Access and share your files from everywhere 20100805

Time to work from everywhere, from any computer with your proper files but sometimes in a collaborative way.

When you are planning to work "on the road", you normaly had to consider backup process to prevent lost or damages on your files.

So before packing your Netbook or IPad, take a moment to list your criterias for safe and collaborative work "on the road". Then you can order them according to your priorities. Here is just an example:

- privacy > you want to preserve your files for public use but some files could be shared with selected people of your choice and modified by them

- speed > your target is to work as "quickly" as you do on a standalone desktop (execution, backup)

- changing habits > time is money and more "one the road". You need to work the same way you work at home: same browser, same keyboard, same keyboard shortcuts, same "menus"...

- synchronization between one computer/user and other. Synchronization should be a basic feature but often it is hard to manage and first responsible of losts and stress...

- competition between user's modifications. Collaboration means modifications on the spot preserving the history of the modifications of the file (different versions of a single file)

- backup > a backup is a copy of your file stored in an other place than the original one.

What are the solutions to achieve all these criterias when you are "on the road"?

The solutions could be a mix of tools.

Applications in the clouds

For example: Zoho online applications, Google Docs

Here you can work "like" at home, share and collaborate.

Synchronization is working like a breeze. You can track the modifications and go back to a former version.

Backup: you need to use another tool to have a copy ELSEWHERE. Consider the following solutions:

backup on you desktop HDD or netbook HDD or pendrive
Drawback > backup manual process

Backup Storage in the clouds

For example: Dropbox

This is THE backup tool: perfect synchronization between computers, sharing features for collaborative work.

The drawback, on my point of view, is the footprint let by Dropbox on computer (Nautilus installation and Dropbox directory).

Consider this issue if you are using any computer you find on the way.

WIKI

At first sight wiki is "only" a collaborative platform. But you will quickly understand that it is one of the best "FTP" tool you have on the market.

FTP tool? Yes, the "upload file" feature gives you a unique way to backup files with a "reverse" feature.

upload a file with the same name every hour in a day.

At the end of the day you would be able to select in the "historial" of your uploads what version you want to download to work on: fill the description part each time you upload your file and you will be done!

So now you are working in the clouds with a wiki. This means:

- using a collaborative platform with restricting access and editing privileges.

- doing backups of files with tracking feature

- working with applications in the clouds but visualizing files contents directly in the wiki like this:

Pros > web editing, privacy, no footprint, backup, synchronazing friendly (history of all the activity) .
Cons > changing habits

Add your tools

20091207.isayel.41x45.jpg isayel point of view... Clouds are the better place to put everything when you are jumping from one device to another.
My priorities working "digital" are privacy, backup and synchronization. This is why WIKI is the "killer" solution for me!