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With all the use of graphics by people, backup storage is getting very expensive and hard to manage.  Business people have records that need to be moved off site to secure server vaults and individuals and family members need to store records and pictures.

We hear about loss of data almost daily.  A number of techniques work reasonably well:

• Buy or invoke a backup program and set it to  back up automatically what's changed on your system, before you turn it loose on your entire system.  Also, take the time to test it on a small group of files.  This means bringing test files back from the backup device which should be  external USB connected.  Many people back up faithfully, but when the dreaded day comes when they have a catastrophic failure, they are unable to restore, because they never practiced it.  Keep in mind that your backup device can fail too and you need to have version control.

• Use an online backup so that your computer gets backed up on the web for what has changed.

Mozy is one of the online backup systems that you can use.  Take a look at it and use Google to find more Here is what they do for you in summary:

• They say they are simple to set up.
• They perform backups automatically in the background while you continue working.
• They handles versioning, storing yesterday's renditions as well as today's renditions of your files with each backup, allowing you to pull data from different backup dates.
• They encrypt all your files before transferring them to storage.
• They are reasonably  fast because they back up only the data that has changed.
• They  back up both open and locked files.
• They  are reasonably inexpensive being in the range of buying a good backup device each year.

How much does this cost?   This can be done for between $50 and $100 per year.  

Keep in mind that both Google and  Microsoft want to capture your business on the Cloud Computing platform and have and will be bringing out more and more products for your use.   We've written a lot about the Cloud.  You can invoke our internal search engine and put in Cloud Computing and it will bring up our articles along with some Google references.

One thing you do all the time, if you use Gmail or Hotmail is pass pictures and files around.  You can start modestly by just archiving them, but you have to be careful. 

Most people take what their cameras give them for a name, which is bad indeed.  Think down stream, when you have 5,000 pictures stored away on some server and they all are named things like DCE2043.  Yes, they can be date stamped in an email to yourself or on some server, but will you remember how to find them?

All you have to do is email them to yourself with a name or with a terse message in the body of the email that gives a hint of what you have saved.

Using Gmail and Hotmail's powerful total email search engine will find your pictures easily with the right message.  One caveat is that you can't send a file larger than 10 megabytes, but if you got it in the  mail from a friend or sent it to a friend, it is already there and backed up forever.  Whatever you do, don't use Outlook Express.   Switch to Hotmail or Gmail asap no matter what you do for backup.

If you don't like the Mozy type solution or the Hotmail or Gmail solution, then get a good local backup or wait for the Cloud to help you and pray for bandwidth.

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Friday, January 21, 2011