Dropbox [link] is a highly recommended service that lets you share large files amongst different groups and machines. A typical use would be to sync your files between two or more computers, but I find Dropbox incredibly useful for my client work.

Like many of you, I work with virtual teams that come together on a project-by-project basis. With Dropbox it’s easy to set up a shared folder for each project and control who has access to it. As soon as one person throws up a file, everyone in the group has it there locally on their computer. Brilliant.

On the downside, Dropbox sorely needs a better public dropbox. At the moment, you can share a file with the world, but if you want to allow someone to put a file in your public drop box, they have to sign up for the service and install the app. Even though the service is free, this is a bit much to ask for these one-off uploads. Based on the forum traffic on this topic, I’m not alone in thinking this is a glaring omission in Dropbox’s feature set.

Dropbox is free for a 2GB shared account with paid options for more storage and workgroup options. For the typical web developer, the free option is just fine.

Dropbox can be found at GetDropbox.com. Sign up with this link and you’ll get an extra 250MB of space for free!

I came across this very nice gallery of Flash preloader screens. I am continually humbled in the presence of true creativity. This is well worth checking out.

Showcase Of Creative Flash Preloaders

If you have any dynamic sites that can display the same information through a variety of URLs (e.g. “somepage.php?category=cats&story=123″ vs. “somepage.php?story=123&category=cats”), Google has provided a way for you to avoid the duplicate content issue by providing a “preferred link.”

Basically, you add a special link tag to the head of your page:

When Google finds duplicate content, it will transfer the page ranks and index data to your preferred link.

Clap your hands and say yeah. You’re done.

Head on over to the Google Webmasters Central Blog for details on this tip.

Recommended reading:

This article provides a solid overview of the relatively new vector for attack that hijacks your open redirect URLs.

Official Google Webmaster Central Blog: Open redirect URLs: Is your site being abused?

No one wants malware or spammy URLs inserted onto their domain, which is why we all try to follow good security practices. But what if there were a way for spammers to take advantage of your site, without ever setting a virtual foot in your server?

There is, by abusing open redirect URLs.