Monday, February 7, 2011

Back That Thing Up!

Courtesy of Melanie Gregory from StraightUpLearning.com

Work combined with effort and creativity are the things magic is made of. Unlike magic we don't want these things to disappear, that's why backing up your data should be one of the most essential things you ever do when it comes to running your business. I know first hand how beneficial backing up can be. For years I was somewhat negligent in the exercising of preserving my data. Recently I took the plunge and backed up my website and good thing I did. A week later I couldn't access my website files and my all essential backup was my savior J

Backing up your data can be as easy as using a flash drive or an external hard drive. In my case I had purchased a 500 gigabyte Western Digital hard drive a few months ago and finally decided to copy of all my files to this drive. It was easy as 123, just plugged in the USB cable, selected my files and selected copy and paste. As a confirming precaution I checked the files correctly copied, even opened a few to verify and I was done! My way of backing up is probably considered the easiest, but sometimes not considered the best. Huh, you say, well let's talk about computers, hard drives, flash drives, etc. All of these peripherals run the risk of becoming corrupted and damaged, if so, I'm sure you've guessed it, your data will disappear like a Magic trick, except it won't be as entertaining.

By now you may have heard of the term "Cloud computing", this term refers to virtually operating your business on the internet. It also refers to backing up your files online. There are two benefits from doing this:

  1. Your files are safely secured on a virtual server, meaning you'll never have to worry about losing them. In the event the company goes belly up you will be notified prior to and have the ability to move your files elsewhere.
  2. You can access your files from anywhere as long as you have an internet connection, even from a smartphone (iPhone, Blackberry, Android, etc.). This option also allows you to easily collaborate with employees or deliver a knockout sales presentation right on the spot!

In my research of virtual back up systems I've come across a few services that may be of interest to you.

  • Dropbox – This service creates a folder on your computer that allows you to copy all of your data to this folder. Once the data is copied to this folder it is automatically sent to the online service. You can access these files by visiting www.dropbox.com, accessing your account and presto it's all there! Dropbox offers two gigabytes of storage free space. If you need more space you can purchase 50 gigabytes for $10 a month or 100 gigabytes for $20 a month.
  • SugarSync – Similar to Dropbox this service lets you add data/documents to a folder and synch up to SugarSync. One great feature that differentiates this service from the others is "Magic Briefcase". The briefcase feature enables synching data across devices. Access SugarSync through www.sugarsync.com; the average costs is $5 a month for 30 gigabytes of storage and up to $40 a month for 500 gigabytes of storage.
  • ZumoDrive – This service is ideal for accessing music and photos via mobile devices (i.e., iPhone, Blackberry, etc.) as well as post these files to blogs or social networking sites such as Twitter. Similar to the other services you can copy your data to a Zumo folder and synch up to the website. Access ZumoDrive through www.zumodrive.com. ZumoDrive offers 2 gigabytes of storage for free as well as additional storage plans ranging from $2.99 - $79.99 whereas you can obtain 10 to 500 gigabytes of storage.

In conclusion regardless of what method you choose, you should at the very least choose. While we love our laptops, PCs or Macs we must remember they are just machines, it's what you put into it that counts. With that in mind always secure your work, preserve your ideas and back that thang up!!!


Note: Article is solely for informational purposes only. QC Hustle or StraightUpLearning.com does not in any way represent, advertise or recommend these services.