What is Growl? How does Dropbox use it?
How to sign up for Dropbox
To sign up for a Dropbox account:
- Create an account on dropbox.com.
- Type your name and email address (your email address is the username for your Dropbox account).
- Type a unique password.
- Click the box to agree to the Dropbox terms.
- Click Create an account.
If you already installed the Dropbox mobile or computer apps, you can also create an account by launching the app and clicking Sign up.
How to install Dropbox apps
You can access your Dropbox files from dropbox.com or the Dropbox apps. Install the Dropbox apps on your computer, phone, or tablet to access your files from all your devices.
To install the Dropbox app on your computer:
- Download the Dropbox desktop app on your computer.
- Run the installer.
- Sign in or create a Dropbox account. You only need one account no matter how many devices you want to keep in sync.
To install the Dropbox app on your phone or tablet:
- On your phone or tablet, download the Dropbox mobile app through the App Store or Google Play Store.
- Open the app.
- Sign in or create a Dropbox account. You only need one account no matter how many devices you want to keep in sync.
How to add files to your Dropbox account
Once you create an account, you can add files to your Dropbox account. Any files you add to your Dropbox account sync across all your computers, phones, and tablets where you installed Dropbox.
To add files from dropbox.com:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click Upload.
- Click Files or Folder.
- If you chose Files, select as many files as you like and click Open.
- If you chose Folder, select a folder and click Upload.
To add files from your computer:
- Open Finder (Mac) or File Explorer (Windows).
- Navigate to the Dropbox folder.
- Copy and paste or drag and drop files into the Dropbox folder.
When you add files to your Dropbox folder, they'll upload to Dropbox. Once your files have green checkmark icons over the file icons, they have successfully uploaded to Dropbox.
To add files from your phone or tablet:
- Open the Dropbox app on your phone or tablet.
- Tap the + (plus) icon.
- Tap Create or upload file.
- Tap Upload File.
From Growl's website: "Growl is a notification system for macOS: It allows applications that support Growl to send you notifications." In other words, Growl lets Dropbox notify you of any Dropbox activity right on your desktop. If Dropbox detects Growl is installed on your Mac, it will use it to display all Dropbox notifications.
Growl notifications appear at the top right corner of the screen. A Growl notification will appear whenever new changes are made to the contents of your Dropbox, such as a newly added file or a change to a shared folder.
If you don't have Growl installed when you install Dropbox on your Mac, don't worry. You'll still get notifications using Dropbox's built-in notification system. Windows and Linux versions of Dropbox also have similar notification systems built into the operating system.
