[MtnBikerChk]

My desktop is getting up there in years and it's starting to hum pretty loudly so I'm thinking it's time for another backup. I usually just collect my data and dump it onto a few dvds.

I was thinking about getting a USB external hard drive with some backup software - what do you think about something like this:

http://www.buy.com/prod/western-digital-my-book-office-edition-500gb-usb-2-0-external-hard/q/loc/101/205761518.html

I've got 2 hard drives totalling about 400gb (not full). Most of my important stuff is pictures and music (duh).

 

[ATOMICFIREBALL]

Something like this is cool. External SAFE with line running into it.
http://www.engadget.com/2005/08/02/cmc-solutions-ieyas-fireproof-hard-drive-safe/

 

[binary visions]

Okay, well, assuming you DON'T want to pay a small fortune for your data storage, and don't want to buy a thousand dollar ticket to Japan to buy one and bring it back to the US, and don't want to have to devote the entire floor of a closet to your hard drives...

That WD drive is a good solution.

However, what you also need to do is get your data off site. I burn DVDs about once every two months and ship a set to my dad. The WD drive is great for incremental, day-to-day backups, but a fire/flood/tornado/earthquake/theft or even something as simple as a power surge when you have it plugged in can ruin the data.

Even a virus, if it goes unnoticed and gets copied to the drive... it could affect your whole backup.

 

[-Devil-]

i use an external drive ... to 'make' my backup dvd's ... will fill a directory till it is at the cap for a disc ... then burn it to dvd ... and delete it off the drive ...

99% of the time it isnt even plugged into my computer ... for the virus reason ... and i don't copy stuff to it till i have done a scan of my comp and hook it up.

 

[MtnBikerChk]

Okay, well, assuming you DON'T want to pay a small fortune for your data storage, and don't want to buy a thousand dollar ticket to Japan to buy one and bring it back to the US, and don't want to have to devote the entire floor of a closet to your hard drives...

That WD drive is a good solution.

However, what you also need to do is get your data off site. I burn DVDs about once every two months and ship a set to my dad. The WD drive is great for incremental, day-to-day backups, but a fire/flood/tornado/earthquake/theft or even something as simple as a power surge when you have it plugged in can ruin the data.

Even a virus, if it goes unnoticed and gets copied to the drive... it could affect your whole backup.

LOL OK OK, thanks DAD! HEH HEH. I will send them OFFSITE too

 

[binary visions]

Look, I just don't want to deal with your threads about data recovery when your husband wipes out all your backups with the virus that came attached to his midget porn.

 

[pain]

I made one.. I bought a 160 gig laptop hard drive and a 2.5 inch case for it. It cost 80 bucks for both and there pretty nice and cheap.