Web 2.0 Review: Box.net

Box.net is a web service that offers a practical solution to file storage and sharing. Box.net offers 1GB of free files storage with more space and additional features available for a fee.

Immediately I was impressed with the pleasant interface and intuitive folder structure. The site uses expandable tabs that make for easy access to the options and tools within the site. Box.net offers multiple options for uploading files to your space. You can use “browse upload” by clicking on the “add files button” to upload up to 20 files at a time. There is also a drag and drop feature that will allow you to upload multiple files and entire folders to your space. (Note: This option does require the use of a JAVA Applet which I did have trouble running on my laptop).

In addition to its intuitive interface and ease of use, Box.net offers some key features that make it a valuable tool.

• File Sharing: Box.net allows you to make a single file or entire folder publicly accessible. Once you define a folder as public, a unique URL is assigned to the folder. Anyone can access the public files and folders by using the assigned URL. (Note: See link to PixelPoint Files on the sidebar of this blog for an example of file sharing)
• File Searching/Sorting/Tagging: Box.net allows you to easily search for files within your space as well as sort files by name, date or file size. The tagging feature offered by Box.net allow you to apply keywords or tags to each file or folder and then access or sort files using these tags.
• Network Sharing: You can add other Box.net members to your network and easily share files with them by dragging files to their box.

For a small fee (starting at $4.99/month) Box.net offers premium and pro packages that provide additional space (5GB to15GB) and many additional features. Although I did not upgrade and test these features, they are interesting additions worth mentioning and possibly worth checking into…

• File Security: Password protection on selected files.
• Post Files Directly to a Blog
• Syndicate your files with RSS File Sharing
• Collaborative Workgroups: Create multiple users, with unique passwords and account privileges.

As far as application goes, Box.net is an excellent solution for online storage and file sharing. In addition to the obvious benefit of additional file storage, Box.net’s file sharing features could be used in a variety of ways. In the area of electronic publishing and computer graphics, students are often dealing with graphic files that are very large in size. Saving and transporting these files could be made easier with a central, online storage location such as Box.net. Additionally, I teach an Electronic Publishing course where students are asked to get “Client” feedback on layouts and design ideas. This is often a challenge due to the large files. Box.net’s file sharing features offer an excellent solution. Students could easily email a client the URL of their comp files online. The client could review these files and provide feedback to the students.

References:
Box.net Web site: http://www.box.net

Arrington, M. (2006) The Online Storage Gang. Retrieved June 11, 2006, from TechCrunch
Web site: http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/01/31/the-online-storage-gang/