Ending support of public folder

>Chris R. wrote: (to the Web o.)

Im using another account to rfeply back (DfB user)

>But that's the whole point! Using the "dl=0 to dl=1" creates a DIRECT link in another forum, and bypasses interaction with the DB site. >And it works for all Dropbox content, not just the Public folder. I've tried it in another forum, and managed to get images to display (i.e. a >direct links) there - no clicking of url involved.

Yeah thats your point, not mine, and the subject is about EOS of public folders.

Also ?DL=0 means the file is not downloaded, if you have a commercial account that means it appears in a browser if as a image link etc.

?DL=1 will cause it to download. Of course if not paying then dont harp about what comes for free, should be the plain course of action.

(I do not know your account type so am not implying you are doing anything here)

>As for "public folder links ... just ARE!", that's what our beef with DB is all about.

LOL Im against the EOS of public folders, but really DO NOT MISS QUOTE ME, starting the quote halfway through a sentence & missing words in the middle, doesnt improve an arguement.

>Ok, let them end support for the Public folder if they want, after all they have done it for new users for the last few years. But this topic is

>all about getting DB to grandfather existing Public direct links, of which there must be 000,000s if not millions, all over the internet.

I dont think it is, its about the EOS for public folders (please check the subject)

>They could do this quite easily (if they are competent) by making the Public Folder 'read only' and changing their software to issue a

>warning if you try to add something to it locally: "WARNING - any item added to the Public folder will not be uploaded / sync'd.

>Please put it somewhere else inside your Dropbox folder if you want this".

They would need to make the folder read only at their end not mine, otherwise I can still upload to it via the web interface.

> In that way, the Public folder couldn't be added to anymore, but existing links within it would still exist, be readable, and useable.

I do understand your idea, and it would work in some parts, of course fail in others, one being many existing links point to content that is updated continuely, so these links would also become invalid as the folder would be uneditable.

One item I think you miss understood is why I said you dont have to MAKE public folder links.

This accounts public folder link looks like this https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/318???194/ (3 numbers replace the ???)

Once you know that and any file or folder in it, you can create a link instantly from anywhere without access to the account.

public folder\a folder\a file.txt

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/318???194/a%20folder/a%20file.txt

I personally have written softare that generates result files dumped into the public folder as follows,

Public folder\Results\20170127\Detail.txt (date is generated to match the day)

I can be anywhere and knowing the public folder link access any dates details using

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/318???194/Results/yyyymmdd/Detail.txt

The links in a public folder are NOT like the later link system, they do not PRE exist, only the public folder link itself exists, the rest is compared to the content of the folder and a matching file if present is devulged.

It is this ability of the public folder to have files injected into it and accessed without need of any form of creation of link that I am disapointed that is being terminated.