Comments: How can I share my database with my spouse over Dropbox?

After setting this up, when my spouse opens the database a dialog box opens stating the database is already opened and is only available as Read Only.  We share the same dropbox account.  Is there a way for both of us to be able to add/edit at the same time?

You could turn off the option to prevent multiple people from editing your database at the same time: www.tntware.com/.../6406.dropbox-mode.jpg_2D00_550x0.jpg  But you're going to run into more Dropbox conflicts (where two people edit your database at the same time, and Dropbox creates a "conflict" file.)  TntMPD will help you resolve these conflicts.  Currently the main issue with this is that if someone checks off a task, then when TntMPD auto-syncs to the conflict file it might un-delete the task, and the task will show up in your task list again.  

Here's a better way to do it:  www.tntware.com/.../21260.aspx  It uses Drobox, but TntSync must be run to sync your changes.

Are you saying that the database stays in dropbox, and not on the computer? Can it be deleted from the computer safely? I have a problem with space on my computer and have tried to save the database to an external hard drive, but that doesn't seem to work too well.

Hi Martha,

Your Dropbox folder is also on your main hard drive.  It is synchronized to Dropbox.com.  If you copy your database file to your Dropbox folder, you can delete where it came from.  If you delete it from your Dropbox folder, you'll have 30 days to recover it from Dropbox.com.  

--Troy

Thanks, Troy. Is it somehow possible to decrease the size of the folder? My hard drive is filling up and making it difficult for me to work.

Martha

Martha, besides TntMPD, do you have other files in your Dropbox folder?  A typical TntMPD database file is usually less than 50 MB, which by today's standards is tiny.  So I think you may have something else filling up your hard drive.

I have downloaded Dropbox (Actually about 3 times- and restarted my computer), but TntMPD isn't recognizing it. It never moves to the second option "Move my database to Dropbox now!" I really need to be able to share this file on Dropbox. What do I need to do to get it to recognize I've downloaded Dropbox and move to the 2nd option?  NOTE: I have Window's 10. I always have the fixer by Troy and Tammy Wolbrink open, but that doesn't fix this problem.

Hi Angela, that button in TntMPD is broken.  It's a long story, but Dropbox has changed things since last time TntMPD was updated.  It will hopefully be fixed in TntMPD in a few months (again, long story as to why you have to wait a few more months).  I'm sorry.

For now, you'll have to manually move your database.  1)  Click F8 in TntMPD and make note of where your database is located.  2)  Close TntMPD.  3)  Using Windows Explorer (or Mac Finder), move your database file to your Dropbox folder.  4)  Open TntMPD  5)  Under the "File" menu, click on "Open" and go find your database in your Dropbox folder.

My wife got a Mac and i have a PC. She installed TNT and  Dropbox. I shared the database for TNT. The question I have is when I make changes will it automatically show up on hers from now on and if she makes changes will I see them as well?

Roy, you need to share the same Dropbox account on each computer ... or you need to share the folder that contains your TNT database between accounts.  You can't share just the TNT file.  It won't work that way.

I was trying to share my TnT database with my wife, and ended up creating a copy in her Dropbox, so now we have parallel TnT databases. Is there a way to sync them in those locations (her Dropbox and my Dropbox) or do we need to choose one of the dropbox database files to both share?

Hi Charles,

In the case where each spouse has their own Dropbox account, what you want to do is share a folder within one of your Dropbox accounts with the other.  The other person will "accept the invitation" and then that sub-folder will be synced between your two accounts.  Normally you'd share the "TntConnect" folder within your Dropbox folder.

There is a way to merge your changes with your wife's copy of the database.  Under the "File" menu, click on "Utilities" and then "Merge with Another Database".

--Troy

I had my computer cleaned and updated and suddenly my husbands computer and mine are not syncing anymore. His tnt has updates and my tnt has updates but they both say there are no conflicts. Also, we can both be in tnt and it is not prompting either of us to be in read only mode. Any idea on how we can get our databases to sync again?

Hi Karen,  I'm not sure what it means to have your computer "cleaned", but this sounds like it broke your Dropbox.  Try reinstalling Dropbox on both computers.  This sounds more like a Dropbox question, so if the Dropbox folder continues to not sync between your two computers, check with Dropbox.com.

I just setup sharing with my wife via Dropbox.  I did a few experiments, in order to find out what would happen if one of us made edits at a time when we lacked Internet access and we ended up having conflict files.  If one of us is offline and I edit record A on my computer and my wife edits record A on her computer and when I next open TNTConnect, if I choose Auto-Sync from the Resolve Dropbox Conflicts window, then one of our edits is lost.  Edits from the most recently closed file are retained.  Edits from the other file are lost.  There is no indicator to alert me that one of the edits was lost.

This scenario could result in one of us making edits which are lost and we wouldn't be aware of losing the edited information.  Is there anyway around this situation?