iCloud Drive as a Thumb-Drive?

[rhyzome]

Hi there--
The new iCloud Drive feature in iOS 9 looks promising, though I'm not sure I completely understand it and whether it will serve the use-pattern/workflow I intend/hope for it.

Could iCloud Drive basically make your iPhone into a thumb-drive?

What will be the differences between using an iPhone with iCloud Drive and an old-fashioned thumb-drive? Can iCloud Drive finally replace thumb-drives?

I want to be able to drag a file or series of files (e.g., a few Word docs) to iCloud Drive, sync the iPhone with my mac, and then go to another computer at my uni library--perhaps even a Windows computer--and access the file, edit it, and be able to have those changes be accessible when I get back on my mac.

Will that sort of thing be possible? If you save changes to the iCloud drive files on your phone through another computer, will they automatically update on your original computer when you sync your phone? Is that how it works?

 

[taldo]

I don't think it will be like a thumb drive at all.

About syncing files to your iPhone and use them at your uni-library computer,
just log in to your iCloud drive from a web browser and download the files to your computer.
When you finish edit what you want, upload the file again from the web browser and it will sync automatically.

I think that the iCloud drive app will be more to provide access to all files on iCloud drive all the time, and not only through supported apps like the access is now.

For example,
I use iCloud drive to all of my uni-files.
If I want to share a Pages file with a friend, I have to go to the Pages app and send it from there (of course - no folders structure support what so ever which makes locating a file ver hard!). now, when we have an iCloud drive app, I guess I could go there, locate the file and send it from there.
If you have other files that are saved in iCloud who doesn't have any specific app that supports them (pdf files for example), now you can find them through the iCloud drive app and share them.

 

[dimzen]

Pocket Drive works like a thumb drive, if you want to use your iOS device as a thumb drive
http://www.pocketdriveapp.com/

 

[shenfrey]

Wrong. iCloud is still automatically, having the APP just means we can load them up whenever we like from that app.

We still cannot manually add files, making dropbox and drive still required.

 

[Pagemakers]

I was really excited about an iCloud Drive app but looking at it and it would appear you can't delete the default folders. You can't rename files. You can't move files. You can't edit file names.

Basically it looks as useless going forward as it is now.

 

[shenfrey]

I was really excited about an iCloud Drive app but looking at it and it would appear you can't delete the default folders. You can't rename files. You can't move files. You can't edit file names.

Basically it looks as useless going forward as it is now.

It is still a beta though, so anything is possible.

 

[taldo]

Wrong. iCloud is still automatically, having the APP just means we can load them up whenever we like from that app.

We still cannot manually add files, making dropbox and drive still required.

Ok so I checked the "save attachment" option I saw while opening a pdf in mail, turns out it's only on the Mail app. I tried doing the same thing on messages but couldn't get it to work.

 

[Pagemakers]

It is still a beta though, so anything is possible.

Sadly I doubt it.