When we talked about sharing files with Box.net and Amazon S3, we briefly covered how users of those services can share files. But what if you do not use Box or S3, and would still like to share files with someone who does?

Ideally, you don't want to have to sign up for either of the services, and would like the process to be as simple and minimalistic as possible.

First, there are two ways someone can share files with you using Box:

1. As a viewer (download only)
2. As a collaborator (upload and download)

Viewers do not require a separate Box.net account, but collaborators do.

Viewing

If you're invited to view files from another Box user, you'll be directed to a URL, which will look something like this:

https://www.box.net/shared/shdcp53i18

Visiting that URL will present you with the files to download:

Again, being a viewer does not require you to have a separate Box.net account.

Collaborating

Being a collaborator allows you to contribute uploads to the shared Box.net directory, as well as download anything in there. This is ideal for instant file-sharing with anyone, anywhere.

When a Box user decides to invite collaborators, they are able to provide a direct URL, called an Invite Link:

You'll notice the URL has /signup/ in it, which will direct collaborators to log in prior to accessing the folder. This can be a deterrence for non-Box users who would just like to share some files quickly, without being forced to sign up for a new account.

Provide the account

The quickest way around this for Box users is to simply provide the account for others to use. In other words, create a new basic account which users can log in as. For example, I use something like this:

username: upload@mysite.com password: upload2me

This would just be a basic, free Box.net account, which is used to validate the user and allow them to upload files.

When you invite collaborators, you can tell them this information.

Alternatives

You could also use services like DropSend or SendSpace to share large files, but provided one person already uses Box.net, this approach is effective.