Worried About Losing Your Gadget?

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://www.bostonpocketpc.com/modules.php?op=modload&amp;name=News&amp;file=article&amp;sid=2766">http://www.bostonpocketpc.com/modules.php?op=modload&amp;name=News&amp;file=article&amp;sid=2766</a><br /><br />"<i>Have you ever had a problem with a laptop or mobile device while on a critical business trip or worse yet, lost it? I know I have (no gadgets lost yet-knock on wood) and I have now taken measures that this type of technological calamity won't happen again.(Yes I carry image CDs in my luggage,which seems to arrive at different times than I do) I also carry spare encrypted laptop hard drive with a duplicate image of my laptop before I depart, a spare SD card with an image of my Pocket PC, a spare cellphone, spare Pocket PC, in case something happens to my PPC Phone Edition and a spare Bluetooth headset in case the battery dies on one or is lost. I also have my SIM card backed up to my PC and on an SD card. And recently I have been carrying my Tablet PC with me as well as a laptop backup. At least the devices aren't that heavy, but redundancy is good. At least I know I am not the only one. USA Today has a piece on business travelers like Mickey David, who has lost his cell phone twice, are taking precautions.</i>"<br /><br />Yeah, but this guy isn't protected from an <a href="http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-013/_1938.htm">EMP</a> so what good are all of those backups? Seriously, I think that is a bit overboard. There are some good tips there to minimize the risk of data loss, but I can't imagine carrying an array of spare devices, backups on memory cards and even hard drive images on a trip.

[foebea]

I always thought the whole point of getting your laptop and such stolen is so that you dont have to do any work on your trip. I don't understand why anyone would want to protect against this fortunate happening.

Leave your backups at home.

(unless this is a personal device, in which case i do recommend frequent backups just in case. It is always terrible to lose savegames and lose your place in ebooks when you are in the middle of a trip)

[whydidnt]

I think some of this depends on the purpose of you trip. Like when I'm doing a sales presentation and there is no margin for error. That's when I carry two laptops, Pocket PC's and Cell Phones, all with nearly identical information. If one dies I can still function. Fortunately this is rare as my laptop bag already is way too heavy. :oops:

For most trips I usually only carry 2 cell phones and 1 of each the others. If something happens to a laptop or PPC, I can usually get by with the other for a short period of time.

If your business depends on the technology being where you are- you have to take precautions as mentioned in this article. But most of us don't need to deal with that level of concern for every trip.

[rocky_raher]

Before a trip, I always do a full backup using Sprite backup, with the backup file on a separate SD card NOT stored with the device. (i.e. My Vaha case has two slots for SD cards, but I don't put the backup SD there!). That protects against memory card failures and hard resets.

I also have any files I might need copied to another SD card, along with the cab files for software I need. If I lost the device and had to borrow/rent/buy another handheld, the Sprite backup file might not work on another PPC model.

If I were really worried, I could also back up everything to a CF card and a CD-ROM, and store important stuff on my website, but so far nothing I do is THAT critical.

[rmasinag]

I'm reminded how losing stuff feels. I just lost my Olympus C5050 on the bus (thought had the camera in my backpack). It cost me $650, not too big, but very big for poor college techies. :(
I was hoping at least to ebay it and make $200 towards a new DSLR. Oh well, a least it served me faithfully for 3 years.

Back on topic, my HP 2210 backs up every midnight using Sprite Backup and I keep a copy on my desktop once a week or before travels. I have lost all my data on my Compaq H3150 once and I vowed NEVER to lose data again. My tertiary backup is Activestink every morning (plus updates my Avantgo).

I have six classes with 2 jobs so I am severely dependent on my 2210 to keep me organized. I would not dare lose data again.

[MitchellO]

I think this person is a bit paranoid. And rich! That amount of backup (encrypted extra hdd, spare device for everything?? They might get a bit suspicious of this guy at the airport with 3 laptops, and 4 mobile devices) seems a bit excessive. I sync every night, and backup sometimes. I have my calender/contacts backed up in ROM and have all my programs CAB files on my SD card (in Readonly format so they aren't erased upon installation).

If I lose it, I have the data on my laptop which can easily be transfered to a new device.

[lapchinj]

... also carry spare encrypted laptop hard drive with a duplicate image ..., a spare SD card ... but I can't imagine carrying an array of spare devices, backups on memory cards and even hard drive images on a trip.Yeah I'm also very seriously into backups. I have Image CD of all my development work, duplicates of all my PPC CF and SD cards with Sprite backup files on them (I load all software to the Storage card) and an extra 100gb laptop drive that was ghosted from my laptop. The only thing that I haven't been able to keep a spare backup of before going on a trip is some spare cash :mrgreen: but that stuff always dissapears.

Anyway I really don't know if there is a "little overboard" when it comes to backups. To replace any of my machines is only a restore away and is hassle free. Without a backup it could be days or weeks before I can run normally like I did before a crash. The last time I had my main desktop C: drive fail I spent 3 days (solid 10 hour days) just loading software and another week straightening out the mess so I could get back to work.

I hope never again to go through that. I've been working with computers for 20 years now and have been burnt a number of times and I had all sorts of incomplete or out of date backups. It was always a hassle and I always lost something but I never learned until around 5 years ago when my C: drive went south taking the registry and all the software that kept setting in there. Now I make a system backup twice a month and I walk around 3 2gb Lexar 80x CF cards with a backup of all my development projects on them. (Oh yeah I went to RAID 1 setups for the C: drive on all my machines except the 2 linus machines that run a 2.6 kernal :cry: ).

Jeff-

[Newsboy]

Backups should be accessible remotely to be truly effective. Like Ed said, an EMP would still wipe out all the backups as well. Quite often I'll backup important files from my laptop before traveling or making a presentation, and in different storage formats (USB drive, CD/DVD, FTP'd to my web server...).

Another computer is almost always nearby or readily available. The amount of money one would spend buying and keeping track of all these backups would exceed the potential benefits, in my opinion.

A one-touch backup device (like the external Western Digital drives) is about all the protection the average user needs.

[Newsboy]

I should make a business out of this.

Replacement devices and data delivered within 12 hours anywhere in the continental United States! Prices vary by situation.

[MitchellO]

A one-touch backup device (like the external Western Digital drives) is about all the protection the average user needs.

I have a 200Gb Maxtor OneTouch that I do this with. Slow for the first time, but fast after that!!

[MitchellO]

Like Ed said, an EMP would still wipe out all the backups as well.

I think there will be more to worry about than backups when a country is hit with an EMP....

[lapchinj]

I should make a business out of this.

Replacement devices and data delivered within 12 hours anywhere in the continental United States! Prices vary by situation.There's a bundle of money in that business so be ready for some stiff competition. :wink:

Jeff-

[lapchinj]

...Yeah, but this guy isn't protected from an <A >EMP</A> so what good are all of those backups? Seriously...EMP: ...caused by Compton-recoil electrons and photoelectrons from photons scattered in the materials of the nuclear device... 8O

Oh my! What I need now :drinking: is to make an extra set of backups just in case. 'Theeere's no such a thing as having toooo many... ah, yeah - backups' 8)

Jeff-

[jimski]

A one-touch backup device (like the external Western Digital drives) is about all the protection the average user needs.

I have a 200Gb Maxtor OneTouch that I do this with. Slow for the first time, but fast after that!!

Sure, but two years back, my one year old Maxtor external backup drive just died. I only turned it on once a week and never moved it. I can't tell you the fear that came over me with my laptop and, at the time, it's well used 18 month old hard drive. So now it's a Lacie external drive backup AND a backup to rewritable DVD. Redundancy is good.

And for those important presentations, don't bring another laptop. Bring an associate with a laptop. At least you have someone to talk to and your shoulder will thank you.

[Steven Cedrone]

Yeah, but this guy isn't protected from an EMP (http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-013/_1938.htm) so what good are all of those backups?

AFAIK burning to a DVD/CD will give you a backup that will survive an EMP, so he IS protected! :wink:

[Cybrid]

Yeah, but this guy isn't protected from an EMP (http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-013/_1938.htm) so what good are all of those backups?

AFAIK burning to a DVD/CD will give you a backup that will survive an EMP, so he IS protected! :wink: And...you'd need a military grade anti-ECM laptop to run it on. Be realistic. An EMP survivable backup? PEN and PAPER!

The real danger is really only theft and/or careless baggage handling. For this you can have a free solution. Yahoo!
Yahoo can be synced to your PDA through Outlook. It provides you with your contacts, appointments et al. There is also the "briefcase" a secure 30Mb storage which can be used to hold your files.

Lose the PDA, laptop, heck...all your junk but go into an internet cafe and retrieve your data.