Backup is a dirty word—until your hard disk drive dies, you delete a file in error, or you receive an e-mail message that infects your computer with a virus. Everyone knows they should make backups on their computer, but only beginners (and those who have suffered severe losses) faithfully do so. They know that at the push of a button you can wipe out more work than ever before. It is important not only to know about various types of backups (and the ways those backups can be made), but also to actually do different types of backups on your computer.

How often you back up your important files depends upon your memory and how much you can afford to lose. If you can remember only what you did for the past hour, then back up hourly. If you can remember only what you did ten minutes ago, then back up every ten minutes. With computers it is not if you ever erase, corrupt, or lose a file—but when.

One type of backup is called an auto backup. For example, word-processing programs have auto backup features. If you are writing in a word processor, set your software to automatically back up your work every ten minutes. Auto backups, however, are only stopgap measures, offering a low level of protection. These auto backup copies occasionally get scrambled along with your original work. Once you have invested a large number of hours in a work, be sure to back it up elsewhere.

In other words, backing up a file that is stored in one folder on your computer’s hard drive to another folder on that same hard drive is the equivalent of Russian Roulette. Do not store your backups on the same device as you store your original material. Hard disk drives do fail.

For files that represent years of work (the ones that would take weeks or months to reconstruct—if they can be reconstructed at all), use a rotating backup system. Back up today on disk X, tomorrow on disk Y, and the third day on disk Z. On the fourth day, you begin to back up on top of your previous copy on disk X, thus rotating through your backup disks. So, if your file becomes corrupted on the third day of work, you hopefully still have a good backup copy that is only a day or two old.

Rotating backups are typically made to drives that have removable disks or cartridges. Use your original program’s “Save As” option to save an additional copy of your current file on a different drive, or use Windows Explorer (after you exit your program) to copy the whole data folder to a removable disk or cartridge.

No matter what type of media you use for this backup (disks, cartridges, or something else), be sure to replace them at least once a year. Floppy disk drives get out of alignment. Disks wear out. Zip and Jaz drives sometimes develop the “click of death,” which destroys your cartridges and everything stored on them. Tape and hard disk drives store information magnetically, and magnetic alignment deteriorates with age. Data stored on magnetic media disappear with time.

Any information or files that you value (such as genealogy databases, word-processor files, scanned images, e-mail messages, URL bookmark lists, etc.) should be backed up on more than one type of removable storage media. Yes, make multiple copies on more than one type of media or drive and store them in more than one location—preferably in more than one state. If your work represents years of research, you want it to live on.

Removable storage media include disks, cartridges, tapes, or CDs that are removed from a drive and stored elsewhere. If your files are small (less than 1.44 megabytes), you can back them up onto floppy disks. A new standard has not yet evolved to replace the floppy disk, which stores a limited quantity of information magnetically.

There are many competing devices and standards for backups today: Zip drives, LS-120 floptical drives (alias SuperDisks), Jaz drives, Sharq drives, CD-R (recordable once) and CD-RW (rewritable) drives, SmartMemory and Flash memory, Memory Sticks, and tape drives in various formats. They vary in cost, speed, and method of attachment to your computer.

It seems inevitable that when you wish to share files with another genealogist, or move information between various computers, you encounter an incompatible storage device. The files we value seem to be growing larger and larger. Do not buy a computer that has only a floppy disk drive and a DVD drive. You will end up having to buy and install an additional drive to make backups and/or move your large files.

Internet Backup
Perhaps this is why backing up onto the Internet is becoming more popular. The speed of Internet connections has increased. Web sites that offer free file storage (up to 100 megabytes) are proliferating. Of course, they want to sell you something or expose you to their advertising. But it may be worth your while to back up your most important files off-site on the Internet.

Pros:

1. It is free (if you don’t count the advertising).

2. Your files are accessible from any computer with an Internet connection, so long as you remember your username and password.

3. You can easily share those files with others—so long as you designate your files as ones you want to share. Some Web sites make this process easier than others.

4. You do not have to buy and install a removable media drive.

5. You never run out of disks, cartridges, tapes, or CDs to make your backups on. If you fill up one free backup site, you can register and use another Web site.

Cons:

1. Unless you have a cable modem or DSL phone connection (in other words, a very fast connection to the Internet), uploading your files to a free Web site takes time. Free is a nice four-letter word, but time is not.

2. You cannot back up your entire hard drive and system for free. It is true that many of these free file storage sites would like to rent you enough space to back up your entire computer, but this is usually cost prohibitive for individual users in terms of money and the time it would take to make the backup.

3. You have no absolute assurance that the Web site you chose will be available on the Internet tomorrow. Your stored file(s) may, in effect, evaporate.

Recordable CDs
One of the best choices for backups today are recordable CD drives.

Pros:

1. CD-R and CD-RW drives are relatively inexpensive.

2. They may be included on any new computer you buy.

3. CDs are a relatively stable medium for backups. Under ideal storage conditions, they can last ten years or more.

Cons:

1. They are not fast.

2. CD-RW disks cannot be read by DVD drives. However, if recorded properly, CD-R disks can usually be read by DVD drives.

3. They hold only a maximum of 650 megabytes of data, making them cumbersome for backing up your whole computer system.

4. In ten years, will you have a type of drive on your computer that can read CD-Rs? (Do you have a drive that can read 5 1/4" floppies today? You did copy them all over to 3 1/2" floppies, didn’t you?)

No matter which medium you use to make your backups, periodically test it. Unless you do so, you have no assurance your backup will work! The best test is to take your backup copy to a different computer with a drive that can read that medium. Restore a small file to the second computer. Using the appropriate software program, see if it works on the second computer.

If you frequently add new software or upgrades to your computer, you need to do a full-system backup. When you end up with gigabytes of programs and files (organized, configured, and stored on your computer), you need to do a full- system backup. If you do not regularly back up all of your important files, you need to do a full-system backup. When was the last time you backed up your bookmarks list or your archived e-mail messages?

Backing up all of your hard disk drives and operating system settings is a large task. Windows 98 comes with a built-in maintenance utility to do this. It is such a big job that many genealogists buy and use special tape drives to back up and store large quantities of data. Tape drives often come with their own software programs to help you make backups.

If you want to be particularly cautious:

1. Back up your whole system.
2. Do maintenance on your computer.
3. Then back it up again on a different tape.

Maintenance typically consists of deleting files and programs you no longer need, scanning your hard disk drives for bad sectors, then defragmenting. This will organize all your files so all their pieces are contiguous. In addition, your most commonly used files will be placed where they are needed—at the beginning of your drive where they can be accessed most quickly.

Backup programs usually give you the option to back up selected hard disk drives and/or your system files. Once you have backed up your whole system, regularly use your backup program to do a partial backup, and copy only the files that have changed since your last full backup (called an incremental backup). You may even be able to set your backup software to back up only those files that have changed since your last partial backup (called a serial or sequential backup).

Remember to back up regularly, or you will use lots of dirtier words than backup.

Barbara Renick is on the Board of Trustees for the Association of Professional Genealogists and is on the National Genealogical Society’s Computer Interest Group Committee. She is vice president for the Southern California Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists; second vice-regent for Katuktu Chapter, NSDAR; and is on staff at the LDS Regional Family History Center in Orange, California. Barbara writes for several genealogy publications, including the NGS/CIG Digest, and is co-author of the book The Internet for Genealogists: A Beginner’s Guide.