It would appear that rumours of FolderShare’s death were grossly exaggerated. Au contraire, FolderShare is alive and well, and looking better than ever with:
- a new extra-confusing name ‘Windows Live FolderShare Beta’
- a new web site that makes file management easier
- speedier setup
- faster performance in Windows Vista
- and a sparkling new logo
Some of the functionality of Windows Live FolderShare Beta has long since been incorporated into the Sharing Folder feature of Windows Live Messenger, and that’s a great place to start if you rarely share files between computers and people. And, of course, Windows Live SkyDrive offers a really simple way to store up to 5GB of your files in the cloud. But for raw simplicity, FolderShare is hard to beat.
What’s FolderShare?
FolderShare is a free application that allows you to keep files in sync across computers (maybe between a desktop PC and a laptop), share folders on your computer(s) with friends, and access files on your computer(s) from any other Internet-connected computer. The application is currently in Beta mode, which means it’s still in development and not quite perfect, but it’s been around for several years and the core features are extremely stable. All you have to remember is that both computers must be on and connected to the Internet at the same time for files to be synchronised, i.e. FolderShare doesn’t store a copy of your files anywhere, it simply synchronises them between your computers.
Here’s the official description of what it can do:
How do I get started?
Install FolderShare from www.foldershare.com. Once installed, create your account by registering your email address and choosing a secure and sufficiently complex password. Now follow the simple on-screen instructions to create a folder that you will synchronise with another computer. I usually start with a folder on my desktop; this makes it easy for me to drag and drop files that I may need to access on another computer. Then repeat the process on your second computer and set your new personal library to synchronise automatically with a newly created folder on the desktop of your second computer. You’ll quickly see how easy it is to synchronise data if you drag a few files into one of your synchronised FolderShare folders. Within moments the same files should appear on the other computer.
Now have a go at creating a shared library so an invited friend can access files on your computer.
But best of all is Remote Access which makes it mega-simple to access all the important files on each of your computers at the click of a mouse.
Stop emailing stuff to yourself! Give FolderShare a spin. You can also read the new FolderShare blog here.