There are a number of ways to store data online, but some of them come with real disadvantages. Windows Skydrive is different. Keep reading as we explore what it can do for you, and how to get the most out of it.
Contributed by Codex-M Rating: / 6 September 21, 2009
Have you ever thought of finding ways to store a large number of files online? There are lots of ways to solve this problem. One of the most popular is to sign up for a free hosting account; with it, you can readily store and share files via FTP. Another approach is to use an online storage site. There are lots of these sites; some of the more popular are shown here:
But the main problem for both of these popular methods is the lack of proper support, the fact that many of them are NOT free, the lack of storage capacity and instability. Security is also a big issue, particularly with the FREE sites. You can store a lot of files; however, you risk exposing some of your files in the public (like storing files via FTP).
One of the best ways to store files online is by using Windows Skydrive. If you are using Windows Skydrive, you can store up to 25 GB of data. This is far more than you can typically store with free hosting companies or online storage websites.
Of course, before you can use Windows Skydrive, you must have a Hotmail/Live (Sky drive) account. However, you can create your Windows Live ID at the link provided above.
This article will discuss both basic and advanced techniques to maximize the use of Windows Skydrive. This will ensure that you are getting the most out of your Skydrive account.
Before we can start with the advanced techniques, we must illustrate the basic techniques for using Skydrive.
You must log in before you can store files via Windows Skydrive. It requires your Live ID (which could be a Hotmail email address) and password. After logging in, you have two options for storing files online.
First, you can create a folder for your files. Or, you can click "Add Files," and then Windows Skydrive will ask in what folders you are going to store your files. See screen shot below:
If you create a folder, you can select whether to make it private or public. This offers an advantage over using hosting space (from free hosting accounts) with which you will need to mess with server technicalities like .htaccess. If you are using Windows Skydrive, you simply need to decide whether to make the folder private or public.
For example, if you are going to share pictures online, you need to give a folder the name "My Pictures" and share it with "Everyone (public)" if you need to share it with anyone. Next, it will ask you to upload files.
After completion, there are two ways you can tell people about your file. You can either click "Let people know" and send them a message, or click the picture and grab the URL of the image. See the screen shot below:
In the above screen shot, after you click the picture you will be taken to a sort of options panel; you need to click the image again, as indicated in the screen shot, and then you will be taken to the exact URL of the image (path). For example, in the above screen shot, the actual URL is:
With this technique, you can use Windows Skydrive to host images which you use in your websites (hot link). You will not need to worry about disk space because your Skydrive account has around 25 GB of free disk space. Some great photo hosting sites like Photobucket offer only 1 GB photo space with their accounts, according to one review.
Using techniques similar to the ones discussed above, you can use Windows Skydrive to host other types of files, such as Microsoft Excel documents, Word, PDF, MP3, WAV files and almost any file except those that violate their "Code of Conduct."
It is highly recommended that you read the Windows Skydrive code of conduct before storing a lot of files and applications to make sure your transaction is clean and within their terms. As far as granting access and permissions to your files, you can decide whether only specific persons can access your file, everyone can view your file, or only YOU can view the file (for example, for backup purposes).
It is really tough to find a free MP3 host nowadays that can be used for blog streaming. Hosting companies that offer free hosting accounts typically will not allow you to upload an MP3 file. MP3 streaming is a very popular form of entertainment, especially in the world of blogging. There are some sites that allow free MP3 hosting; however, you are only allowed to upload at most 1 GB and some stream at around 300 MB bandwidth. This can affect the user experience.
You can use Windows Skydrive to host your MP3 files without worrying about bandwidth and with 25 GB storage space. If you have a paid hosting account, you will not need to worry since you can use the hosting space to host MP3 files; however, this is a big problem for those using free blog/hosting services like Blogger and WordPress.
To upload and use Skydrive to host your MP3 files, follow this very simple procedure. I'm going to assume you are uploading only 128Kbps, which is the standard MP3 bit rate for MP3 streaming without sacrificing much audio quality:
Step 1: Sign in to your Windows Skydrive account.
Step 2: Click the "Add files" link (next to the "create a folder" link).
Step 3: Click the "Public" folder. This folder is publicly available. You cannot stream if you upload your MP3 to non-publicly accessible folders.
Step 4: Skydrive will then ask you to upload the file, and you need to locate the file in your computer to upload to their server.
Step 5: After uploading, as you can see below (Figure 1), you'll need to click the MP3 icon, and then you will be taken to the page that looks like Figure 2.
Step 6: If you are using Google Chrome (you can follow a very similar procedure with other browsers), you can right click and select (Copy Link Address). This will copy the exact MP3 URL needed for streaming. It should be in a format similar to this:
You can then embed it into any HTML page. This is how it looks like in a browser:
Free Backup for your Computer Files
Skydrive can save you some money if you use it instead of buying an expensive pen drive, USB drive or even an external hard disk as a means of safe backup. Your most important files in your computer, even after five years of work, will surely not exceed 25 GB (for personal use only).
So you can safely upload your files into Windows Skydrive. It is safe and not subject to physical disk damage, which can be common with hard drive storage and even optical of storage (DVDs for example). You can even protect your files with passwords and using an https connection for secure uploading, all for free.
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