Posts from March 2012

Taking a break... Severe times are ahead.

A few posts back, I found an application called EZ drop (File Sync) for easily transferring files between my android devices and my linux laptop. While I struggled to set up servers, this application worked very easily and fast.

However, @paul brought up some misgivings about why EZ drop (File Sync) needed an external site to make this transfer. I echoed these questions in an edit to my earlier blog.

Well, I can tell that (e:strip) is being picked up by google because I received a message directly from the developer of EZ drop (File Sync)! I think it is worth reading through his responses:

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Responses from the EZ drop (File Sync) developer, David

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Hey tinypliny!

My name is David and I'm the developer of EZ Drop. I noticed your comments on the app and wanted to give you some answers to your questions. :) I made this app just to help people transfer files devices more easily so people wouldn't have to set up servers, etc. The dropbox app was requesting so many permissions I thought something more light-weight would be appreciated.

I have heard feedback about security-concerns and have taken it to heart. Since the file transfer was being done over plain HTTP, and have since added an SSL certificate to the site (you can click "secure" at the bottom to access it). SSL transport encryption will also be added to the app soon.

I had said in @tinypliny #56229: "it's also somewhat non-transparent"

And the EZ drop developer replied to this:

I will put up an "about" page that describes exactly how the file transfer is done so that people can understand what's going on under-the-hood. Basically, you temporarily upload your file to me, then I send it to your device. Whether you are sending from your android-to-PC or PC-to-android, the process is the same.

"Why do you need to go to an external site ez.dropper.co and get a code? "

The code is the secret key that links your computer and the android device. Alternatively, you would have to log in with a username/password. It's just a simple way for the server to know which device to send the file to.

"What other data does this application collect from your android device?"

I don't collect any information about your android device or your computer, I kept the required permissions in the app to a minimum exactly for this purpose. The only permissions required are internet access and SD card storage, just enough to let you transfer the files. Files that are transferred are deleted within 24 hours. I've also put up a "privacy" page regarding this.

Thank you for trying out the app and posting your comments. Your feedback goes a long way!

Thank you, EZ drop David, for stopping by my blog and then taking the time to send me a detailed message!.

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Well, I don't see any reason why such level of honesty and earnestness should be doubted! And I have to admit that EZ drop made my life easy when I was really struggling with the Apache set up (I am sure I was missing some configuration details but I didn't have the time or experience to troubleshoot.)

An additional advantage of EZ drop (File Sync) is that unlike other methods, it actually makes it easy to share files with people outside your wireless loop or LAN network, by sharing the PIN/code. You can share files with people say, across the globe. That's pretty nifty. With this responsive a developer, I have no doubt improvements to EZ drop will be fair and fast.

apart from making popcorn, that is.

Sometimes, there is only so much popcorn you can keep popping till you realize that you have entirely way too many kernels and you have got a bit tired of the plain popcorn...

You really don't need the ridiculous USB wire or deal with the fact that the transformer (TF101) simply refuses to mount without fuss on either Linux or windows. It prompts you to install some Asus sync utility that I absolutely don't want to. Turns out there are even more ways to share files between your Asus transformer and your linux laptop.

I found WebSharing Lite File/Media Sync a while back

After installing the WebSharing Lite File/Media Sync, you just connect your android device to your wireless network, start the application and press start. It gives you an IP and port address. Something like: 10.0.0.6:2112/ It also gives you an "owner's password" - a random alphanumeric string.

You use your browser on your laptop to browse to this address. If you want file edit access, you input the password at the prompt. And that's it. You can upload or download files - as fast as your wireless modem is able to allow - in my case 54 MB/s.

This is even simpler than the earlier methods and seems to be secure since there is no external access and everything is limited to the internal loop behind your wireless router.

Now that this is sorted, wonder what the next mountain will be... rooting or maybe nothing because that's all I use the tablet for, reading and more reading. Rooting holds its charm but I am not entirely clear what benefits I will get from rooting the tablet right now.

How could I have ever forgotten this?? I completely went over the line this past week. I could have done with a dose of calmness. :/

And of course


:(

After so long...

@paul's comments can sometimes act like insidious little nanoparticles that eat away at your trust of non-transparent pieces of software like only nanoparticles can. And if you didn't know already, the @paul-nanoparticular frequency is especially persuasive.

So I hunted around again to find an alternative solution and found this brilliant extension to the solution I found earlier for transferring files from android to linux. Turns out it can work both ways and quite securely here:


The method uses the inherent capacity of the android device (in my case, Nexus One, Nexus S and Asus TF101) to act as a wireless hotspot and be an FTP server over this self-generated wireless. Any laptop can connect to this android-device generated wireless and access all the files on the android device -or just swap files back and forth. So it's like a private wireless party! You don't need to have an internet or 3G/4G/LTE phone-data connection.

I like this method infinitely more. And I am betting @paul would approve. :)

So the steps (these are for my reference just in case the original link above vanishes for some reason):

On your android device:

• Go to Settings > Wireless & Networks > Tethering & Portable hotspot

• Turn on the portable Wi-Fi hotspot.

• Configure this Wi-Fi hotspot (Give it a wacky name and a secure password - it's going to be visible to your building mates, why not send them a message?) If you want them to share your enthusiasm for dry PDFs or perhaps dodgy videos, you can even make it open and unsecure.

• Install the Wifi FTP transfer application I talked about in @tinypliny #56176 and turn it on.

• Now go to you linux machine, connect to the wifi spot generated by the android device

• Pull up a console. Type

Route

Something like this will come up:


At this point, my laptop and android device were not connected to the internet; just to each other. So the 192.168.43.0 is the IP of my laptop and the 192.168.43.1 is the gateway of the Wifi spot generated by the transformer (or any android device).

• Open up Nautilus > File > connect to server > type in the address of the server as 192.168.43.1 (the gateway) and the port (2121 in that wifi app on my android device). Input the password and username that you set up for the Wifi FTP service on the android device

• et voila. The android device turns up as just another folder on your laptop. You can transfer files between your asus transformer (or any android device) and laptop just like you would between any two folder.

If I can do this, you can too. Say yes to transparency. Say no to frustrations of the USB not mounting on linux (or windows) for the asus transformer without complicated methods that may or may not work.

This is an easier method than setting up own server and hoping that it would work well but as @paul pointed out in the comments, it's also somewhat non-transparent. Why do you need to go to an external site ez.dropper.co and get a code? What other data does this application collect from your android device? The answers are floating in the wind and possibly in the developer's mind.

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et voila EDIT

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The developers frank and informative responses to these answers
are in @tinypliny #56245

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Here's how to use EZ Drop (File Sync) to share files between your linux laptop and android device:

Install EZ Drop (File Sync) from Google Play here:

on your android device.

Go to ez.dropper.co/ to get your code (from your linux desktop browser).

Fire up the now installed EZ Drop (File Sync) in your android device.

Input the code from ez.dropper.co/ in your android device.

An interface to transfer files appears in your browser at ez.dropper.co/ after you input the code in your android device.

You can drag and drop the files you want to share there.

The files you share get saved in the download folder in your android device.

Navigate to those files using ES Explorer - another awesome application from the Google Play Store.

That's it. No more struggles with FTP/HTTP servers on this linux machine and bemoaning that the ASUS transformer does not mount as a USB. It doesn't matter anymore.I found another method after some searching that also works very well. More in the next post: @tinypliny #56232

UPDATE: Those who are stumped at this method should preferably read about a waaaay easier method to share files between the Asus transformer TF101 (or any android device) and the desktop at @tinypliny #56229 or @tinypliny #56241 @tinypliny #56232 or choose to struggle some more with uncertain results (on Fedora 16) by clicking on the comment bubble below. Your choice!

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Setting up a server on linux and having your other devices access it is a supposedly simple thing but I am having a hard time with it.

Objective: To access one of my folders on my linux laptop from my android devices (specifically a tablet, which I use to read pdfs)

What I have done: Started an apache server on my laptop.

How?
Like so:

Check if httpd exists on the system

• rpm -q httpd

Switch to /var/www/html directory

• cd /var/www/html

Crease a symbolic link to the directory I want to share
So here I am linking to ~/pdfs and naming it pdfs

• ln -s ~/pdfs pdfs

Switch to root user

• Su

Enable, start and check the apache server

• systemctl enable httpd.service
• systemctl start httpd.service
• systemctl status httpd.service

Now if I go to localhosts/pdfs or 127.0.0.1/pdfs with any browser on my laptop, I can see the directory on my server.

The question is how do I see the wretched directory from a browser on my android tablet in the same wireless network?! The IP address of the wired connection on the linux laptop is: 10.0.0.4 and the server is at port 80

So technically the address 10.0.0.4:80 should work, correct? But it is not!!

Do I need to fiddle with my Apache configuration files?
/etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf

Stumped for now.
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I hate today. Hate it. Hate it.

GIVE BACK MY SIXTY MINUTES.

I hate you, whoever came up with the loony idea of robbing people of their time!
You suck.