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Transferring Large Files Is a Drag

Choosing the right FTP software makes it a drag and drop

iDropper FTP software allows customers to create icons on their desktop. They can then send large files simply by dragging them into the icon. Like many other software packages, iDropper also features job tracking features.

The electronic files that printers need often are too big to send as attachments to an email. Whether in-house designers or end users create the files, it’s ultimately up to distributors to see that the printer receives them.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP) software allows people to send large files to one another through a server on the internet. The first step is to choose a software program and download it to the computer you are using to make file transfers.

One challenge to using FTP software is that the clients you do business with must also have FTP software. They don’t need to use the same program that you use, but they do have to assign your host name, server name and password to an account in their FTP software.

One alternative is to use a service such as iDropper. “Other FTP software requires the users on both ends to know what FTP is all about. You have to give them the host name, server name and password,” says Dave Scribner, business development officer at iDropper, Erie, Pa. “iDropper allows the distributor to create miniature applications with that information embedded in it. All the customer does is drag and drop the files into the icon.” You can email clients the icon or they can download it from a link you provide.

Other services avoid the desktop entirely. YouSendIt.com, for instance, does the work for you. Users enter their email addresses and their recipients’ email addresses. They then upload files to the YouSendIt.com website. Recipients receive an email that allows them to download the file immediately.

FTP software is widely available: Choosing a program depends mostly on whether you use a Mac or PC and how much you’re willing to spend. Here are a few common FTP programs available to distributors:

• Fetch
fetchsoftworks.com

• iDropper
idropper.com

• SmartFTP
smartftp.com

• Transmit
panic.com/transmit

• Vicomsoft FTP Client
ftpclient.com

• WS_FTP Pro
ipswitch.com

• YouSendIt
yousendit.com

—Andy Brown