Tag Archives: cloud storage

Web app open source alternatives

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You can replace a number of popular web apps with solid open source alternatives. If you want to embrace your inner geek, you can even run many of them on your own web server. Or, you can use hosted versions of those apps which will only set you back a few dollars a month.

Let’s take a look at 5 open source alternatives to some popular web apps.

via Web app open source alternatives | Opensource.com.

I have been pleased with Owncloud which he lists as one of the five.  Its install was straightforward and it works allowing for easy file sync with my android tablet using their app as a client and their software on a specified server.

Here’s another one of the five I hadn’t heard before which prompted me to repost this article here:

ownStaGram is a self hosted replacement for Instagram. All you need is a web server that runs PHP and mySQL, and you can install it in a few minutes. From there, you can upload photos from your computer to your instance of ownStaGram. Or, you can use the Android app (which includes several of those hackneyed Instagram-like filters).

I will give ownStaGram a try and post my thoughts soon.

Update:  I ran ownStaGram on a Fedora 19 build running php 5.5 and a warning message popped up about a deprecated mysql connect method.  This is clearly a problem that hasn’t been fixed in quite awhile.  Tried to download their app from Google Play but couldn’t find it.  Some of the comments on the web version of Google Play suggested it was a buggy app which may be why it got pulled.

ownStaGram is a good concept.  I’d love to be able to snap a pic and have it automatically upload onto my local “cloud” device connected only to the local wifi.

Notes on the Celebrity Data Theft

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After this story broke I spent some time immersed in the crazy, obsessive subculture of celebrity nudes and revenge porn trying to work out what they were doing, how they were doing it and what could be learned from it.

1. What we see in the public with these hacking incidents seems to only be scratching the surface. There are entire communities and trading networks where the data that is stolen remains private and is rarely shared with the public. The networks are broken down horizontally with specific people carrying out specific roles, loosely organized across a large number of sites (both clearnet and darknet) with most organization and communication taking place in private (email, IM).

via New Web Order > Nik Cubrilovic – – » Notes on the Celebrity Data Theft.

Why Facebook is stockpiling Blu-ray discs

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Facebook is now experimenting with a storage prototype that uses racks of Blu-ray discs instead of hard drives. The discs are held in groups of 12 in locked cartridges and are extracted by a robotic arm whenever they’re needed.

One rack contains 10,000 discs, and is capable of storing a petabyte of data, or one million gigabytes.

via Why Facebook is stockpiling Blu-ray discs – Aug. 21, 2014.

Aereo analysis: Cloud computing at a crossroads

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“Consider any file-hosting service that allows people to store their own material, such as Dropbox. What if it can be shown they are storing copyrighted work. Do they need a license?” he asked in a telephone interview.

Mitch Stoltz, an Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney, said in a telephone interview that, “If the Supreme Court rules in favor of the broadcasters, their opinion might create liability for various types of cloud computing, especially cloud storage.”

via Aereo analysis: Cloud computing at a crossroads | Ars Technica.

ownCloud.org

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ownCloud Documents is collaborative editing of rich-text documents. The documents can be created from within the web-interface or existing documents can be uploaded. Sharing and editing can be done securely in the browser and be shared inside ownCloud or via a public link. User that have an account on the same server can be invited or public invitations can also be sent be email. The editing works on top of normal ODF files that are stored in ownCloud. ownCloud Documents is built in cooperation with KO GmbH

via Features | ownCloud.org.

I haven’t tried this solution out yet.

Seagate introduces a new drive interface: Ethernet

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Called the Kinetic Open Storage Platform, the new approach turns disks themselves into servers, delivering data over the network to applications using an open application interface. The Kinetic platform is a combination of an open programming interface and intelligence and a network interface installed in the storage device itself. It’s targeted mostly at companies looking to adopt the same sort of architecture in their data centers that they use to connect to cloud storage providers such as Amazon

via Seagate introduces a new drive interface: Ethernet | Ars Technica.

BitTorrent Launches Private and Secure Dropbox Alternative

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Just ask Twitter and Facebook, two major technology companies that rely on BitTorrent technology to distribute files across their networks.

via BitTorrent Launches Private and Secure Dropbox Alternative | TorrentFreak.

I didn’t know that about facebook and twitter.  Bittorrent is a very useful protocol for certain use cases and I’m surprised other cloud storage providers haven’t adopted it yet.

Hands On With Kim Dotcom’s New Mega

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So what’s to stop Mega from going down just the way Megaupload did? Mega’s privacy, which is a no-foolin’ stroke of genius. See, all of your files are encrypted locally before they’re uploaded, so Mega has no idea what anything is. It could be family photos or work documents, or an entire discography of your favorite band. Poof: online and easy to share. And importantly, Mega doesn’t have the decryption key necessary to get in. See? It’s a masterstroke of copyright subversion.

via Hands On With Kim Dotcom’s New Mega: This Service Could Dismantle Copyright Forever.

Technically you should be able to do this with any cloud storage service.  The key here is that the encryption is done locally.  There are many ways to encrypt your stuff locally so why would it matter which cloud storage provider you use?  Maybe I’m missing something but this doesn’t seem all that novel of an idea other than perhaps the new Mega provides the software and user interface to make the entire process easier.  Mega is supposed to launch tomorrow so more information will surface.

Kim Dotcom Avoids “Unsafe” .Com, Picks Me.Ga for New Megaupload

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The new Mega will operate from the Gabonese domain Me.Ga. With just 98,800 Internet users in a population of 1.6 million, the African country is a small player on the Internet, but this is about to change.

via Kim Dotcom Avoids “Unsafe” .Com, Picks Me.Ga for New Megaupload | TorrentFreak.

In a notice, ironically hosted on Kim.com, Dotcom also advises other cloud hosting providers to stay away from the U.S. and refrain from operating domains that are controlled by American companies.

File and Data Storage: AFS

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AFS Andrew File System is a distributed, networked file system that enables efficient file sharing between clients and servers. AFS files are accessible via the Web or through file transfer programs such as OpenAFS or Fetch Macintosh and SecureFX Windows. Currently all users with a full-service SUNet ID are granted 2 GB of AFS file space. Additional disk space is available by request for faculty-sponsored research including dissertations.

via File and Data Storage: AFS | Information Technology Services.