Regular readers of my columns know that there are a couple of things (well, perhaps more than a couple) that get me going. Virus prevention heads the list, but right behind that is ensuring that people take good backups of their data. Since I haven't done a column on backup storage recently and since there have been a lot of changes in that area, I thought a column was due. Here is.
To start off, tape is dead and gone. Tapes are slow and prone to error. This is especially true of the QIC (Quarter Inch Cartridge) tapes that are the cheapest. The set of QIC tapes includes the move recent TRAVAN tapes, which are just QIC warmed over. Tapes are slow, and the cartridges are expensive. There are better digital tapes available, but they are much more expensive.
Unless you have an overpowering need to backup your entire hard drive (which you really don't have to), any other medium is better than tape. These days, it's better just to back up your specific data (.doc files, etc.). In the rare case that you have to restore the entire hard drive, you are better off reinstalling a fresh copy of Windows and then your applications. The result is a much cleaner system. There are people who think Windows should be reinstalled periodically anyhow.
By far, the best backup medium today is CD-R. The CD blanks are cheap, cheap, cheap - about $.15 to $.30 per CD. For that, you get an excellent amount of storage (650-700MB), and since it is non-magnetic it is the most reliable. A final point is that every PC sold today has at least a CD reader - so if your PC is dead or destroyed, you can read your backup data on almost any friend or neighbor's PC. Try doing that with a QIC tape. CD writers cost about $100.
Zip disks are still around, but I don't recommend them. They are not reliable (if you remember the Click of Death problem) and they don't hold that much - 100-250MB. The cartridges are very expensive, compared to blank CDs.
The downside of CDs is that they are a bit slow to write (compared to a Zip drive or diskette), and you can only write them once. (I don't recommend using CD-RW because they have a shorter life). But there is a new wrinkle that provides high-speed read/write storage in a very compact and portable package - digital camera memory.
Digital cameras use SM (Smart Media) or CF (Compact Flash) cards, along with some other less well-known types. These little memory modules are only about the size of a big stamp and about 1/8 inch thin or less. The prices are plummeting - you can buy a 256MB CF card for well under a hundred dollars, and 512MB and 1GB sizes are available. In order to read these memory modules, you can get a small USB attached module reader. The significant thing is that when the memory module is connected in that way, it looks to your computer just like another hard drive or diskette. So, you can read and write data to them easily, just as you would copy a file on your hard drive.
All of the recent Windows versions have support for this kind of attachment built-in, so digital camera film becomes as easily transportable as CDs and a lot smaller. I would bet that all your files would easily fit in one 256MB CF card. They are also not magnetic, and thus very reliable.
Another form of backup or transportable storage is the USB attached external hard drive. These can be gotten in huge capacities (60GB or more) for about $200-$250. Using one of these, you can backup your entire hard drive, and (except for being bigger) they are just as portable as digital camera memory modules.
So, if your requirement is only backup, I recommend CD-R. If you also want portable storage to take your files from your home in Raleigh to your beach house here on Oak Island, CF cards are the way to go. If you need more storage, use an external USB attached hard drive.
(Bob Seidel is a local computer consultant in the Southport / Oak Island area. You can visit his website at www.bobseidel.com or e-mail him at bsc@bobseidel.com).