EVERY now and again I feel it is important for me to remind you to please make back-ups of all your data.
Just think about it. What would you do if you lose your whole computer right now? You have no time to quickly get some of the vital data that you have on your computer and it is just gone.
Do you have documents, photos or videos that would be lost forever?
What about photos of your young child that you only have in electronic format? It is possible that due to theft or maybe even a technical problem all your data can be lost in the blink of an eye! Is it not better to just ensure that you have back-ups of your vital data?
Let me share some guidelines. Do not use USB drives as a back-up medium. You handle them too often. Use your USB drive as a transport device. Never use it as your primary back-up or even as primary disc.
When you want to back-up your vital data, do the following.
Firstly make regular back-ups on external hard drives and DVDs. Make two copies. Keep one with you in your house for an emergency quick way to retrieve your data. Make another copy and keep it with a friend or family, preferably at another venue or house.
This is especially important for companies when it comes to customer data.
Lastly, backing up to the cloud has become cheaper and easier.
This back-up is easily accessible online and is not location based. In case of a natural disaster your data will be safe and accessible. Most of the online companies have multiple copies of your data in various locations.
If you have three copies of your vital data you should be safe. Do not postpone making your back-ups today!
Nico Baird is a new media expert and can be contacted at nico@clicksa.co.za or visit www.nicobaird.com.