File Dropper - The Simplest File Hosting Website Ever… ( their words, not mine ) made a major boo boo recently.

While offering a free account ( normally a $10/month subscription service w/an upload cap ) for certain web-users [ Digg and Bloggers have all the fun ] File Dropper opened the doors, err… floodgates if you will, to the viral world of online file-sharers, leechers and anyone else who bothered to notice.

First, a word or two from File Dropper:

FileDropper.com was created as a fresh alternative to sites like MegaUpload and RapidShare. Unlike those sites, we do not reel the user in and make them wait for annoying countdown timers. We do not hide the download link with aggressively placed ads.

Our goal is simple, to offer the most basic file hosting service so you can share your stuff quickly.

How long are the files kept? The files are kept forever as long as they are being downloaded.

Is the upload size really 5 GB? Yes.

Why is FileDropper doing this? To make the process a lot simpler, and because we know how annoying it is to not be able to share files.

Second, what happened: ( sometime before or around April 28th 12:08:14 GMT - according to Google’s cache)

Due to extreme popularity we are experiencing unexpectedly high traffic. This special will not be available till tomorrow morning (9 AM PST). If you would like to sign up for accounts starting at 99 Cents please sign up here.. Sign Up Here

Needless to say, the link [ http://www.filedropper.com/special.php ] was shared over and over and over ( a couple searches bring up tons of sites advertising the special link… such as digg, Deals Plus, lifehacker, blorge, downloadsquad, netscape, wordpress, propeller, download.com, etc.) resulting in File Dropper pulling the plug.

Too many free users means hardly any real money coming in… but apparently, some people think that FD will be offering free accounts again, but who knows. I doubt it. I think it’s just people believing the “we’ll be back tomorrow” bit.

When you shoot yourself in the foot… it’s not going to just grow back. [[ unless you are the professor in the Spider-Man movies who's going to try to grow his arm back and turn into the Lizard Dude villian --- yes, I've said that since the first movie... but I'm a dork ]].

Anyway, just was something interesting that caught my attention. So what if I happened to snag a few free accounts before they closed up… haha.

And File Dropper, we can see your images ( whoo-whoo ) [ http://www.filedropper.com/images/ ]. Also, apparently FD also had speed problems before that people complained about… as well as a discrepancy betweem Gb ( gigabit ) and GB ( gigabyte )… which are two completely different things. Not to mention people saying there is no upload status bar * but now there is *.

I think I’ve lost my point… but basically, this will end up being just another place for people to share pirated software, music and other files. File Dropper obviously sees file uploads as a big money maker [ it is ] so more power to them, I guess.

Here’s some reviews:

“…it’s also the largest upload limit we’ve seen from a free file sharing service in a while.” -lifehacker.com

“FileDropper tags itself as “the simplest file hosting website ever”, and that’s excatly what it is.” -makeuseof.com

“I must admit, it’s pretty easy.” -geeksugar.com

Using my legs in a way not normally intended, I straddled the goat and quietly slit it’s throat about four to five inches. It was the only way to save her. The sound of exiting life, heat, love and guts made me vomit. Pale, glossy eyes questioned me; much in the same way a freshly landed fish resembles a stupid piece of meat.

Somewhere, softly a dog whimpered in it’s sleep; tossing and twitching slightly with agitated paws. It was then that I realized I should never eat tacos after midnight again.

I’ve always liked Jumpeye’s stuff… and now they’ve got a cool “text effect” component that should make things a lot easier to do simple, but visually appealing effects in Flash.

Check out a sample below… and then go here [ http://www.txeff.com ] to make one for yourself!

BTW, WordPress 2.5 (RC1)… read, test, enjoy!

—————-Listening to: Fleet Foxes - Tiger Mountain Peasant Song