Dropbox is my favorite file sync, file backup service and I write a lot about it here. It is miltui-platform so I use it to sync files between my Windows XP desktop, Windows Vista Laptop and a Kubuntu 9.0.4 desktop.
I am a recent convert from OpenSUSE to Kubuntu and love the desktop friendly approach with this distribution of Linux.
Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu distribution has announced a beta version of their file sync service – Ubuntu One. Ubuntu One is a service with possibly more features in the offing in times to come. Even though online file sync is the core of this architecture, this could build into something big with the right plans at Canonical.
As Damien at Make Tech Easier says, the real value of Ubuntu One does not lie in its file storage or synchronization service. Imagine if you could store your application preference files and home folders synced and stored via Ubuntu One. You could now access your application with the same set of preferences and customizations from another Ubuntu machine that is also synced via Ubuntu One.
It will be even sweeter if you could extend this functionality and be able to use Ubuntu via a browser using the settings files you have stored on Ubuntu One thereby seamlessly between different Ubuntu One machines and the web browser and just pick up where you left off.
Ubuntu One Plans
Ubuntu One at the moment supports only Ubuntu (9.0.4 at that). While Dropbox is multi-platform and portable, Ubuntu One is something that has the potential of becoming a multi-platform when its APIs are accessible to third party developers.
Ubuntu One has 2 plans at the moment
- Free – 2GB storage space
- $10/month – 10GB storage space
Ubuntu One is a step in the right direction but has long ways to go for someone who is on multiple platforms.
But, at the moment Dropbox wins for me with the multi-platform support and if you are looking for a much more bang for your buck – 50GB for $9.99/month – Try Dropbox Professional! (referral)
I use SpiderOak, it has online backup, sync, sharing, access & storage solution for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux (Ubuntu, Debian & Fedora) and is $10 per month per 100GB after the free 2GB.
https://spideroak.com/download/promo/jgrubbs (referral)