Dropbox 3 device Limit

[AlainFarhi]

My MacMini lost its Dropbox preference files and Dropbox believes that it is a new device as it asks me to signin. I did not as my account would have been downgraded to 3 devices only, not just substituting it to another, Since I have not "unlinked" it to Dropbox's cloud, I just need to restore my automatic sign in /launch status from yesterday. My TimeMachine library files (both system and user) files have not been able to reset them. I tried to launch my MacMini from an external SSD linked to my Mac mini user's account but it failed. So the problem is with my User Library.

Any suggestion will be appreciated as the Mini is my main Mac and uploading the Reunion files manually via a browser (to sync my iPhone'sX Reunion) is not a desirable solution.

Alain

[cbarrick]

I suspect that I am not alone in moving away from using Dropbox because of the 3 device limit. I understand some of the technical benefits of using Dropbox, but I hope Leister and its developers will reconsider Dropbox as the sole sync solution now. Perhaps iOS 13 and MacOS 15 will offer some improvements to iCloud (a natural second choice since it is ubiquitous with Apple devices), or Box and/or OneDrive might be functional alternatives?

A service I would be willing to pay for is a Leister-hosted sync service (like the OmniGroup hosts for their applications), if that could be a consideration.

Thanks very much,
Chris

[Sara]

You can add me to the list that would prefer iCloud. I’m using it for so many other programs and it works beautifully. I only had problems trying to use Dropbox so haven’t purchased Reunion Touch but I would really like to be able to again have my info on my iPhone or iPad.

[RPalmer]

iCloud please but from the silence I am guessing that adding it for Reunion Touch is out of the question??

[A Hougie]

This seems to be turning into a poll. I would like the ability to choose any file synchronising service - for example an owncloud or nextcloud server

[Frank]

This seems to be turning into a poll...

This is not a poll.
We are aware of the changes implemented by Dropbox and we are aware that this creates an issue for some users.
The following web page explains what is happening and where we are currently with the situation.

http://www.leisterpro.com/reuniontouch/questions/db-sync.php

[lrberbach]

I have just been notified that my Dropbox Plus subscription price will be raised from $99 to almost $120 dollars when it renews in 2020. Yes, they are giving me more storage space - 2TB - that I do not need. I use 6.5 GB for my Reunion family history and Multimedia. Because I have the space available, I choose to keep some additional files on Dropbox for a total of about 17GBs. I could easily switch these additional files to my Google Drive account FOR FREE. In addition, I have to pay iCloud for syncing all my other apps. Please reconsider your commitment to using only Dropbox.

[alan]

In case anyone is interested, Dropbox have today launched a new Mac App - see here;

https://9to5mac.com/2019/06/11/dropbox-update-new-desktop-app/

It's still applies to the free version but with more tool etc.
I've just read about it on the 9to5mac forum.
As I read it, if you opt-in to this version you may not be able to revert out, but appears useful,
Disclaimer - not associated with either Dropbox or 9to5.

Alan

[AlainFarhi]

I have found a temporary way around the 3 devices limit.

I happen to have had installed on my wife's iMac a user under my own name with Dropbox still grandfathered there. To synchronize my main Dropbox account (that lost its granddfathered status) I just synchonize my Mac Mini's Dropbox content to it every hour. It is then synched automatically with all my grandfathered devices.

The only issue is that changes made to my iPhone's ReunionTouch files will have to be transferred back from the iMac to my Mac Mini raising the possibility of conflicted hidden files in the reunion data file.

Troublesome but worth the 120 dollars per year saving that Dropbox tried to extract.

[BarryAbrahamsen]

Shortly after Dropbox imposed the 3 device limit, it announced a new, seemingly much more complicated, desktop interface. Blog.dropbox.com

Has Leister productions reviewed these additional changes? Do we know that we can continue to use Dropbox exactly as we do now?

[cbarrick]

I very much appreciate the bind a small developer is in; changing code that is a significant part of the app is not a simple thing. With that said, change is a constant in the software development world. Using Dropbox today is a much different proposition than it was even a couple years ago. Dropbox is now bloated in comparison to back then; it is significantly larger and takes as much as a half gig of memory on a Mac. Regardless of the 3 device limit, I hope Leister is reviewing how the Dropbox platform is changing. Their decision to adopt Dropbox 4 years ago may have made sense then, but going forward it may not. I think their user base—, which is very loyal, will certainly support paying for a new version of their apps if significant changes need to be made.

[apskehan]

I read with interest Frank Lester’s comment and the reference he provided (http://www.leisterpro.com/reuniontou...ns/db-sync.php) espousing the virtues of Drop Box, particularely the paragraph

“Prior to the release of Reunion 11, Dropbox was the clear leader in these critical categories. Based on our experience and assessment, Dropbox is still the best choice — even though Dropbox will cost money now, when using more than 3 devices”.

The problem with this is that I, possible like many others, have a paid subscriptions to, for instance, iCloud and don't need to be paying for a duplicate service, especially one that does not work as well.

I was a Drop Box user but have been with iCloud now for many years with three applications synced very successfully and without a device limitation. These apps include a rival genealogical application, which, while very good, is still inferior to Reunion, and a financial package. I am very happy with the iCloud service and would not consider trying to move away from it.

I encourage Frank and his team to take another look at this problem, "problem" being the operative word for this user.

[cbarrick]

Just a little food for thought with respect to the sync issue. OmniGroup had a blog post recently discussing their move to adopt the standard Apple iOS document browser in their iOS apps. (The post is here: https://www.omnigroup.com/blog/adopt...cument-browser) Something that they said in the article pointed to the fact that options for syncing solutions change over time, and that what was available back in 2010 is significantly different than what is available today.

Given Apple’s focus on iOS and now iPadOS, I wonder if the changes in XCode that facilitates iPadOS to MacOS development is something that the developers are looking into — maybe building more iCloud hooks into ReunionTouch (maybe for iPadOS) and in turn bringing that over the the Mac version? I would be curious to hear if that is something on the radar... And the pros and cons of that approach for Reunion.

[Kim]

Like Adrian, I have a paid subscription to iCloud. I also sync to my Google Drive. If Reunion Touch could sync to either of these, or even my Amazon storage, I'd probably try it out. But I personally would be happy to be able to go back to the old bluetooth sync from computer to phone, without using a cloud service.

[cbarrick]

So I am now dealing with the Dropbox three device limit. I have a new iPad and cannot link it to my Dropbox account because I already have three linked devices. I would like to use Reunion Touch on my new device but I can’t release the Dropbox account on any of my other devices because I need them for work.

I have tried to connect to my Dropbox account directly through Reunion Touch, but it looks like I need to have the iOS app installed and linked in order to sync through Dropbox. Is that correct?

If so, is there a way Reunion Touch could at least independently connect to Dropbox (i.e, not through the Dropbox app) as some other iOS apps do?

I hate to put it this way, but there are several other genealogy apps for iOS that are decent, sync through iCould or other cloud-based methods, and cost a lot less than the $150 a year that Dropbox charges. I love Reunion and don’t particularly want to consider that, but the cost of syncing Reunion for many us of seems to be a combination of the cost of your app (very reasonably priced) and a subscription to Dropbox (much less reasonable).