The Public folder is awesome if you want to make a file publically available via Twitter or Facebook, but it's not so awesome if you want to share a somewhat private file or if you want to share a huge number of files with specific people. Fortunately, Dropbox also lets you share any sub-folder in your Dropbox folder with individuals of your choosing.

Unlike the Public folder, which is made available by default, there are not any default folders set aside for sharing with specific individuals. In order to do this you need to create a brand new sub-folder. As with most things in Dropbox, you can do this either by creating the sub-folder in the local copy of your Dropbox folder or you can create it using the Dropbox web interface. The new folder will then sync with the service. You'll need to right-click on the folder and then navigate to the Dropbox options menu, under which you'll find the Share This Folder option. This will open up the Dropbox web interface.

At this point you will need to enter the email address of everyone you'd like to share the folder with. You can also add a message that will be sent in the body of the email. Once you're done click the Share Folder button. The people you've shared the folder with will have to sign up for a Dropbox account to view it.

You can also share folders in the web interface by clicking the Share a Folder button on the toolbar. You can create a new folder, or share an existing one. After you click the Next button you'll be taken to the same prompt explained in the paragraph above.

The person who receives the shared folder will have to accept the folder once they've signed up for and/or logged into their Dropbox account. All file actions are available to everyone who has access to a shared folder. In other words, anyone you've shared the folder with can delete everything in the folder. This will be recorded in the Events tab of the web interface and can be rolled back, an action that will be discussed in the next chapter.

While you can't restrict what other people can do to the files you share, you can kick people out of the shared folder at any time. You can accomplish this by going to the Sharing tab in the web interface, clicking on the Options link, and then clicking on the Members tab. A list of everyone with access to the folder will appear. Simply use the drop-down menu next to an individual's name to give them the boot. You can also unshare the folder by clicking the link at the bottom of that webpage.