It’s always a good idea to keep files as small as possible without sacrificing image quality (there’s no need to use 300dpi print-ready imagery in on screen presentations), but more often than not, presentations simply exceed the size limits imposed by many email systems.
Most corporate email systems impose a 5MB limit on attachments. And many will not give you a bounce back message indicating your file never made it to your recipient.
There are hundreds of solutions for transferring large files back and forth between colleagues and clients including ftp sites and custom file server solutions, but here are my two favorites that I use almost daily…
The concept is simple. Select a file on your own computer, tell YouSendIt who you want to receive it, and then upload it to YouSendIt’s website. The service then sends an email to your recipient(s) with a link for them to download the file anytime they like.
The service is fast, secure and comes with loads of options and features. Monthly subscriptions and corporate suites are available, but I just use their free plan with gives me a file maximum of 100MB and the ability to only send one file at a time. You can upload files via their website, but there are also plug-ins that allow you to upload from Outlook, Acrobat and MS Office. I use their free desktop application, YouSendIt Express, which lets me drag and drop files and which remembers previous email recipients.
One of my new favorite services, DropBox, has eliminated my need for carrying flash drives back and forth to work and has greatly simplified working with offsite designers when sharing large numbers of files. Like YouSendIt, DropBox’s concept is terribly simple. In essence, it is a shared networked folder that lives on the desktop of your computer. That’s it.
After installing the DropBox application, a folder (just like any other on your computer) is created on your desktop. As soon as you move files into this folder, DropBox begins backing them up to their server. All files are given small indicator icons to let you know if they are backed up, in process and/or shared with others.
And it’s the sharing with other users and on other computers that makes this app sing.
You can install the DropBox application on any other computer you wish, and once you log into your account, you will be given this same folder (and all its contents) on your desktop. You can then select any folder within and share the contents with anyone you wish. The shared folder will appear in the DropBox folder of the other user once they accept. If they do not have a DropBox account, files can be accessed via unique URL links provided for each of your files.
There are a lot of extras that you can explore such as folder management and downloads from your iPhone and automatic public slideshows from a folder of images. Accounts are free for storage up to 2GB. More space can be purchased, but if you use this link to sign up, both you and I will be given an extra 250MB right off the bat. Not a bad deal.
Truly, the best way to think of DropBox is as a network folder. You just don’t need a company’s servers to host it, and anyone—not just your fellow employees—can access it from anywhere. Here’s my DropBox…
