This isn’t exactly news… I’ve been bad about backing up data for 20 years. I’ve lost enough hard drives and valuable stuff at this point that you’d think I’d have learned, but no. I still am just one data disaster away from tears and anguish.

So… I did a couple of things. I bought a 1-terrabyte storage backup appliance (The Yellow Machine, the manufacturer of which has sadly already gone out of business) and I finally started using an off-site internet based backup system. It gives me 2 gigs of backup for free, and I can go unlimited if I want to pay $5/month (I just haven’t been using it long enough to decide if I need it or not). I’m not backing up EVERYTHING this way of course - that’s what the local backup device is for. I just backup my most critical documents, most recently changed docs, books in process, business records, etc. Looks like the two together may finally be the backup security I’ve been needing for a really long time.