We’ve written before about options for receiving papers electronically outside either e-mail or a campus-based learning management system. (For example, earlier this month I wrote about GoFileDrop, which lets you receive files of any type into your Google Docs account. Also see Send to Dropbox or Dropbox Forms.)
The advantages of such a system are, basically, that it gets files out of your e-mail and directly into a location where you can start to work with them, that it eliminates uncertainty around e-mail receipt, and that it doesn’t get you locked into the LMS. Handy!
A recent entry into the file-receipt market is FileStork (Via LifeHacker). FileStork makes it incredibly simple for Dropbox users to request files from people on either a one-time or more open-ended basis. (This is probably a little easier and safer than sharing a folder with an entire class.) Here’s how it works.
At FileStork, there’s no need to set up an account. Just click on the big orange button:
FileStork will then ask you to log in to your Dropbox account:
This sounds slightly more ominous than it is, though it is the case that you’re granting FileStork write-access to your whole Dropbox. I’ll show in a second where FileStork actually puts your files.
You’re next asked to create either a one-time request, or a stand-alone form. The one-time request generates an e-mail that goes to whomever you specify; a stand-alone request gives you a URL that you can put anywhere. Here’s the one-time request form:
I do like the ability to restrict uploads to certain kinds of files. And you can make the request as verbose or simple as you like. Here’s what your students (for example) will see:
When your students click the big orange “Upload” button, they’re taken to a webform:
They get a nice progress bar, along with a reminder not to close the browser tab/window prematurely:
. . . and confirmation of success:
Once a student has uploaded a file using this link, the request expires, and can’t be used again. If, when setting up the request, you asked for notification of file uploads, then you will get this e-mail from FileStork:
(It didn’t indicate who the file was from because it was from me.)
As that screenshot indicates, FileStork doesn’t really put files in your Dropbox willy-nilly. Instead, it creates a new folder (FileStork), and, within that folder, creates whatever folders you tell it:
I might’ve expected the files to show up in the “fall 2011" folder I had already set up, but no. This is probably a good thing, since it minimizes the chances of your folders getting mangled by some 3rd-party service, but it is an additional thing to remember.
And that’s it! It is simple, fast, and attractive. Had you created a standing request, which gives a URL suitable for putting anywhere, this is what you get:
The result is a webform that looks similar to the one above:
The main decision point between FileStork and something like GoFileDrop is whether you want to use Dropbox or Google Docs to receive files. Otherwise, the functionality is similar, although FileStork’s ability to limit certain kinds of files is nice. FileStork right now will only allow files up to 75MB, which is a consideration. Compared to a service such as Send to Dropbox, which I love, FileStork is somewhat easier. My students didn’t like having to remember to send the file to a separate e-mail address, and then if they included any text in the e-mail, I’d end up with a file and an e-mail from the student in the same Dropbox folder. Also, there’s no notification of receipt.
Do you have a preferred way to receive files in Dropbox? Let us know in comments!
Photo by Flickr user Ken & Nyetta / Creative Commons licensed
