Smart Home Lifestyle

September 1 , 2007

backing up your computer keeps your data safe for the future

W ith computers come crashes - a problem, especially if your life is on your laptop. The stakes are higher these days, now that photos have no negatives, college papers lack a paper trail and the downloaded songs and movies are all you've got. So, how do you protect your past? Get a plan. A backup plan.

Save and resave

It's best to back up data to at least one other medium besides your hard drive. One option is by CD or DVD. Just about every new computer system comes with a CD burner these days. This is probably the simplest way to copy your files or folders to disc. And for simplicity's sake, copy your entire "my documents" directory to save on back and forth clicking.

Another option is a jump drive or flash drive. These portable devices offer "plug and play" storage in a package small enough to fit in your pocket. Some even hold up to 2 GB of data. Jump drives range in price from as low as $25 to $100 and up. Jump drives easily plug into your computer's USB port and have a connector cover to keep data safe while transporting.

Perfectly portable

Want to synch up your office computer to your home computer? Western Digital's Passport portable hard drive packs up your office files and takes them where you want to go.
The Passport, which weighs less than five ounces easily fits in a backpack or a purse, and holds up to 250GB, including photos, videos, files and music. Which could include up to 71, 000 digital photos, 62,000 MP3 songs, 100 hours of DVD quality or up to 30 hours of high-definition video.

Passport is easy to use, since there is no installation CD; just plug it in and it's ready to use. Plus, Passport doesn't need a cord; it's juiced up directly through the USB cable. Passport costs just less than $180.

Off-site serenity

Want some iron-clad security for your data? IBackup stores and protects your downloaded files with smoke detection, motion sensors, 24-7 secured access and video camera surveillance.
"IDrive for IBackup has always redefined the way users conceptualize an online network drive," said D S Jain, a technical manager at IBackup. "We took a network drive and extended the concept to a fully functional online network drive to cater to the needs of the mass Windows market where they are looking for a flexible fully integrated data transfer solution to their online drive."

IBackup offers superior booster file transfer technology to transfer files from your PC to their online storage drive, which means less wait time on your part. Plus, IBackup is leading the pack, being able to support both the 32-bit and the 64-bit Windows operating system.
IBackup starts around $10 per month for 5GB storage up to around $300 per month for 300GB.

I've got your number

A lost cell phone doesn't have to mean lost contact information, thanks to DataPilot. It is a software solution that backs up your cell phone address book and your schedule.

DataPilot is the link between your cell phone, your personal information manager and your PDA's address book that you can carry anywhere. You no longer have to punch in numbers in your cell phone; key them in on your computer and DataPilot synchs it all up.

Plus, DataPilot keeps you connected. Dial up to the Internet using your cell phone as a wireless modem. DataPilot also transfers ringtones and pictures to your cell phone and vice versa. You can even turn an MP3 file into a ringtone.
DataPilot kits start around $35 and offer cabled or wireless options.

Author: Diana Kostigen, Marketing/Public Relations Director, Comtec