Elon Technology Blog

Tech I can’t live without: Peter Felten

Peter Felten, assistant provost, values organization and convenience. He owns a number of devices and travels often with his job, so he needs quick and easy access to his files no matter where he is or what he’s using. That is why is why Peter Felten can’t live without Dropbox.

Editor’s note: Until recently, faculty and staff didn’t have an Elon-approved alternative to Dropbox. Elon faculty and staff now have access to Syncplicity – Elon Technology’s official way for faculty and staff to backup and sync Elon files across devices. While the two services are similar, Syncplicity has several advantages to Dropbox, including: 25GB of space to store your data, more security with HIPAA/FERPA safeguards, and support offered by Elon’s Technology Helpdesk. Learn more about Syncplicity on the Technology blog.

What is Dropbox

Dropbox is an online cloud storage application that uses folders for keeping and organizing files on several devices. Users can work on a file in Dropbox and any changes made to the document will automatically sync across all their devices.

Dropbox is available through their website, as well as through mobile applications with Mac and Android smartphones. A free Dropbox account provides 2 GB of space, while upgraded accounts at monthly rates offer more space. Syncplicity, the Elon Technology-supported alternative to Dropbox, offers 25GB of storage space.

Why it works for Peter

Peter Felten realized he needed a central location for his files when he started to travel for his job, because he noticed how cumbersome it became to transfer files between his devices. He had his work computer, his personal laptop, and then he bought an iPad for travel, but there wasn’t one solid way to have access to all his files from all his devices.

“I travel a lot and I had this fantasy I could carry an iPad instead of laptop, because it would be efficient to not have big bulky laptop,” Felten said.  “But then I realized I couldn’t store things on my iPad unless I knew in advance. Then, when I got back, I had to put them back on my laptop. For my trips, I can’t anticipate what files I need or want [so I wanted access to them all].”

When a colleague suggested Dropbox, Felten used it on a trial basis, because he didn’t fully trust it as a storage system. However, after two months, he realized everything he worked with frequently was already on Dropbox and there was no reason not to utilize it to the fullest.

“I decided to go all in with Dropbox,” Felten said. “It took three minutes to drag everything from my laptop and put it on Dropbox. I then reset the settings on my laptop. It automatically syncs everything for me, and I don’t have the version control issues I used to have.”

Now, he has all his files in one convenient place that he can access from anywhere. He even shares a folder with his extended family to constantly share pictures from group events. Though Felten thinks Dropbox isn’t perfect for everything, it is the application that works best for the way he stores files.

“I don’t like it very much for sharing things,” Felten said. “When I share a folder, I’m sharing part of my desk with them, [which is uncomfortable]. I have it organized in a way that makes sense to me. So, if I need to share, I just e-mail it. It’s not [a perfect system], but it works very well for what I need.”

Do you have a piece of technology or application you can’t live without? Let us know in the comments below!

 

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