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What is Dropbox paper?

By May 14, 2017Blog

Dropbox offers an online collaborative editing space called Paper. The longer you use Dropbox, the more likely you are to be prompted to try out Dropbox Paper. Available via paper.dropbox.com (or via the navigation links on the Dropbox website) Paper is “a flexible workspace where you can write text, task lists, or code, and also embed images, audio, and video from your favorite apps.”

While that description may sound a lot like a word processor, it behaves quite differently than Microsoft Word or Google Docs. When using Paper, there is no toolbar with icons or menu options at the top of the page. Rather, it looks like a blank page with a few places to enter a title, type text, or add other elements, including photos and documents from your Dropbox account. In that sense, it’s actually easy to start writing without the distraction of buttons or rulers or prompts.

Dropbox Paper exampleHowever, Dropbox Paper is not meant to be a Microsoft Word replacement. Yes, you can print out a copy of the document or save it as a .docx file, but it won’t look very fancy. In many cases the document is not even intended for sophisticated formatting; it’s meant to be an online collaborative effort that team members can access via dropbox.com or the Dropbox mobile app.