Thanks for the update Hankers. DB is an awesome tool and I really did not want to get rid of it. Thanks to guys like doc for keeping them honest. Maybe doc can add that link to the OP.

Working to appear responsive to a PR problem is not at all the same thing as fixing the underlying problem with nearly every TOS I've ever read, which is the clause that, best I can tell, translates to "and we can change all this stuff any time we want to change it."

Amazon taught me about that back in the late '90s, and I'm still waiting for an online business that targets folks who basically want to be 'on top' in these pseudo-contractual situations. The apocryphal customer might always be right, but the typical Internet customer is as much a commodity as whatever goods or services he or she might be seeking. It's uncivilized.

That's an "agreement to agree", which is not a legally enforceable agreement.  Wouldn't stand up in court.  Even if they do claim the right to change the agreement at any time without notice, you'll find they still go out of their way to give you notice and make you agree to the new terms.  They know that particular clause isn't worth the bytes it's written on.

It's really emblematic of the "everything, including the kitchen sink" approach to TOS/EULA these days.  They just throw every conceivable clause in there.  Service providers and software publishers know that they hold all the cards and can basically write any contract they want.  Consumers basically have no recourse against these overly-broad "agreements", and blatant consumer apathy means there's no chance market factors will bring this into line.  Consumers just aren't reading these agreements anymore because they know that it's one-sided dictation.

The scary thing is the growing disconnect from the "practical" reality and the "legal" reality.  I'm sure everyone on this forum has broken a TOS or EULA in the past.  These agreements are openly flouted, both on purpose and by accident, because people no longer take them or their implications seriously.  On the other hand, they are still legally binding documents (even if riddled with terms of dubious enforceability) and can have significant reprocussions in court.  I think it's very important for society to work towards reconciling this disconnect, but with service providers cozy with near-absolute power and consumers largely apathetic, there's no political will to make any changes. 

As stated in the op,

I don't think it's necessary. I posted the screeny of the current TOS (which may or may not have been sbanged from the other). It's bad enough.

I agree. Sometimes I can't see the forest through the trees. That link was already in the OP. Doh   

hehehe.

and here I was thinking I'd have to do research on shovel rentals.

doc is happy yrag escaped with his life.

Well, I hope I'm wrong about Google (though experience would dictate otherwise): http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/14/street-view-cars-mistakenly-nabs-personal-data-over-wifi-says-g/

Hopefully, Google+ is improving the privacy bugs which haunt facebook:  http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2387995,00.asp

This is a link to the current story by Christopher White (the original initiated this article):

http://www.neowin.net/news/dropbox-legally-owns-all-of-your-files

Here is a reply from the article Doc just linked.

oh,and by the way, before sombody starts screaming SugarSync; from their terms and conditions :

" Accordingly, you hereby grant to SugarSync a license: (i) to use, copy, transmit, distribute, store and cache Files that you choose to sync and/or store; and (ii) to copy, transmit, publish, and distribute to others the Files as you designate, whether through the sharing or public linking features of the Service, in each case solely to provide the Service to you."

Crud 

None of these cloud file storage facilities are trustworthy.... piss 'em all off, I say... piss 'em all off.

With the price of external drives these days [2TB for under $118] why would you bother with online storage that's dubious at best?

I think because all HDDs fail. Just a question of whem.

In short, no way to win.

True... theirs too.  They might be in the 'so-called' cloud, but they still use physical media like we do to store stuff.

For mine, you win by keeping your own files on your own data base.  I have backups on HDD that are backed up on DVD/CD as well... I'm never depending on somebody else who may or may not have an agenda of their own for my data... never waiting on servers to come back online to access my photos, etc.

I recently lost a 1tb HD and only the finished work was backed up. Talk about pissed off.

As a game modder we often use teams of talent to complete large projects and since MS stop Live Sync (comp to comp sharing) and went to the very unreliable Live Mesh (I call it Live Mess) I am sure lots of modders are using DB. Live Mess is also a cloud type service and probably has these copyright rules as well but as it was a POS service I stopped using it.

Here's a thread where I wrote about this before. https://forums.sinsofasolarempire.com/405880

So did MS drop Live Sync just to jump on the "stealing IP" bandwagon?

EDIT: As modders we typically use free file sharing services like FileFront. I am going to start to look at the TOS for the ones that I use. Any recommendations?

Do nightly (daily for you night owls) backups unattended using 2 alternating USB drives & carry the one not being used with you.  They're cheap enough & small enough now.  Never lose more than one day's stuff.

Apple's iDrive might be safe.  Carbonite & Mozy are probable good (& probably safe) online backup options, but even then, concentrating that much personal information in one repository will eventually become too tempting to some Fed somewhere.

Okay so what is the bottom line here if you have the need to send large files or any files to another computer or person?  Are any of these programs safe enough to use and not have your information or graphics all over the internet? 

https://www.yousendit.com/

It's alot easier sending/sharing images with friends/family by these shareing services. Chucking the files on an external HDD is also easy, but it's damn stoopeed snail-mailing it half-way around the world.

For some, perhaps, but I never have anything I want to send that doesn't fit in an email.  Besides, everyone I might need to send photos/documents to [with the exception of my mother, who's now in the UK] is in face to face contact distance anyhow.

Stupid or 2 reasons!  I: anything that goes airmail is X-rayed... thus damage to the HDD is probable.  2: Customs both ends can and do examine the contents, and I dunno that I'd want total strangers [who may or may not be unscrupulous] scrutinising my personal shit and family memories, etc.

For me, it's a case of trust nobody and never put anything I value, treasure or wish only to share with family and friends online.

As usual... both are right.

Any way you go there's a catch. Great world we've made.

If you want total privacy drop of data you go the flash drive route, and transfer it in person. If you have to cross borders, you're screwed and that's because you're xrayed.

If you wish to go the cloud route, security will be compromised sooner or later.

So encrypt your files with BoxCryptor (boxcryptor.com) and share online. It's not free, but you get what you pay for.

IIRC you can also password archives like .ZIP or .7Z files. Not sure how effective it would be though.

How about this. Multiple layer encryption. You encrypt your files and or whatever one way then encrypt that, zip it up and encrypt that. Sounds funky right. Only problem is you'd better not forget how you did it cause if you do...oh well, done. Don't mean to make light of it but when you see all the nonsense out there you just got to stop and wonder.

Which is why I wrote this... and this: https://forums.wincustomize.com/410117 too.

I looked at the Dropbox "change" and I still have issues with the TOS. The change only says that they would only use/sell your stuff as relates to their business which could mean anything.

Not sure if you're defending or accusing Sugarsync but, I've read the Sugarsync TOS and even the section you quoted requires them to distribute as YOU designate and there is no mention of their modifying, or creating derivative works of your files.

Try Truecrypt....it's free.

Thanks, Lantec...

Just as a note, encrypted 7Z files encrypt the file name and data while ZIP only encrypt the data. This is important because the better idea one has of the contents of a file the easier it is to decrypt.

As to the security, the encryption method it uses has been approved for Top Secret documents by the NSA for what it is worth.

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So far as online file storage/sharing goes, I use MediaFire.