Using DropBox 'Live'

PaulBrewer

Has anyone tried using Drop Box 'Live' ...?

What I mean is when you're creating your ProTools (or DAW of your choice) Song save it , from the get-go, in the Dropbox Folder .

Then , as I'm thinking of using it , one could track in one studio and edit mix in another in a more or less self updating way once one kept doing 'Save As' to identify differences as song progressed.

So Song name = x , Save As 'X-Drums Clara' 'X-Drum Edit Tullamore' 'X-Bass Clara' etc etc to keep things followable ....

Anyone tried such like ? Huh ?

fitz

No, but an interesting idea.
One thing to keep in mind is that dropbox encrypts files. Not sure it makes a difference, but files seem to be larger coming back out of dropbox than going in.

GTE

There is nothing to it if you treat it like a USB.

For instant transfer of files (not USB operation, getting drafts of your files to someone progressively during the day
The file will not upload until the host program is finished doing whatever it is its doing with it.

For instance, if you are using a word document it will only upload once word has closed that particular document.

You could save different project names as x1, x2, x3 and it would upload every project file before the current "x" as long as it is closed fully but I would wonder whether the raw files would technically be taken up by your DAW, hence stopping them from being uploaded until the end.

I imagine you will need set your project up first, close it, let it upload all the raw files and the initial project file and then do the x1, x2, x3 but any new files you create will probably need your DAW to be closed to upload. As long as your edits are all non-destructive then essentially dropbox will only need to upload the small project files plus other little things at a time there after.


For USB stick like operation
Just treat it like a USB stick but remember, you can not pull out a USB stick while the program is open using the files you have placed on it. In Dropbox context you must close the project session to upload all your files.

If you are going for the latter there really is nothing to it.

PaulBrewer

But has anyone actually tried it ?

GTE

PaulBrewer wrote: »

But has anyone actually tried it ?

I havent, was going to try for the craic but Im currently surveying the aftermath of a backup program corrupting my most cherished project files.

It should be easy to try yourself if you can get dropbox enabled.

What method are you going for?
USB stick or quick transfer to a partner in crime?

If its the USB method then there should be nothing special to it. Just exit your DAW and wait for the upload to finish and boom, it is ready for sync elsewhere.

The other method would be interesting to test but if you do not have a partner in crime to try it out with now then setup your project inside the dropbox folder. Use a short set of raw files, say a one second multitrack recording. Keep it open and then go to the dropbox folder on your computers explorer. I do not know if you use mac or not but on windows you get a handy icon on each file to show its current dropbox state, uploaded and uploading.

If you have the sync symbol constantly then your idea is a no go. To confirm, do a "save as" so you have two project files and check the status of the old, now closed project file. The new one should stay in sync mode until you close the DAW. The other should upload as normal. If that uploads as normal and your raw files are still in the sync state that means your DAW has the file "open" and will not release it for Dropbox to work its magic until you exit the DAW.

I can imagine the partner in crime approach as being horrendously problematic. Even if your DAW does release all the files you need to upload one mistake by the other user on the other end f**ks things right up. If its just one person working between two or more studios then the f-up rate is greatly reduced.

PaulBrewer

bbk wrote: »

PaulBrewer wrote: »

But has anyone actually tried it ?

I havent, was going to try for the craic but Im currently surveying the aftermath of a backup program corrupting my most cherished project files.

It should be easy to try yourself if you can get dropbox enabled.

What method are you going for?
USB stick or quick transfer to a partner in crime?

If its the USB method then there should be nothing special to it. Just exit your DAW and wait for the upload to finish and boom, it is ready for sync elsewhere.

The other method would be interesting to test but if you do not have a partner in crime to try it out with now then setup your project inside the dropbox folder. Use a short set of raw files, say a one second multitrack recording. Keep it open and then go to the dropbox folder on your computers explorer. I do not know if you use mac or not but on windows you get a handy icon on each file to show its current dropbox state, uploaded and uploading.

If you have the sync symbol constantly then your idea is a no go. To confirm, do a "save as" so you have two project files and check the status of the old, now closed project file. The new one should stay in sync mode until you close the DAW. The other should upload as normal. If that uploads as normal and your raw files are still in the sync state that means your DAW has the file "open" and will not release it for Dropbox to work its magic until you exit the DAW.

I can imagine the partner in crime approach as being horrendously problematic. Even if your DAW does release all the files you need to upload one mistake by the other user on the other end f**ks things right up. If its just one person working between two or more studios then the f-up rate is greatly reduced.

I regularly use DropBox to send projects .

GTE

PaulBrewer wrote: »

I regularly use DropBox to send projects .

That is the general point of the program but are you asking advice on using a project, which files are based in the Dropbox folder or are you just trying to use DB as a backup for session files to send to yourself? Or even have you done all this and wondering if we do something similar?
I'm led to believe you were looking for advice on if it would work since you were only thinking about it.

Cubase doesn't seem to keep files "in use" during a session anyway, so there are no issues doing "live" transfers to someone with DAW. It would also seem that it will let Dropbox upload the most recent version of your current session file. So if you "save" in between "save as" it should catch that if your computer dies for whatever reason.

Separately, Dropbox is a very straight forward way of transferring files between your workstations though. Always been a fan of DB.

godfrey

I'd save, as usual, but afterwards copy (not move) files to dropbox. You don't want to have the only version of your files in a folder meant to be updated and/or shared.

g

PaulBrewer

As if by magic someone just posted this on Facebook

http://www.gobbler.com/

GTE

godfrey wrote: »

I'd save, as usual, but afterwards copy (not move) files to dropbox. You don't want to have the only version of your files in a folder meant to be updated and/or shared.

g

That is good advice. It just takes one seemingly totally disconnected mistake on the otherend to mess things up. But you can recover files that were deleted. I wonder what the time and size limits for that are.

judas101

PaulBrewer wrote: »

http://www.gobbler.com/

Mac only

Pfffft

studiorat

Oddly enough I was just about to do that very thing on Saturday, "save as" straight into dropbox.

I didn't though!! Didn't have time to sort it out if it went pear shaped. So I saved and copied the file across.

Paul, do you mean having the audio files in drop box too or just the session files?

PaulBrewer

studiorat wrote: »

Oddly enough I was just about to do that very thing on Saturday, "save as" straight into dropbox.

I didn't though!! Didn't have time to sort it out if it went pear shaped. So I saved and copied the file across.

Paul, do you mean having the audio files in drop box too or just the session files?

The whole heap ...

GTE

studiorat wrote: »

Oddly enough I was just about to do that very thing on Saturday, "save as" straight into dropbox.

I didn't though!! Didn't have time to sort it out if it went pear shaped. So I saved and copied the file across.

I dont have two computers to test this properly with but I wonder would the fact the dropboxes on two computers possibly having different drive letters impact the way the session opens up in your DAW.

Cubase always gives a file path based error when files are missing.
I am tempted to say it would be fine on this one as I have probably cut and pasted sessions without problems though its a question to think about over a tea and some minty biscuits. =D

studiorat

ProTools is pretty particular about what type of drive it uses, dunno it it would see DB as a proper drive. We use a network between two computers instead of DB. The main computer has a storage drive in it which turns up on the second machines desktop.

You can even play a session on one computer from the other, it's quite slow though so you get the session stopping with hard drive reading errors.

PaulBrewer

studiorat wrote: »

ProTools is pretty particular about what type of drive it uses, dunno it it would see DB as a proper drive. We use a network between two computers instead of DB. The main computer has a storage drive in it which turns up on the second machines desktop.

You can even play a session on one computer from the other, it's quite slow though so you get the session stopping with hard drive reading errors.

But DropBox is just a folder on a drive ...

studiorat

PaulBrewer wrote: »

But DropBox is just a folder on a drive ...

True dat! Warrants further investigation...

Meanwhile : http://www.cdeenen.com/DropBox/Dropbox_Work_Flow.html