How do you use cloud storage

Today for the first time in ages I had to log into the iCloud web console, then I ended up listening to episode 47 Dropbox awesomeness in this episode they talked a lot about having the Dropbox client installed on your machine and accessing the files from a folder located on the machine.

So my question to the community is, is that still the metaphor for cloud storage, having a syncing folder?

For me I use google drive as my cloud storage provider of choice, it has been many years since I ran the client side application, if I need to do anything on my Mac it is in the browser and on mobile devices I have the apps.

I would say that Dropbox is still my go to and all documents, videos, etc. are there. I regularly use Google Drive to share documents and videos because people seem to have the easiest time with that.

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I primarily use iCloud which keeps a local copy of any recently used files. Have a local copy means not having to wait for a copy to download and not even needing an internet connection. So this is my default model.

I also use Amazon Drive for my security camera storage. I do not mirror that to my local drive (no reason to).

I also have the free level of Dropbox for the rare occasion someone needs a file that way. It also is not locally mirrored. Dropbox lost my trust a few years back when it was discovered they were modifying the MacOS without user permission.

I have OneDrive and Google drive accounts but don’t use them.

I use iCloud on my Apple devices. For non-Apple devices I use Dropbox, but my usage is minimal which is a shame given I maxed out my Dropbox referrals using the google ads trick years ago.

Last fall I enabled Photos in iCloud. That worked well enough so I moved my documents and desktop to iCloud also. It has been great. It lets me use my iPad for more functions.

Exactly the same for me. Client files in particular are all in Dropbox (so I can access and share them everywhere) but I use Google Drive for anything collaborative, because of the excellent group editing features. iCloud usage is basically just for Keynote files.

I use TeamViewer to access my Mac from the road when I need something I do not have on Dropbox.

For me and many of my clients the synced folder is mandatory!
DropBox is the best for private and many business uses :+1:

iClould works great for the individual but needs a lot more work.

Dropbox - personal files, writing, backup photos, and work
Box - participant data ( due to HIPAA compliance) and any file I need to share with students (we all get free accounts at the university)
iCloud - photos, any files that are more easily synced with icloud (but final versions of anything go to dropbox).
Google Drive - family videos and collaborative work (sparingly). Google drive lets my family stream the full video rather than a preview.

I trust iCloud to keep a file during a short project, I do not trust iCloud for long-term storage (already had an issue with my files not syncing between devices). It is, in fact, the only one I don’t trust to keep files synced across devices. I tried iCloud with all my files for a 3 month period and had issues with syncing several times towards the end (but it worked perfectly before then).