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||||||| Backup Early & Often... Ira Serkes Backup early and often... they way they vote in Chicago!
BASIC ISSUE - Your computer it worthless. It is a commodity which can be easily replaced by a
better, faster machine for less money than you paid for it in the first place.
YOUR DATA IS THE ONLY THING OF VALUE....!!!!
What's the worth of a customer? What if you lose them. Back up your critical data - such as
databases - at least once or twice a WEEK, and more often if you're doing lots of stuff.
KEEP THE BACKUP in another location - NOT next to your computer. We just bought a Zip
Drive by Omega. For about $350, we got the drive, 11 disks, and a carrying case. Disks are about
$12-15 each for 100 Meg. It's great!
INCREMENTAL BACKUP
Ira's Rules of Backup:
1 - Your computer will crash...you don't know when. My hard disk failed 6 days after I bought it while
in the midst of my first backup!
2 - Backup early and often!
3 - Make at least 3 different backup sets.
4 - Store the most recent backup OFF SITE...As soon as I backup, I put it into my car, then take it to the
office, and take the office backup back home. I've even sent one set of backup disks to a friend 1,000 miles
away!
5 - Consider a combination of full and incremental backups. I do a full backup of my database, because if
I make one change in a record, it's as if the entire file was modified. I do incremental backups of my working
documents - letters, flyers, etc. Incremental backups only back up the things which have changed since the
last backup.
6 - Organize your desktop in a logical way (Macspeak spoken here, Windows people need to edit it) System
Folder/System Files - Backup infrequently (every few weeks or even months), Application Folder/Applications
Backup infrequently (every few weeks or even months), Working Documents/Letters - Backup incrementally every
few hours, Database - because of the nature of my database; 15,082 contacts, 30.8 Megabytes, I do full backup
every 1-2 days!
Hope that helps...The people who backed up their files and put them next to their computer
lost it all during the Berkeley Hills Fire several years ago...including a draft
of a book! Your hardware & software is replaceable, your data is your business.
ALSO - if you use a personal computer at home, MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE PROPER INSURANCE. Your
homeowner's policy PROBABLY DOES NOT COVER IT!!! We bought a special insurance rider. Take photos of your
equipment too! Can you tell that our house was once robbed while we were sleeping in it????
No, they didn't get the computers, but they did steal our peace of mind!
Regards...Ira
Ira & Carol Serkes - Berkeley, California, USA |