In the past, if you wanted to send large files to friends or colleagues, you had to upload them to FTP servers or hope that you made it under the file-size limitations of the recipient’s e-mail account. But with file-sharing applications such as DropSend (www.dropsend.com), you can send large files without fear of bounce-backs.
DropSend will be familiar to anyone who’s sent an e-mail attachment. The service replicates the look and feel of your Inbox by including contacts, subject lines, and text areas, but one-ups most e-mail services by letting you attach files as large as 1GB. When recipients open the e-mail, they are presented with a URL form where they can download the file. The number of times you can send a file depends on whether you sign up for a Free, Basic ($5), Standard ($9), Pro ($19) or Business ($99) account, which offer 250MB, 1GB, 10GB and 250GB of online storage, respectively. Here’s how to get started:
1 – Point your browser to www.dropsend.com and open an account.
2 – Click the Send A File button. You’ll be directed to your DropSend Inbox, where you’ll key in a contact’s e-mail address, subject, and message.
3 – Click the Browse button to search for and attach a file.
4 – Check the box labeled “Copy sent files to my online storage” if you’d like to send a backup of the file.
5 – Click send.
Other File-Sending Options
Senduit
Upload a file up to 100MB to Senduit’s servers, which generate a URL for distribution like other file-sending programs. The free service stands out from the pack by allowing users to set expiration dates for their links, ranging from 30 minutes to one week.
www.senduit.com
YouSendIt
YouSendIt’s free basic account lets users share files up to 100MB. Simply upload your file, enter the recipients’ e-mail addresses, and YouSendIt wil deliver a link to their Inboxes for downloading content up to 100 times. Upgrading to a premium account (starting at $9.99 per month) lets users send more than one file, bumps the maximum file size to 2GB, and increases the maximum number of downloads per file to 500 (pro) or unlimited (Business Plus and Corporate Suite).
www.yousendit.com