Forget cloud-computing, configure your own. If you need secure access to your files (from anywhere in the world), you might want to check out the myDitto solution From Dane-Elec. There's an iPhone app for it as well, and I'll get to the details of that in a minute, but essentially it's a storage unit (above left) that provides secure access to your files, and all you need is an iPhone (with the myDitto app), or a USB key (from a computer). It received a 2010 CES Innovations award, and if you read on, you can learn how myDitto gives you universal storage access right in your pocket.
The first point to make about myDitto is that it is platform independent (Linux, PC, Mac, iPhone, etc.), meaning that regardless of your OS flavor, you can still get to your files (I admittedly did not ask if it supports other NIX flavors like Solaris). I hope to get a eval unit after the show and can provide a better review of the product, but the CES demo was pretty convincing in itself. We accessed the file system (remotely from CES in Las Vegas) to the myDitto server in Irvine, CA. We then opened (practically instantaneously) a 3MB Powerpoint file. We did this entire operation in a matter of a minute or so, at most total time (not counting the time to go through the marketing spiel). You plug in the key, launch the app, enter a password, and bam you are there browsing your files. The iPhone app does the same thing, though I had questions about what you can do with the files after that point. It doesn't sound like there are any additional plug-ins (for instance Files Lite provides a document reader), and streaming music is not yet supported (but planned for a later release). You can check out myDitto in action below from my CES coverage (or a better demo here)...
Video 1: Launching the App...We are connecting remotely to the Irvine Server
Video 2: Opening a Powerpoint
Video 3: Access with the iPhone
The myDitto capability uses peer-to-peer network technology common to file sharing networks like Limewire to connect your devices virtually across physical networks. Your sessions are completely secure however, and evidently you do not need to do firewall gymnastics to get it to work on your home network. The server syncs and backs up files from your computers to a common location on the storage unit. The home system ships with a single 2TB SATA hard drive (and a second empty bay), and the business model includes 2 drives. If you lose your key (which contains the encryption algorithm to access your files) you can make more, but admittedly you won't be able to access your files. The system ships with 2 USB devices, and you can obtain more from Dane-Elec. The drives can be configured in RAID mirror to protect your data as well.
Stay tuned to our blogs for more great CES coverage...
