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Related Pages
Help with Zip Files
Help with Uploading Your Own Photos to DivShare.com
For Sharing with Others
Family and friends, other photo-sharing sites, such as Picasa.com, may meet
most of your personal photo-sharing needs better than DivShare, but I appreciate
your using DivShare to get your photos to me. Picasa.com is, perhaps, one
of the best sites where you can create online photo albums where people can
view and purchase your photos and even download full photo files one by one.
On the other hand, DivShare.com, while I wouldn't use it to display my
photos in an album, is the best way I've found to download a folder
of photos, all at once, sight unseen. Feel free to contact me if you have
any questions.
Introduction to DivShare File Sharing
The Photos I Want from You
Read This Before Doing Steps Below If You Care Much
About Organization
Steps:
Power Settings for Uploading Large Files
Misc. DivShare Tips
Introduction to DivShare File Sharing
You can store or share many different kinds of file types at DivShare, but
I've written this help page in terms of sharing photos.
It's usually impossible to easily send a large number of full-sized photos
via e-mail, because most regular e-mail programs have a maximum attachment
size that is much smaller than the total file size of a large group of photos.
But I discovered that there are special file-storage-and-sharing web sites,
such as DivShare.com, that allow you to upload a large, zipped folder (ZIP
file) of photos to share with others.
With a free DivShare.com account, you get 5 GB of storage. And you get 50
GB of download per month (every 30 days). The maximum upload size is 200
MB per upload. These are the best limits I've found at any such site.
As far as I've seen, DivShare is the best way to share files for other reasons,
too. Uploading is much faster than it is at the best large-attachment e-mail
site I've found. Plus, you can store your files indefinitely at DivShare.
You can share your files indefinitely, too. And you can share your photos
with virtually as many people as you want. You can, of course, keep your
uploaded files private.
I've had consistent success uploading to DivShare while using my Internet
Explorer browser; whereas, some of my uploads failed when I was using my
AOL browser. I seem to have no problem downloading from DivShare while using
my AOL browser.
To make it easy for others to download your photos, zip them into one ZIP
file (unless the photos total size is over 200 MB, in which case divide your
photos into two files). That way, the recipient needs to download only one
or two files.
The Photos I Want from You
I've been exchanging photos with friends and family members, so these section
pertains to them.
I prefer photos with their original, full file size so that I have more options
regarding possible future use, such as printing or including in a video.
That is, I prefer photos that haven't been compressed, either by the user,
by an e-mail account, or by an album site.
If I've asked you to share your photos with me, please send me all the photos
you took of the occasion, except of course, those you may have deleted because
there was no image. Send even photos that might need editing of any kind.
I can probably doctor them up with my photo-editing software.
Read This Before Doing Steps Below If
You Care Much About Organization
Please feel free to disregard this section if you don't care much about folder
and file names and if you don't mind if your folder or file names get cut
off at DivShare. (I can always rename anything you share with me.)
Including punctuation and spaces, the following are the maximum lengths of
names that will display at DivShare:
-
Folder names: 50 characters;
-
Zip file file names: 41 characters (not counting the .zip extension);
-
Zip file descriptions: 50 characters.
Here are fictitious examples of the names I might use for the three items
in a set of files and folders related a DivShare upload:
-
DIVSHARE FOLDER NAME:
2007-12-25 ChristmasAtTomAndJulies-FromMarysCamera (50 characters);
-
DIV SHARE ZIP FILE FILE NAME (SAME AS HARD DRIVE ZIP FILE FILE
NAME):
2007-12-25ChristmasAtTomAndJuliesMarysCam.zip (41 characters, not
counting .zip);
-
DIVSHARE ZIP FILE DESCRIPTION
2007-12-25 Christmas at Tom and Julie's (39 characters; I could have
used 50 characters.)
To avoid possible computing and disc-burning problems, I avoid apostrophes
in both folders and files on my hard drive. I do use apostrophes in ZIP file
descriptions at DivShare, but not in ZIP file file names.
At DivShare, you can rename folders and ZIP file descriptions, but
not ZIP file file names. If you really want a different file name
for a ZIP file that you've uploaded to DivShare, you have to delete the ZIP
file from DivShare, rename the ZIP file on your hard drive, and re-upload
the ZIP file to DivShare.
At DivShare, you can create new folders for files you've already uploaded.
You can move or delete files and folders. So if you upload a ZIP file, and
it didn't go inside the folder you meant it to go inside, just select the
ZIP file, click on the Move button, and select the folder you want
to move it to.
If you add a description to a ZIP file at DivShare, the icon for that file
that you see in your DivShare Dashboard, will display that description rather
than the ZIP file file name.
It's my personal preference to create a different folder in my DivShare
Dashboard for each ZIP file of photos that I upload to DivShare. (The
place to create such folders is in the ALL FILES tab of the
Dashboard.) That way, each ZIP file of photos will have it's own Share
link, and the recipient of a Share link will see only the ZIP file associated
with that Share link.
(But it's totally fine to just upload all your ZIP files directly to the
ALL FILES tab of the Dashboard, without making any folders.
That way, anyone you send a Share link to will be able to see and download
all ZIP files that you've uploaded to DivShare.)
Copy Your Photos from Your Camera Card to Your
Computer
Copy the photo files from your digital camera card to a folder that you created
for them on your computer. Don't opt to compress the photos as you copy them
to your computer.
It's always safest not to delete the images from your camera card until you're
sure that all your photos have been copied to your computer successfully.
Safer still is to keep the images on your camera card at least until
you also back up the photos that are on your hard drive to a data
CD and confirm that you can open the files on the CD.
Make a Zip File of Your Photos Folder
As I said above, to make it easy for others to download your photos, zip
them into one ZIP file (unless the photos total size is over 200 MB, in which
case divide your photos into two files). That way, the recipient needs to
download only one or two files.
Before you zip your photos so that you can upload them to DivShare, please
note the following:
-
Check to see that the folder of photos on your hard drive is less than the
200 MB maximum allowed in one DivShare upload. (If necessary divide the photos
into two folders.) To see the size of a folder, do the following:
-
Right-click on the folder;
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Select Properties;
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On the General tab, look for Size.
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If you're sharing photos with me, when you zip your photos, don't select
any extra option to reduce the size of your photo files; for my purposes
your ZIP file should be about the same size as your unzipped folder -- not
significantly smaller than it.
There's help at this site for making ZIP
files.
Create a Free Account at DivShare.com
-
After zipping your photo folder, go to http://www.divshare.com/
(Note: I almost never use my regular e-mail addresses for online registration.
Instead I use a special junk Yahoo e-mail address for almost all online
registrations. That way, I get less SPAM in my main e-mail account(s). I
got a new Yahoo e-mail address just for using at sites such as DivShare and
just for accounts at those sites that I'll use for storing and sharing photos
of family and friends. You see, you can have more than one DivShare account,
with 5 GB of storage for each account. I figure that my digital photo files
could eventually total close to 5 GB. So, I'll use different DivShare
accounts for storing and sharing different things -- audio and video files,
for example.)
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Under Create a Free Account, enter a first name, e-mail account, and
password, and confirm your password;
-
On the next page, type in the security words. If there is more than one word,
type them both, even if one looks crossed out. If you can't read the security
words, click on the little refresh button to get new security words;
-
When you get to a page asking you to upgrade to a pay account, click the
link, NO THANKS, CONTINUE TO MY ACCOUNT (upper right of the screen);
-
You have to confirm your new DivShare account before you can use it. To confirm
your account, do the following:
-
Go to the e-mail account of the e-mail address you used to register at DivShare;
-
When you receive an e-mail from DivShare, click on the confirmation link
in that e-mail;
-
Log into DivShare.
Upload Your Photos to
DivShare
Note: Those with whom you share your photos will be able to see all files
that you've uploaded to the same DivShare folder. So if you want to keep
separate the photo downloads that you offer to people, create a different
DivShare folder for each ZIP file that you upload. (Otherwise, if you want
people to be able to see all your available downloads, just click on the
ALL FILES tab in your Dashboard, and upload your ZIP file without
creating a new folder.)
If you want to create a folder, do the following:
-
Click on the ALL FILES tab in your Dashboard;
-
Click on the New Folder link (at the right edge of your dashboard);
-
Enter a name for the folder;
-
Don't enter a password;
-
Click on the Create button;
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Click on Close (Note: You can edit a folder name, but in order to
see the new name, you may need to click on your browser's refresh button).
Click on the Upload new file button (at the right edge of your dashboard).
At the next page, you can choose to use either the Standard Uploader or the
Drag-and-Drop Uploader (Power Upload). The Drag-and-Drop Uploader may be
faster.
To use the Drag-and-Drop Uploader (Power Upload), do the following:
-
Click on Drag-and-Drop Uploader;
-
You might be prompted to download the Drag-and-Drop Uploader; I don't remember
whether or not it's something you have to download before you use it. If
you have to download it, opt to do so;
-
When you get to a page that says, Getting Started: The Power Uploader
needs permission to run in your browser, read what it says there. However,
you may not have actually have to do what it says;
-
If you made a special folder to upload to, under Sharing Options,
do the following:
-
Place a checkmark in the little box to the left of Organize these files
in a folder;
-
Click the little down arrow to the right of Create a New Folder;
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Select the folder to which you want to upload.
-
Leave blank the slots Name and Password (your ZIP file already
has a name, and you don't want those you share with to have to supply a password
to open your ZIP file);
-
In the left pane, browse to the ZIP file you made;
-
Under Select a File, click on the Browse button, and browse
to the ZIP file that you created above (be sure that you click on the zipped
folder and not on the original folder of a similar name);
-
Click the Upload button.
Or, to use the Standard Uploader, do the following:
-
If you made a special folder to upload to, under Upload, under
Sharing Options, place a checkmark in the little box to the left of
Organize these files in a folder, click the little down arrow to the
right of Create a New folder, and select the folder to which you want
to upload;
-
Under Select a File, click on the Browse button, and browse
to the ZIP file that you made until the ZIP file appears in the right pane
(be sure that you click on the zipped folder and not on the original folder
of a similar name);
-
In the right pane, under the ZIP file, click on Edit Description and
add a description. A description is optional. The maximum length of a description
is 50 characters, including spaces and punctuation;
-
Click on the ZIP file in the right pane to select it;
-
Click the Add button so that the ZIP file also appears in the lower-right
pane;
-
Click the Upload button.
Please be patient while your upload completes.
After your upload completes, you may need to click on your browser's refresh
button in order to see your newly uploaded ZIP file.
Share Your Photos with Others
If you use the Windows Explorer browser, after the upload is complete, at
the top of the new Div Share page, you'll see
Your file has been uploaded. Share it with this link. Under those
words, you'll see, in large fonts, the Share link for your photos. You
can copy and paste that link into an e-mail to anyone you wish or into a
web page. This link doesn't necessarily display in the AOL browser, but probably
I just didn't wait long enough after I clicked OK after those particular
uploads completed. I've since noticed that, sometimes, even with Internet
Explorer, you have to wait thirty seconds or so for the page with the big
Share link to load. Once you click on the big Share link or navigate away
from that page, you can't go back to it. But you can easily get the Share
Link elsewhere.
If you see the above big Share link, you can also click on the More
Options button that appears to the right of the big Share link, and do
one of the following from the Share window that pops up:
-
Copy and paste the download link into an e-mail or web page:
-
Copy the Download
link. The Download link starts with http://
-
Paste the Download
link into an e-mail to anyone you wish or into a web page.
-
Or, e-mail the link to someone directly from the little Share window:
-
Enter an e-mail address in the Email To slot;
-
Click the Send button;
Note: It's probably a good idea to send a heads-up e-mail from your regular
e-mail account to anyone you e-mail directly from DivShare. Otherwise, your
recipient might think that the DivShare e-mail is SPAM and delete it (or
they not even be able to receive it, depending on their e-mail filters).
The DivShare e-mail is a form e-mail with a short, clear message. It displays
the e-mail address that you used to register at DivShare. And it has the
following subject line: You've got a new DivShare file!
An e-mail sent directly from DivShare won't necessarily be received
instantaneously, but probably it will be received soon;
You can send as many test DivShare e-mails to yourself as you want.
You can also click on an icon in the upper-right corner of the little Share
window, and upload your Share link to your MySpace, Facebook, or Del.icio.us
page, if you have one.
After your upload is complete, you can get the Share link at any time by
doing the following:
-
Go to your DivShare Dashboard;
-
Click on the ALL FILES tab;
-
If you created a folder, click on the folder to get to the ZIP file;
-
When you see the ZIP file icon, click on Share (under the ZIP file
icon);
-
Copy the Download
link from the little window that appears. The Download link starts
with http://
-
Paste the Download
link into an e-mail to anyone you wish or into a web page.
If you're sharing photos with me, please send me a regular e-mail with the
DivShare link to your photos. That way, I'll be sure to get your message,
and I can try to download your photos and let you know if there's a
problem.
Avoid DivShare Advertising
-
Ignore the link Download up to 10X faster with no advertising. It's
just advertising;
-
If you ever see the words, Skip ad, click on that link. You might
have to double-click on it. Exception: Don't click on Skip ad if you
see the following message: You will be redirected to the download page
in 15 seconds. In that case, please be patient until you are redirected;
-
If any advertising window appears that you can close by clicking on the X
in the upper-right corner, click on the X to close the window.
Power Settings for Uploading Large Files
You can start a large upload and walk away from your computer; however, if
you do, it's important to first make sure that your computer's power schemes
are set to Downloading/Copying Large Files or some other setting in
which your computer won't go into sleep/suspend mode and stop the upload.
(If you're going to be using the mouse or keyboard every few minutes you
don't have to adjust your power settings.)
With Windows XP (and some earlier operating systems), you can adjust your
power settings by taking the following steps:
-
Click on Start;
-
Click on Control Panel;
-
Click on Power Options;
-
Click on the Power Schemes tab;
-
In the drop-down menu under Power Schemes, select Downloading/Copying
Large Files or some setting that will allow plenty of time for the
download.
Misc. DivShare Tips
Repeated from above: I've had consistent success uploading to DivShare while
using my Internet Explorer browser; whereas, some of my uploads failed when
I was using my AOL browser. I seem to have no problem downloading from DivShare
while using my AOL browser.
To select a DivShare folder for some action without opening the folder, click
slightly off to the side of the folder rather than directly on it.
DivShare automatically sorts your uploaded files under the four tabs
IMAGES, VIDEO, AUDIO, and DOCUMENTS. However,
ZIP files appear only under the ALL FILES tab.
Related Pages
Help with Zip Files
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