I have been using Dropbox to share files between my desktop and laptop. Dropbox gives you two gigabytes of space for free and has inexpensive fees to get a larger capacity. I can access my saved documents in a folder on any computer on which I install the free software. I can also access them on my mobile phone and even view/download my documents in a web browser if I am not at a computer that I own. Dropbox also has a feature that allows you to share your documents with friends and family.

I also use Microsoft SkyDrive to share a Microsoft OneNote database between two computers. It allows me to view and edit my database online in a web browser.

Recently, I found Microsoft LiveMesh, which performs in a very similar way to Dropbox. I can set it up to synchronize to a folder or my Internet Explorer favorites. Microsoft is saying that there are big plans to integrate this service into Windows 8 and Windows phones. Microsoft is giving away five gigabytes of free storage space with these services.

Another useful tool is Google Documents, if you need to save some frequently used documents. This is not technically storage, but I can use one gigabyte of free space to create, edit and print my saved documents wherever I go.

Amazon has a service that I have yet to try but sounds very similar to the others. Amazon CloudDrive gives you five gigabytes of space for free to access your saved files from any computer. If you want additional space they are selling it in groups for $1 per gigabyte per year.

There are many more cloud-based services that I have not tried, but the ones that I use work very well. Most of them are free and very easy to use. These systems are becoming more and more critical in a world that relies so heavily on digital documents and the need to have up-to-date copies on multiple computers in multiple places. These services have almost eliminated the need to email files between your computers or use USB thumb drives.