Abandoning Xdrive? Box.net Wants Your Data
By Harry McCracken | Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 2:40 pm
A few weeks ago, I blogged about the fact that AOL has decided to “sunset” its venerable Xdrive online storage service. Xdrive users, not surprisingly, seem to be figuring out exit strategies–and every day, my post gets read by folks who found it via Xdrive-related Google searches.
Box.net, an Xdrive rival, dropped me a note to let me know about a new service it’s offering to would-be Xdrive Xpatriates: one-click transfers of data from Xdrive accounts to Box.net ones. Okay, it’s only one click after you’ve registered for Box.net, but it still looks pretty simple:
This isn’t for everyone–for one thing, Box.net only offers 1GB of space for free. (More space costs from $8 to $15 a month.) I actually think that’s a point in the company’s favor, since a business that actually receives money from its customers is less likely to disappear than one that doesn’t.
And chances seem very slim that AOL will announce to Xdrive users that their data is going away along with the service. Odds are that it’ll sell Xdrive to another online storage company, or strike a deal to let Xdrive users move their stuff to another service. But it pays to be prepared–and if I were an Xdrive fan, I’d do my own preparing rather than relying on AOL. Look on the bright side: There’s no such thing as having too many copies of data that’s important to you…
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August 13th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Well, this was a great idea but it either doesn’t work or AOL shut it down. I tried it and I can’t move any data.
Is any one else having difficulty?
In the meantime I’m running a new backup to a different service called ElephantDrive.
August 14th, 2008 at 12:40 am
I have always said that I am more willing to pay for a product that is of high quality, and will be less likely to go away. I’m still the weirdo who pays for email because it’s mission-critical for me and it’s worth it for the speed, performance and support I get out of it. Oh, and peace of mind.
Box is a good service, I hope they manage to stick around.
August 19th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
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