Perhaps this isn’t the kinds of things you have in mind, but I did want to share this in case you haven’t seen it.

Perhaps this isn’t the kinds of things you have in mind, but I did want to share this in case you haven’t seen it.

Perhaps this isn’t the kinds of things you have in mind, but I did want to share this in case you haven’t seen it. 

OpenDrive allows you to publicly share things from your Google Drive, Dropbox, Skydrive, and Box. Then it aggregates all of those shared objects into a searchable database. Go ahead and search for something like “blended learning” and you will a bunch of really interesting things.

http://opendrive.mcommulticartes.com/

6 Comments

  1. It looks interesting – why not just create a shared Google Drive directory that people could contribute too? What does OpenDrive get you (aside from the DropBox, Skydrive, and Box integration) that Drive doesn’t?

    Two reasons I ask: first, I would love to see something like Google Drive be an option for people looking to share their first resource out. It seems like Drive, on its own, is both familiar and simple enough to excel in that role. Is there functionality missing from Google Drive that OpenDrive delivers?

    Second, I’m concerned about the privacy implications of OpenDrive, as it is yet another app that collects contact info/document info that Google has already put in place.

    What are your thoughts here?

  2. It looks interesting – why not just create a shared Google Drive directory that people could contribute too? What does OpenDrive get you (aside from the DropBox, Skydrive, and Box integration) that Drive doesn’t?

    Two reasons I ask: first, I would love to see something like Google Drive be an option for people looking to share their first resource out. It seems like Drive, on its own, is both familiar and simple enough to excel in that role. Is there functionality missing from Google Drive that OpenDrive delivers?

    Second, I’m concerned about the privacy implications of OpenDrive, as it is yet another app that collects contact info/document info that Google has already put in place.

    What are your thoughts here?

  3. It looks interesting – why not just create a shared Google Drive directory that people could contribute too? What does OpenDrive get you (aside from the DropBox, Skydrive, and Box integration) that Drive doesn’t?

    Two reasons I ask: first, I would love to see something like Google Drive be an option for people looking to share their first resource out. It seems like Drive, on its own, is both familiar and simple enough to excel in that role. Is there functionality missing from Google Drive that OpenDrive delivers?

    Second, I’m concerned about the privacy implications of OpenDrive, as it is yet another app that collects contact info/document info that Google has already put in place.

    What are your thoughts here?

  4. Google Drive should be able to do this, but the problem isn’t one of capability. Google Docs and Drive are, by default, private. OpenDrive allows you to make them public and searchable. Also, Dropbox and Box are much more popular services with most consumers than Google Drive. This means that the sharing can go beyond our typical set of curators.

    I am hoping that Google eventually revitalizes the Google Doc template database and allows us to make documents public and searchable easily. They haven’t done anything with it for years, and it is ripe for a 2.0 for sure. 

    As for privacy concerns, I think they are valid. But, at this point, I am interested more in sharing than in silos. I am both giving and getting something valuable, and I can revoke access at any time. I much prefer to login using my Google Account to a service than having to sign up again and having my password further compromised. I hope that makes sense.

  5. Google Drive should be able to do this, but the problem isn’t one of capability. Google Docs and Drive are, by default, private. OpenDrive allows you to make them public and searchable. Also, Dropbox and Box are much more popular services with most consumers than Google Drive. This means that the sharing can go beyond our typical set of curators.

    I am hoping that Google eventually revitalizes the Google Doc template database and allows us to make documents public and searchable easily. They haven’t done anything with it for years, and it is ripe for a 2.0 for sure. 

    As for privacy concerns, I think they are valid. But, at this point, I am interested more in sharing than in silos. I am both giving and getting something valuable, and I can revoke access at any time. I much prefer to login using my Google Account to a service than having to sign up again and having my password further compromised. I hope that makes sense.

  6. Google Drive should be able to do this, but the problem isn’t one of capability. Google Docs and Drive are, by default, private. OpenDrive allows you to make them public and searchable. Also, Dropbox and Box are much more popular services with most consumers than Google Drive. This means that the sharing can go beyond our typical set of curators.

    I am hoping that Google eventually revitalizes the Google Doc template database and allows us to make documents public and searchable easily. They haven’t done anything with it for years, and it is ripe for a 2.0 for sure. 

    As for privacy concerns, I think they are valid. But, at this point, I am interested more in sharing than in silos. I am both giving and getting something valuable, and I can revoke access at any time. I much prefer to login using my Google Account to a service than having to sign up again and having my password further compromised. I hope that makes sense.

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