Store Files Online with Hotmail

Windows Live SkyDrive, which comes with a hotmail/windows live account gives you 25GB of free online storage. Very handy for storing smaller files as uploading is restricted to 50MB per file.

In addition, with SkyDrive you can download entire folders as Zip files and it also provides an online slide show for your photos. The uploaded files may be kept private or shared with other users.

Looks and works just like an extra hard drive except your files are stored in the 'cloud' :-)

In terms of file storage, SkyDrive seems a better deal than Google. Only 7MB capacity with gmail and a restriction on the file formats that can be uploaded.

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Technorati Tags: cloud computing, gmail, hotmail, skydrive

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Store your Memories online!

Evernote is a place to store information for retrieving at a later date - anything from simple to-do lists to web pages, whiteboards and photos.

I've just started using it for my to-do lists and I really like it. Thanks Paul for finding Evernote.

There are lots of ways to record your information in Evernote including:
* Creating new notes using desktop, web, and mobile versions of Evernote
* Take a snapshot using your camera phone or webcam.
* Amazingly text is also recognized in the image!
* Clip entire web pages, screenshots, and just about anything else you can copy
* Drag and drop content into the desktop clients for Mac and Windows
* Email notes directly into your account using your personalized email address
* Scan receipts, recipes, tags, brochures, and anything else into Evernote
* Record audio wherever you are and listen to it whenever you want

Still not convinced, then have a look at this promotional video. If you want to sign up immediately, I have 5 invitations left. Just send an email to inchicorepd AT hotmail DOT com and I'll send on the invitation.

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Technorati Tags: evernote

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Storing and Sharing Your Files Online

There are lots of file sharing sites out there most of which are blocked on our student network, simply because they allow file sharing!

But, I have just come across Office Live Workspace which, so far, remains open and accessible. I like Office Live Workspace because it allows you to upload many file types, including all the OpenOffice documents, as well as the normal Microsoft Office documents. This is a distinct advantage over Google Docs, which only allows for a limited number of file types.

Handy features in Office Live Workspace include creating folders, called workspaces, and uploading multiple files using simple drag and drop.  The current upload limit is 500 MB for the whole account, with a maximum of 30MB per file.

You can also create specialised workspaces which already contain useful built in applications. For example, the class workspace contains a contact list, date list, class notes, essay outline and syllabus. Handy little features for students to use.

Sharing files/workspaces in Office Live Workspace is easy as you simply select the Share option on the toolbar and then add the e-mail addresses of people whom you'd like to grant read/write access to your document/workspace. Up to 100 people can be added.

NB: To share a single file it must be placed in the 'Documents' workspace.

Sharing the whole workspace or your screen could be good for online collaboration and demonstration.

Now blocked as of beginning of May 2008 :-(

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Technorati Tags: file sharing, office live workspace, open office

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Access your Gmail Space as a Drive

With 6GB of space provided with your Gmail account it seems a waste just to use this storage space for emails and attachments. Though, I am told this space is really for your Google Docs files and not just the emails!

Nevertheless, I have been testing two tools that allow you to access the space like a drive - so you can carry out all your normal file management functions using this space.

 

For all those still using Internet Explorer, GMail Drive is a third party addon which creates a virtual drive that appears on your computer and acts as any other installed hard-drive. You can copy files to and from the GMail Drive simply by using drag'n'drop like you do in Explorer.

When you create a new file using GMail Drive, it sends an e-mail to your account, which appears in your normal Inbox folder, and the file is attached as an e-mail attachment. It is a good idea to create a filter in Gmail to automatically move the files (prefixed with the GMAILFS letters in the subject) to an archived mail folder - so that the Inbox does not become cluttered up.

The latest version 1.0.12 is supposed to work with Google Apps accounts but I have not had any success in that area. Has anyone else???



For those using Firefox, there is GSpace, a Firefox extension, which turns your Gmail account into free online storage. With GSpace, you can store all types of files. Its simple, user friendly interface allows for all file management tasks to be carried out. GSpace is easily accessed from the 'Tools' menu within Firefox.

Both of the tools work perfectly - except with our hosted domain on Google Apps :-( which is where I really wanted to use them, since my students all have college email addresses.

Mind you, I've just had a thought, next year the students could create their own individual gmail accounts and then use one of these very useful tools :-)

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Technorati Tags: email, gmail, gmail drive, google apps, gspace,

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Online Storage for all File Types

DivShare provides "free, unlimited storage and sharing for your documents and media". An easy to use folder structure, for organising your files, is also provided by DivShare. For added security, you can  password protect any of your folders.

When looking for files, you can view all files with the same format - with just one click. You can also carry out a keyword search.

Another useful feature, in DivShare, is the document viewer, which allows you to view all PDFs, Word documents and PowerPoint presentations right on the DivShare download page - helpful for sharing files with people who don’t have the right software. Also very useful for storing and viewing those blocked YouTube and Flickr files - so long as DivShare itself is not blocked!! The original file format can still be downloaded.

Uploading files is straight forward and by installing an activeX addon you can use the 'drag and drop' upload feature, which makes it even easier again!

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Technorati Tags: divshare, media, online storage

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Online Goodies (7) - Scribd

Need access to your files anywhere, anytime? Then store them online using Scribd, which not only allows for the storage of files but also encourages public sharing of the documents. Scribd's stated aim is to "create the world's largest open library of documents". The files can be viewed in a web browser using Scribd's custom flash document viewer. Interestingly, the original file can be downloaded in a variety of different formats (pdf, word, txt or mp3).

This text document called 'Wiki as a Teaching Tool' includes an audio file on the page.

Files may be uploaded individually or in bulk. You can decide to keep the documents private or share them with the world! You can also create and join different groups and like other social networking sites, Scribd also lets you add friends.

MediaFire is a free file hosting service which allows anyone to share files and images. There is, currently, no limit on the number of files stored.

I am also using an account on Box (1GB storage). When I signed up it was completely free, but I notice now that they are charging for all of their accounts. The entry level Plus Plan allows 2GB of storage (50MB per file limit) for $25 per year. It will be interesting to see how long mine remains free!

Update: 25/8/08: Automatic convertion to mp3 at Scribd does not seem to be available any longer.

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Technorati Tags: flash, online storage, scribd, social networking, wiki

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