Backup your Data...Part II

Well, you can read yesterday's post and find out that you can use your IPod as a backup drive in addition to an MP3 player.

If you have tons of files and preferences saved all over the place, it's easy to forget one if you are simply "dragging and dropping" them by hand. A better way is to automate the task using a professional backup program.

With the backup program, you specify the location of the individual files and folders, save, then the program "remembers" these files and backs them up every time. What's cool is that most programs will back up only changes to save time. This means if you have a bunch of stuff to backup and you only made a few changes the next time around, then the program will only detect the modified files (text, pictures, game saves, internet explorer favorites, etc.) and save them.

Not all backup programs are created equal. Some store bought backup programs save files in a proprietary format and if that file gets corrupted you're screwed. I know firsthand as this happened to me with a program called Retrospect Backup...stay the hell away from this program!

The backup program I recommend is Smart Sync Pro. It costs $35 and is worth every penny. Why? First and foremost it saves in native Windows format...not some proprietary format. What does that mean? It means that a word file is saved as a word file on your backup drive...a picture (JPEG, BMP, etc.) is saved exactly as a picture. The advantage is that there is one less step to screw up and that if you ever decide to move your data from one computer to another, then you can simply drag and drop your data and use it right away without having to convert it back to their original format. Also, Smart Sync Pro is loaded with features for very advanced backups (like over a network). Most people don't need the advanced features but they come right out of the box in case you do. Most importantly, it is easy to use and the author routinely returns email questions in less than 24 hours! Now THAT is tech support!

I've used Smart Sync Pro to backup my data to my IPod and when I bought a laptop, I simply dragged and dropped my stuff into the laptop and was up and running with a clone of my data in minutes! Time is money...if you aren't backing up then you're sitting on a time bomb waiting to happen...backup and save not only your money, but also your precious data and sanity too!

You can get Smart Sync Pro at:
http://www.smsync.com/

Money's tight...save your dough...say YES I SAVED !!!