dont paly any games here and allow unlimited restore.
Mike Sullivan
I have been very happy with DivShare. You can upload up to 200mb at a time with 5gb total storage with the free version. You can email links and such. I have found it to be superior to all the services I have used so far.
Cheers,
Dave
Check out ElephantDrive. They have 1G for free and have a great set of features.
You can also try www.wwd.net for a free trial. They have a web interface plus a utility that allows you to use any type of FTP software to backup and transfer files.
I am currently using 4 shared free file sharing, the specs are pretty good from what I have researched so far. I get 5GB free and can upload multiple files, I do this to get PSD files to designers I work with as a photographer, however, honestly I have had some problems getting the files to upload without errors and headaches. The loading is slower than I would like, ok for single JPEGS but extremely slow for larger files. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for a safe, file share and storage site that will allow decent space and faster loading. For free too! I am new to this and maybe starting my own FTP server to combat long term.
Thanks
You can also try http://www.MyOtherDrive.com. They offer free file storage and file sharing. They have unattended backup and support AES 128-bit encryption.
They have private file sharing which allows you to control who can view the links you send. Very cool.
We have just completed a detailed review of over 50 online storage providers and the top 12 are currently posted on our website. There is a comparison chart: http://www.savvyitsolutions.com/os/os-comp.html and detailed reviews of each provider: http://www.savvyitsolutions.com/os/os-reviews.com. Hopefully they will be of use to you.
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