CCC Presents
 
by Clare Henderson

April 2010: Backing up your files and photographs.
 
1. File Backup On Line: There are a variety of ways to back up your files using an external hard drive* or even a flash drive.  Although the latter is very portable and has become inexpensive, having your files accessible from anywhere using any computer may be attractive.
 
a. Google Docs: Google provides free space to save your files were you can actually work on them, e-mail them to other people, etc.  To work on them there, you have to convert them to the Docs format.
 
A new feature is that you can upload files and save them there for a future download without converting them to the Docs format.  
 
b. Dropbox: A free program with very limited space to “drop” your files into.  You can pay to enlarge the capacity.  
You can find the program at https://www.dropbox.com/home  
 
In either case, it may be better to save text files and save your photographs in another place since photos are relatively large files.
 
2. Photographs On Line: The advantages of having your photos stored on line is that they are accessible from anywhere on any computer and you can invite friends and family to look at your albums.
 
a. Picasa: Another free Google program that you can download to your computer, which allows you to organize and save your photos on line.
 
However, Picasaweb at http://picasaweb.google.ca/home?hl=en&tab=wq is a place to store your photos on line for safety and to share with friends and relatives.  When you click on upload there is an opportunity to create new album and up-load any number of photos to it.  You can tag each one if you wish and then use Search to find specific ones.
 
b. Other: There are other photo storage places on line.
 
 
*Note: Snapshot is software that takes a “picture” of your hard drive and saves it to an external hard drive..  It is available at http://www.drivesnapshot.de/en/intro.htm