Her Thoughts: Back up your work!

Saturday, August 29, 2009 by Samantha Clarke


If it could happen to Carrie of Sex and the City, it could happen to you!

I'm hoping every single person that uses a computer backs up their work. For those that don't, read on! A lot of times we assume that our computers and tiny flash drives will remain functional and that we'll never need an extra copy of something, but it just isn't true. I hope my story can help reinforce how important this is.

A backup is exactly what the word implies- a plan B in case plan A falls through. Students and professionals alike are constantly saving important documents a lot of the time without thinking of the need for a second copy. I am guilty of this and had to pay the price recently.

This past spring, I spent several hours searching for a document. Not just any document; it was my senior thesis paper. If you're unsure, this is one of the most important projects a university student will have to complete. I spent a full school year researching and writing my paper. I spent several hours in my prof's office trying to get it right for graduation that spring. I used a flash drive and carried it everywhere with me after my laptop died. With graduation around the corner, all I could think about was partying and skipping across that stage.

Once I completed that paper and received my grade, I think I folded it and threw it in the air. Little did I know I would need this piece of work again. My applications to graduate school required a writing sample, preferably a senior thesis paper. I spent several weeks trying to locate the paper, while deadlines quickly approached. I completely forgot that I didn't use my laptop back then, but still had the hard-drive removed from it to try and recover the data. To my dismay, my project wasn't there. Nor could I locate the crumpled hard copy. I even considered rewriting it (impossible!). What was even more scary was that I couldn't find ANY papers or projects I completed. *shakes head* What was I thinking!?

I was lucky. I located my flash drive just in time and finally learned my lesson. The stress I went through was totally unnecessary! I should have backed it up somewhere. And to be even more safe, I should have backed up my backups!

The options are endless. Investing in an external hard drive is a good idea, however it shouldn't be your only storage place. These can fail. Flash drives fail too. It doesn't cost anything to have an online storage account or email important documents to yourself for storage. Dr3 introduced me to Adrive.com which gives you 50 free GB of space. I absolutely refuse to let it happen again, especially with grad school around the corner.

Have you ever lost some important documents? Do you back up your work on a regular basis? Let me hear your story right here. Smileys




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