Monday, March 27, 2006
User Q&A - Mac OS X Support
Q: Do you have any plans on supporting the Mac OS X platform anytime soon?
A: Yes. By June, we'll offer a platform independent version of our desktop software utilizing Java. Also, by mid-April, you will be able to access, restore, and share files to Mac users via the web interface. Lastly, if you are in a mixed platform environment, ElephantDrive will currently recognize Mac and Linux filesystems mounted to Samba shares on Windows clients, and transfer them accordingly.
A: Yes. By June, we'll offer a platform independent version of our desktop software utilizing Java. Also, by mid-April, you will be able to access, restore, and share files to Mac users via the web interface. Lastly, if you are in a mixed platform environment, ElephantDrive will currently recognize Mac and Linux filesystems mounted to Samba shares on Windows clients, and transfer them accordingly.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
User Q&A Continued...
Q: I want to have a library where I can issue accounts to people that would share some files. However, I want only some accounts to have access to some information and others to other information. Can I do this with your service?
A: In the coming weeks, we will be releasing a version of ElephantDrive that will include the ability to directly and securely share individual files and directories with other users and will provide permission levels on that basis (e.g. an individual user may be afforded read/write, read, or browse authorization on files and directories that you have shared). You will be able to initiate the process by simply providing an email address for the person you want to share with, selecting the file and/or directories to be shared (via the web or ElephantDesktop application), and providing an "expiration date" or designating the share as permanent. We are considering extending this functionality to small user groups. In addition, later versions of ElephantDrive will allow users to "publish" their files and content to permanent URLs, like: http://username.elephantdrive.com/video.
NOTE: By the terms of our End User License Agreement (EULA), sharing and/or publishing of copyrighted material are expressly prohibited.
A: In the coming weeks, we will be releasing a version of ElephantDrive that will include the ability to directly and securely share individual files and directories with other users and will provide permission levels on that basis (e.g. an individual user may be afforded read/write, read, or browse authorization on files and directories that you have shared). You will be able to initiate the process by simply providing an email address for the person you want to share with, selecting the file and/or directories to be shared (via the web or ElephantDesktop application), and providing an "expiration date" or designating the share as permanent. We are considering extending this functionality to small user groups. In addition, later versions of ElephantDrive will allow users to "publish" their files and content to permanent URLs, like: http://username
NOTE: By the terms of our End User License Agreement (EULA), sharing and/or publishing of copyrighted material are expressly prohibited.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
ElephantDrive Support News
To the faithful herd,
In an effort to provide the most stable and available online storage service on the internet, ElephantDrive is migrating to a new state of the art datacenter in Southern California. We expect to complete the migration by the end of this week (3/26).
Until then, ElephantDrive systems may be a little slower than usual in responding, and for a short period of time on Friday (3/24) we'll be shutting down the service and site entirely. Again, this will only be temporary, and all of your files will be securely available from our new datacenter in short order.
We'll be posting progress updates to this blog regularly so check back often.
Warmest Regards,
ElephantDrive Support
In an effort to provide the most stable and available online storage service on the internet, ElephantDrive is migrating to a new state of the art datacenter in Southern California. We expect to complete the migration by the end of this week (3/26).
Until then, ElephantDrive systems may be a little slower than usual in responding, and for a short period of time on Friday (3/24) we'll be shutting down the service and site entirely. Again, this will only be temporary, and all of your files will be securely available from our new datacenter in short order.
We'll be posting progress updates to this blog regularly so check back often.
Warmest Regards,
ElephantDrive Support
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
More User Q&A
Q: What’s the deal – is ElephantDrive really free? Are you going to try to jack up the prices once my data is stored? What if I decide I don’t want to pay?
A: ElephantDrive is free, for now. We are temporarily offering the service without cost to the user in the hopes of getting useful feedback and making it a better product.
ElephantDrive will ultimately be supported by subscription fees. We aren’t trying to give the impression that ElephantDrive will be free forever, especially for large amounts of storage – we may, however, support smaller amounts for free on an ongoing basis.
Pricing isn’t yet finalized, but you may rest assured it will be competitive – that is, as good or better than existing offerings. In addition to providing the best software product possible, we are engineering our systems to be “storage agnostic” so we can easily utilize the cheapest storage available that is still reliable and redundant. As we find cost savings, we will pass them on to our subscribers.
If you do decide to participate but don’t want to continue as a paid subscriber after the end of the beta, we will maintain your data for at least 90 days and give you the opportunity to download or restore it.
Q: My data is precious – how do I know that ElephantDrive will be around to protect it?
A: We agree – your data is precious. It’s why we developed ElephantDrive. We’ve constructed a business model and technology platform that will provide security and access for your data because it is so important.
We know that the success of ElephantDrive hinges on our ability to plan ahead for every possible contingency, especially the unpleasant ones. Every decision we make considers the worst-case scenario. As a result, we have structured our software and storage systems on the assumption that anything that can go wrong, will. Our business model and financial backing are based on the assumptions, consequently we can say…
… We can’t guarantee with 100% certainty that this business will be successful. But we can guarantee that in the unlikely event we are forced to discontinue service, ElephantDrive Customer Support will ensure that you will be able to retrieve your data in a timely manner.
A: ElephantDrive is free, for now. We are temporarily offering the service without cost to the user in the hopes of getting useful feedback and making it a better product.
ElephantDrive will ultimately be supported by subscription fees. We aren’t trying to give the impression that ElephantDrive will be free forever, especially for large amounts of storage – we may, however, support smaller amounts for free on an ongoing basis.
Pricing isn’t yet finalized, but you may rest assured it will be competitive – that is, as good or better than existing offerings. In addition to providing the best software product possible, we are engineering our systems to be “storage agnostic” so we can easily utilize the cheapest storage available that is still reliable and redundant. As we find cost savings, we will pass them on to our subscribers.
If you do decide to participate but don’t want to continue as a paid subscriber after the end of the beta, we will maintain your data for at least 90 days and give you the opportunity to download or restore it.
Q: My data is precious – how do I know that ElephantDrive will be around to protect it?
A: We agree – your data is precious. It’s why we developed ElephantDrive. We’ve constructed a business model and technology platform that will provide security and access for your data because it is so important.
We know that the success of ElephantDrive hinges on our ability to plan ahead for every possible contingency, especially the unpleasant ones. Every decision we make considers the worst-case scenario. As a result, we have structured our software and storage systems on the assumption that anything that can go wrong, will. Our business model and financial backing are based on the assumptions, consequently we can say…
… We can’t guarantee with 100% certainty that this business will be successful. But we can guarantee that in the unlikely event we are forced to discontinue service, ElephantDrive Customer Support will ensure that you will be able to retrieve your data in a timely manner.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
More User Q&A
Q: How do you delete files uploaded in error?
A: As ElephantDrive is primarily concerned with /protecting/ your files (even inadvertent deletes) we've included a "Trash" feature which operates much like the Recycle Bin in Windows. You may trash your unwanted files by clicking (from the home screen):
Look at all my stuff -> View In Explorer
This should provide you with a familiar Windows Explorer-style interface with the contents of your Trunk, or remote drive, on top and the contents of your PC below. Select the items you wish to trash in the upper right hand box and click the red "X" button on the upper left hand side.
A: As ElephantDrive is primarily concerned with /protecting/ your files (even inadvertent deletes) we've included a "Trash" feature which operates much like the Recycle Bin in Windows. You may trash your unwanted files by clicking (from the home screen):
Look at all my stuff -> View In Explorer
This should provide you with a familiar Windows Explorer-style interface with the contents of your Trunk, or remote drive, on top and the contents of your PC below. Select the items you wish to trash in the upper right hand box and click the red "X" button on the upper left hand side.
New Ways to Contact ElephantDrive Support!
In an effort to provide the most responsive customer service in the marketplace, we've added a couple of new ways to get in touch with ElephantDrive.
Skype: ElephantDrive
AIM: ElephantDrive
Phone: 310.933.5626
Use them well!
ElephantDrive Support
Skype: ElephantDrive
AIM: ElephantDrive
Phone: 310.933.5626
Use them well!
ElephantDrive Support
Monday, March 13, 2006
User Q&A
Q: How much free storage do you provide?
A: ElephantDrive is currently in beta (which means we haven’t fully launched it yet). We’re offering free 5GB accounts throughout this period. When the service is formally launched we will continue to offer free accounts, most likely 1 GB in capacity.
Q: If I back up the same file each night will the backup automatically overwrite the current file that is stored on your system?
A: As advertised, ElephantDrive “never forgets.” During each backup, we will only transfer your file if it has changed since you last backed it up. Assuming that it has, we back up the file and preserve the old file as a “versioned copy.” The next version of the ElephantDesktop software (due out by the end of next week) will allow you to browse and restore these copies.
Q: Can I sequentially over a period of a week back up the same file and keep it on your system as a unique file for each day? After a week say the “Monday” copy gets overwritten the following Monday.
A: By default, ElephantDrive will securely store all versions of your files. In short order, we will enable functionality that will allow you to manage the number of versions and / or the duration of time they are stored.
A: ElephantDrive is currently in beta (which means we haven’t fully launched it yet). We’re offering free 5GB accounts throughout this period. When the service is formally launched we will continue to offer free accounts, most likely 1 GB in capacity.
Q: If I back up the same file each night will the backup automatically overwrite the current file that is stored on your system?
A: As advertised, ElephantDrive “never forgets.” During each backup, we will only transfer your file if it has changed since you last backed it up. Assuming that it has, we back up the file and preserve the old file as a “versioned copy.” The next version of the ElephantDesktop software (due out by the end of next week) will allow you to browse and restore these copies.
Q: Can I sequentially over a period of a week back up the same file and keep it on your system as a unique file for each day? After a week say the “Monday” copy gets overwritten the following Monday.
A: By default, ElephantDrive will securely store all versions of your files. In short order, we will enable functionality that will allow you to manage the number of versions and / or the duration of time they are stored.
