iPhone DOC/PDF/XLS etc Storage Solution!

[boss1]

few things first:
1. I'm not into app development
2. I'm not sure if someone already has a similar web app already made.
3. I want my million dollars if someone takes this idea and it turns out to be as big as Filefront or Photobucket like sites. (or at least throw me a few grand, a wendy's burger? something )

Ok. did anyone happen to notice that a url string that ends in a format that is readable by iPhone displays on iPhone? For instance: http://oam.ocs.doc.gov/docs/CS/Handbook_2006.doc will load as a viewable doc on your iPhone. (Warning its a hefty doc: 87 pages so it might take a minute to load on iPhone)

It works with urls that end in .pdf .... I havent tried other formats yet.


THE APP idea:
•If someone created an web storage service, very similar to Photobucket where you can upload files after a quick log in. (iPhone friendly site)
•Then allow the subscriber to upload up to 100mb or 10mb or <insert number>MB of space to use.
•Then if possible allow access to those urls after log in only? (not sure if that would be possible with safari on iPhone)

What you end up with is online iPhone storage for just about any viewable document you can upload. You could even allow a user made directory so that users could organize their files.

 

[Me1000]

well my first thought it you can't upload files with your iPhone...

then I though, you are only getting these files through email, so why not email the files to a set address (specific to you)
then the back end software extracts the attached file, and stores it

then you can login, and view them in safari!

this would take a lot of work, but it will work!

 

[aria505]

Sounds like a good idea. Though there would be limitations because you wouldn't be able to download the files on your iphone and email them to someone else if you needed to. You could build a part of the app that would do that for you though.

I don't have an iPhone, but what I personally would do is I would create a gmail or yahoo account that I just used for file storage. I could just attach a file to an email, and write the filename in the Subject line and then email it to the account. That way I could just scroll through the email account on my iphone and see all of the emails and I could even forward the files to someone else if I needed to.

I"m not sure how the iPhone handles attachments though. Does it actually store the attachment on the iPhone or does it keep the attachments on google's servers and open it from there? You would save space on your iPhone by having all the files on a a server though.

You could have a search feature as well and folders would be nice.

I bet they make this part of .Mac in the future.

 

[boss1]

Well, i posted the basic concept of the idea. You guys just came up with additional methods one would work with such an online storage service.

1. Being able to send emails to the service (email addy specific to the subscriber) and the back end service could potentially extract the attached file and store it for you. Sort of like a drop box for incoming files.

2. the other idea brought up by aria505 was being able to email that file in storage to someone else. Since the iPhone won't let you download files to the iPhone, the back end service could allow you to forward your files to an email address.

There are dozens of possibilities that a service such as this could allow for iPhone owners.


I was trying to think of a name for the service. I came up with iPhoneBucket.com . as soon as I thought of it I checked out the domain info for it.

Turns out someone registered the domain on June 11. They are either sitting on it waiting for cash offer or my idea is 21 days too late and already in the works.

 

[stefanot]

I'm in the process of doing just what you mentioned by porting this application from flash based to ajax.

http://sb.prstn.com/

The problem of uploading has also been solved and is being added to the application.

*Hint: "share" in safari.

 

[tw50]

Apple data center

Anyone wondering if this Apple acquisition has anything to do with the iPhone?
http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2006/02/27/story5.html

 

[bdj21ya]

few things first:
1. I'm not into app development
2. I'm not sure if someone already has a similar web app already made.
3. I want my million dollars if someone takes this idea and it turns out to be as big as Filefront or Photobucket like sites. (or at least throw me a few grand, a wendy's burger? something )

Ok. did anyone happen to notice that a url string that ends in a format that is readable by iPhone displays on iPhone? For instance: http://oam.ocs.doc.gov/docs/CS/Handbook_2006.doc will load as a viewable doc on your iPhone. (Warning its a hefty doc: 87 pages so it might take a minute to load on iPhone)

It works with urls that end in .pdf .... I havent tried other formats yet.


THE APP idea:
•If someone created an web storage service, very similar to Photobucket where you can upload files after a quick log in. (iPhone friendly site)
•Then allow the subscriber to upload up to 100mb or 10mb or <insert number>MB of space to use.
•Then if possible allow access to those urls after log in only? (not sure if that would be possible with safari on iPhone)

What you end up with is online iPhone storage for just about any viewable document you can upload. You could even allow a user made directory so that users could organize their files.

Actually we already have this app, it's called email!

 

[miep]

Actually we already have this app, it's called email!

Yes, and no. Yes, email lets you read PDF's. But the advantage of Safari on the iPhone is that you can rotate, and you can't do that with mail. So it makes sense to read the same PDF in Safari rather than in Mail.

 

[plumbingandtech]

Actually we already have this app, it's called email!

but at least for me... once i get the emails on the desktop machine they go away (iphone says message has been deleted).

I do use the same email so maybe I should set up a dummy iphone only account?

thoughts?

 

[miep]

but at least for me... once i get the emails on the desktop machine they go away (iphone says message has been deleted).

I do use the same email so maybe I should set up a dummy iphone only account?

thoughts?

Maybe you use POP instead of IMAP, and your desktop PC is set to remove messages from server once read?

 

[bdj21ya]

but at least for me... once i get the emails on the desktop machine they go away (iphone says message has been deleted).

I do use the same email so maybe I should set up a dummy iphone only account?

thoughts?

Set your desktop client to not remove messages from the server until you delete them.

 

[bdj21ya]

Yes, and no. Yes, email lets you read PDF's. But the advantage of Safari on the iPhone is that you can rotate, and you can't do that with mail. So it makes sense to read the same PDF in Safari rather than in Mail.

Very valid points. Of course, my email is gmail, so problem solved for me.