Worried about Dropbox File Corruption

[awhilliard]

Just discovered Storyist, and I'm loving its potential! The iPad app and FDX support suddenly skyrocket it ahead of Scrivener for my needs.

 

I use Dropbox as file storage whenever possible, but have run into trouble with certain file types. Scrivener files, iPhoto, and a few other "packages" masquerading as single files don't sync correctly in Dropbox. I guess the individual blocks of data that make up the whole file don't necessarily sync simultaneously, and there's a great chance of data loss. Scrivener recommends syncing locally to your computer, then backing up compressed disk images of your project to Dropbox (since these images are viewed as a single file in Dropbox, they don't get corrupted on sync).

 

So, please set my mind at ease... Is there any issue with file corruption using .story files with Storyist on Dropbox? I'd like to sync with confidence back and forth from iPad to Desktop!

 

Thanks much

[marguerite]

I haven't had any compatibility issues syncing through Dropbox. I stash my master file on my computer and copy the latest version over to the Dropbox folder, sync it to the iPad, work on it, sync again, and copy back to my Novels folder. But that's because I belong to a generation that is paranoid about the computer eating my file if I don't keep multiple copies. I think Orren stores his master file on Dropbox and opens it on the Mac or the iPad as needed (he can confirm).

 

Either way, it just works. You don't have to save compressed files or anything.

Best, and welcome to the forums (and to Storyist).

Marguerite

[Steve]

Hi awhilliard,

 

No need to worry.

 

Just discovered Storyist, and I'm loving its potential! The iPad app and FDX support suddenly skyrocket it ahead of Scrivener for my needs.

 

I use Dropbox as file storage whenever possible, but have run into trouble with certain file types. Scrivener files, iPhoto, and a few other "packages" masquerading as single files don't sync correctly in Dropbox. I guess the individual blocks of data that make up the whole file don't necessarily sync simultaneously, and there's a great chance of data loss. Scrivener recommends syncing locally to your computer, then backing up compressed disk images of your project to Dropbox (since these images are viewed as a single file in Dropbox, they don't get corrupted on sync).

 

So, please set my mind at ease... Is there any issue with file corruption using .story files with Storyist on Dropbox? I'd like to sync with confidence back and forth from iPad to Desktop!

 

Thanks much

 

A Storyist file is a zip archive, not a package masquerading as a single file, so there isn't a possibility of data loss that you would have with the apps you mentioned.

 

Many users do keep their Storyist projects in their Dropbox folder. The only issue that you have to be aware of in that case is that if you have a file open on your Mac when you press the Sync button on your iPad, and the sync operation updates the file you have open, the Dropbox client on your Mac moves the open file aside to a different folder.

 

-Steve