Sync Notebooks with Dropbox

Dropbox is a Web-based file hosting service which allows users to store files and folders on their servers on the Internet. When you add or change a document in the “Dropbox” folder on your computer, the changes will immediately be synchronized with the server on the Internet. Similarly, when changes are made on the server, they are immediately synchronized to your computer. This happens almost instantly, within just a couple of moments.

Notebooks is able to synchronize its contents with a specific folder on Dropbox, and this folder and its contents is automatically synched with your computer, too. In a way, this establishes a direct connection between Notebooks and your computer, you can add, edit and change the same set of documents in both locations. All you need to do is start a sync process in Notebooks regularly, because this does not (yet) happen automatically.

Set Up and Use Dropbox with Notebooks

Setting up Dropbox synchronization in Notebooks takes just a few moments:

1. -Turn on Dropbox Sync in Notebooks’ settings
   

2. -Open Dropbox Settings and log in (if you do not yet have a Dropbox account, you can create one right from within Notebooks, or you can use this referral link, which will give you extra 250MB of free space ;-)
   

3. -Now the context menu of all books now shows the option Sync - Dropbox. Select it to sync the contents of the current book with the corresponding folder on Dropbox.
   

During sync, all books and documents will be uploaded to the Dropbox directory “Notebooks”, which you find at the root level of your Dropbox account.

When the synchronization is finished and you have installed the Dropbox application on your computer (https://www.dropbox.com/install), the synced files will appear in your local Dropbox folder a few moments later. You can make additions and changes to the documents in your local Dropbox folder, too. All modifications will be synced to Dropbox and on to Notebooks during next time you sync.

Automatic Synchronization

To support synchronization between several devices even better, Notebooks can try to detect changes and initiate a sync whenever it is necessary. Automatic synchronization is made active by turning on a switch in Notebooks’ Dropbox settings. There are a few things you should know about this auto sync option:

1. •When you make a change in Notebooks (add a book or note, modify a note, change attributes etc), Notebooks will automatically sync the book where the change happened. It does that in the background and, whenever possible, without interrupting your work. Moreover, it does not sync immediately but waits ten seconds after your latest modification. If you continue to make modifications before the ten seconds have past, Notebooks will wait until you are done.
   

2. •When you open a book, Notebooks checks if changes were made in that book on Dropbox. If it detects changes, a sync will start in the background.
   

3. •Notebooks only syncs the current book, but not its sub books. The top level book is never synced automatically.
   

4. •You can selectively exclude books from automatic sync by setting a switch in its info.
   

5. •While Notebooks is syncing, you can create new notes, but you cannot modify existing notes. This is to make sure that you are not changing a note that might simultaneously be imported from Dropbox.
   

6. •Manual sync still works as usual.
   

More details are available in our handbook.