Dropbox gets all up in your kernel with Project Infinite. Cue uproar - Polidicks

[quote]Dropbox is on the defensive after revealing its file-sharing service will in future tap into the very heart of your computer’s operating system. Project Infinite, unveiled in April, will take Dropbox out of the browser on the PC or Macs and integrate it directly with your machine’s local file storage. Items stored in your Dropbox account will show up in your machine’s local menus.[/quote] (...) [quote]Among those asking if they could opt out of kernel access on the Dropbox blog was one Craig Burke. “I don't personally need to guard against the 'untrained intern problem' and I'm very uncomfortable with needing to load a kernel extension,” he wrote.[/quote] source: [url]http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/05/26/dropbox_kernel_access/[/url]

I don't understand. It sounds like it simply functions the way it always has, with local files mirrored between your computer and the cloud. Isn't that the whole point of dropbox?

[QUOTE=bitches;50400527]I don't understand. It sounds like it simply functions the way it always has, with local files mirrored between your computer and the cloud. Isn't that the whole point of dropbox?[/QUOTE] This video kinda explains it better. [hd]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT4rAaV9MhU[/hd] I use dropbox a *lot* and this seems kinda cool tbh.

[QUOTE=bitches;50400527]I don't understand. It sounds like it simply functions the way it always has, with local files mirrored between your computer and the cloud. Isn't that the whole point of dropbox?[/QUOTE] A cloud storage application doesn't ever need to be integrated into the kernel of the OS.

I went from DB to GD and I'm happy with the change. What edge does this give Dropbox over google drive? How does this make it different to just normal cloud storage?

[QUOTE=icarusfoundyou;50400531]This video kinda explains it better. [hd]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT4rAaV9MhU[/hd] I use dropbox a *lot* and this seems kinda cool tbh.[/QUOTE] ah, so it fools the OS into thinking that the file exists locally so that all programs can act as though that is the truth, but it actually pulls it from the internet on-demand that's pretty awesome, but definitely is something that should exist as a special option rather than something to surprise your users with forcibly

[url=https://www.grahamcluley.com/2015/04/dropbox-leak-tax-return/]Just a note that these are the same people that have leaked numerous documents in the past and are now trying to embed themselves in your kernel[/url] Can't wait for the unforeseen exploits

[QUOTE=J!NX;50400536]I went from DB to GD and I'm happy with the change. What edge does this give Dropbox over google drive? How does this make it different to just normal cloud storage?[/QUOTE] As far as I know, GD doesn't have a quick and convenient way of getting a direct link to a file, something I use pretty often, which is why I'm sticking with Dropbox for the time being

[QUOTE=bitches;50400543]ah, so it fools the OS into thinking that the file exists locally so that all programs can act as though that is the truth, but it actually pulls it from the internet on-demand that's pretty awesome, but definitely is something that should exist as a special option rather than something to surprise your users with forcibly[/QUOTE] I'd say that is probably their goal. Like for my PC its no problem to have the harddrive space to sync all 200 odd GB of files I have. On my surface it simply isn't realistic to have it all sync'd because that's pretty much the entire HD gone. So its really, really nice to have this option and just keep your working directories sync'd.

I wonder what this means for gaming. We used to have a Sim City 4 facepunch thread where we had to install a special program that copies dropbox files into the Sim City 4 save folder, and vice versa. Wasn't really that stable.

[QUOTE=bitches;50400543]ah, so it fools the OS into thinking that the file exists locally so that all programs can act as though that is the truth, but it actually pulls it from the internet on-demand that's pretty awesome, but definitely is something that should exist as a special option rather than something to surprise your users with forcibly[/QUOTE] So if I lose connection to the Internet my computer stops working?

[QUOTE=Thunderbolt;50400549]As far as I know, GD doesn't have a quick and convenient way of getting a direct link to a file, something I use pretty often, which is why I'm sticking with Dropbox for the time being[/QUOTE] this definitely seems like the same thing as just going to, lets say, the drive website, except like, what the fuck more convenient.

[QUOTE=wauterboi;50400544][url=https://www.grahamcluley.com/2015/04/dropbox-leak-tax-return/]Just a note that these are the same people that have leaked numerous documents in the past and are now trying to embed themselves in your kernel[/url] Can't wait for the unforeseen exploits[/QUOTE] And I was about to say, I'm worried about security exploits. If someone had your username and password, could they copy files and/or delete them?

[QUOTE=Thunderbolt;50400549]As far as I know, GD doesn't have a quick and convenient way of getting a direct link to a file, something I use pretty often, which is why I'm sticking with Dropbox for the time being[/QUOTE] afaik dropbox killed that feature for new accounts i ended up renting a VPS for a custom website and installing bittorrent sync onto it, and then made edits to my windows registry and batch scripts to add in the right-click url copying functionality

[QUOTE=Scot;50400555]So if I lose connection to the Internet my computer stops working?[/QUOTE] That's why you sync files you need locally for offline usage. You can already do the same by doing selective sync on dropbox--this just means if you aren't "hard syncing" something it'll still show up as an imaginary file making it much, much easier than fucking around on the dropbox website.

[QUOTE=Scot;50400555]So if I lose connection to the Internet my computer stops working?[/QUOTE] you just lose access to your cloud

[QUOTE=Scot;50400555]So if I lose connection to the Internet my computer stops working?[/QUOTE] I'd imagine you can set stuff to sync certain files to persist for when you lose connection and keep odd files strictly on-demand.

[QUOTE=wauterboi;50400567]I'd imagine you can set stuff to sync certain files to persist for when you lose connection and keep odd files strictly on-demand.[/QUOTE] It'd be cool to set a date (say 60 days since last access) and then it goes cloud-only.

[QUOTE=Scot;50400555]So if I lose connection to the Internet my computer stops working?[/QUOTE] Are you installing Windows on Dropbox

[QUOTE=Thunderbolt;50400549]As far as I know, GD doesn't have a quick and convenient way of getting a direct link to a file, something I use pretty often, which is why I'm sticking with Dropbox for the time being[/QUOTE] Right-click a file in Drive > Share > Get shareable link? I personally don't see any real difference between Dropbox and Google Drive. I've used them both extensively and each functions to a near perfect mirror to the other.

[QUOTE=SweetSwifter;50400612]Right-click a file in Drive > Share > Get shareable link?[/QUOTE] It's not a direct link, I need it to link straight to the .exe or .jpg or whatever else I want to share, not the google drive page that lets you download it

[QUOTE=SweetSwifter;50400612]Right-click a file in Drive > Share > Get shareable link? I personally don't see any real difference between Dropbox and Google Drive. I've used them both extensively and each functions to a near perfect mirror to the other.[/QUOTE] direct link isn't the same as the shareable link direct links are a lot less annoying for example to embed on a forum, since they are one step to the direct .jpg or whatever it is

Ooh, that's actually a fair point. I tend to use other services for sharing quick things like pdfs, pictures and whatnot.

[QUOTE=SweetSwifter;50400612]Right-click a file in Drive > Share > Get shareable link? I personally don't see any real difference between Dropbox and Google Drive. I've used them both extensively and each functions to a near perfect mirror to the other.[/QUOTE] The main difference is familiarity; a lot of people are 'used' to dropbox and simply don't understand the Google side of things. As well I see a lot of people nowadays who don't even understand dropbox and only know how to use services like WeTransfer.

This is really cool, right now I don't have dropbox installed on my machine because I only have 2 small drives that are nearly full and syncing my dropbox would just kill me.

[QUOTE=plunger435;50400578]Are you installing Windows on Dropbox[/QUOTE] yes

This is cool but it seems like it's going to have extreme extreme unforeseen exploit potential

[QUOTE=wauterboi;50400544][url=https://www.grahamcluley.com/2015/04/dropbox-leak-tax-return/]Just a note that these are the same people that have leaked numerous documents in the past and are now trying to embed themselves in your kernel[/url] Can't wait for the unforeseen exploits[/QUOTE] uuh that isn't a problem with Dropbox at all; that's people taking and Google searching their public file links and then blindly selecting the first result (an ad) which causes the ad to get the link in the referral URL Google should get as much blame as Dropbox here (aka none cause it's neither of their faults imo)

[QUOTE=krutomisi;50401044]uuh that isn't a problem with Dropbox at all; that's people taking and Google searching their public file links and then blindly selecting the first result (an ad) which causes the ad to get the link in the referral URL Google should get as much blame as Dropbox here (aka none cause it's neither of their faults imo)[/QUOTE] Okay, well how about these? [url]http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/20/dropbox-security-bug-made-passwords-optional-for-four-hours/[/url] [url]http://www.zdnet.com/article/dropbox-drops-the-security-notification-ball-again/[/url] And really, the problem isn't just Googling the link. If you click on a link inside of a Dropbox document, the referrer header is going to say "Hey, I was linked by this Dropbox link." So if you want to say that Dropbox gets off scott free because their design doesn't anticipate that, I dunno what to tell you. It's still a problem, and something they should be focused on changing.

[QUOTE=wauterboi;50401055]Okay, well how about these? [url]http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/20/dropbox-security-bug-made-passwords-optional-for-four-hours/[/url] [url]http://www.zdnet.com/article/dropbox-drops-the-security-notification-ball-again/[/url] And really, the problem isn't just Googling the link. If you click on a link inside of a Dropbox document, the referrer header is going to say "Hey, I was linked by this Dropbox link." So if you want to say that Dropbox gets off scott free because their design doesn't anticipate that, I dunno what to tell you. It's still a problem, and something they should be focused on changing.[/QUOTE] Probably if your documents are that private you shouldn't really be using dropbox. I store some personal stuff on dropbox, but I never, ever share links to it. And when I email people documents (PDFs whatever) I just directly email the shit to them instead of using a dropbox link.