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How medics can use Dropbox to their advantage

I recently explained how Dropbox gives me insurance for my hard drive back up. But Dropbox has other great features that can be taken advantage of. It is a free service, and doesn’t need an invitation.

Here are just some suggestions for using Drop Box:

• File sharing

Each Dropbox has a public folder. Every item you put in the public folder gets its own personal URL. For example, I have put my journal articles up, and I can share the PDFs with whoever wants them. (Microcirculation in Acute pancreatitis; Potential uses for Hyperbaric Oxygen in Acute pancreatitis)

• Image sharing

Like Flickr, MobileMe, Evernote and others, Dropbox offers the ability to share images online. The files are publicly accessible, without being added to a public forum - they are not invisible, but they are not as discoverable as Flickr, for example. You need to give someone the URL. Like this. You can also share a gallery of photos with others.

• Professional collaboration

If a colleague also has drop box installed, you can share a folder with them. Files within that folder will be synced to both of your accounts and you can both access and edit them. This form of file sharing is private (but not secure for health information, unless you have other encryption of files). It is also cross-platform.

Potential applications of this include:

• Editing joint powerpoint/keynote presentations
• Writing scientific articles with a large or geographically separate research group (Especially good when files are large, as only the delta is tracked - much easier than emailing large files)
• Collaborating on protocols for your hospital or clinic
• Lecture summaries for students
• Group data collection, like for an audit or research project
• Sharing citation libraries (like Endnote or Bookends)

• Using different computers

Medical professionals work in diverse environments. If you have a hospital account, a rooms computer and a home computer, Dropbox can keep your main files synced across all three.

The added flexibility of this system is that the computers don’t even have to have the same operating system - Dropbox can be installed on Windows, Linux or Mac. And, of course, you can still access your files online if you are away from home base.

• Added backup insurance

If you are the type to accidentally delete or alter files and then regret it, Dropbox can help. Within the limits of its storage, it remembers recently deleted files and allows you to revert to a previous version. This capability is very similar to Time Machine, and is great insurance for an important file that you work with regularly.

• More information

Lifehacker featured a great article on how to keep your passwords in sync. You can also access Dropbox from iGoogle. And remember to follow Dropbox on Twitter.

I am only just getting started with Dropbox, and I am obviously enjoying what it can do. What do you use Dropbox for?

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