Stamp data storage

As stated in previous posts I had problems with my stamp files being
stored in several places. I couldn't remember which files I had
changed on what computer.
I decided to store them all on one Flash drive and pull them up to the
computer as needed for pdating and then putting them back on the
Flash.
It came to me that if I updated a file I could add the date to the end
of the name and whould know when I updated that file.
All my stamp lists were on my brand new 8gb Flash drive.....I lost the
"stick". No more files, all gone. Much of it I have on hard copy and I
can replace that, in time.
Does anyone know how long it would take a two-finger typist to
recreate about 3 gigs of data, no pictures?
Never again will I use any portable storage for all my data.
cest la vie

Ralphael, the OLD one, much OLDER now.

Ralphael1 wrote:
As stated in previous posts I had problems with my stamp files being
stored in several places. I couldn't remember which files I had
changed on what computer.
I decided to store them all on one Flash drive and pull them up to the
computer as needed for pdating and then putting them back on the
Flash.
It came to me that if I updated a file I could add the date to the end
of the name and whould know when I updated that file.
All my stamp lists were on my brand new 8gb Flash drive.....I lost the
"stick". No more files, all gone. Much of it I have on hard copy and I
can replace that, in time.
Does anyone know how long it would take a two-finger typist to
recreate about 3 gigs of data, no pictures?
Never again will I use any portable storage for all my data.
cest la vie

Ralphael, the OLD one, much OLDER now.

I am trying ever so hard to avoid that problem from happening here. I
have a backup drive connected to my primary computer. Once a week is
takes a backup of all the important files (pictures, documents, pdfs and
some config data. It does the same thing for my wife's computer. I got
to thinking if the house were to burn or someone breakin and steal the
computers, likely they'd get the backup drive and I'd be no better off
then if I had never backed up anything. I put one additional step into
my backup process. Once every 3 months or so I go out to my SUV and get
the flash drive out of the glove box and bring it in and copy the same
data to it, then put it back in the glove box in the SUV. The odds would
be so incredibly slim of both getting destroyed at the same time I feel
pretty safe. One thing you might try as you rebuild your data is using
a free program called ViceVersa. You get a flash drive or a backup
drive and this program will compare the folder that holds your data to a
folder on you backup medium and check for unmatched files, newer/older
files, thus keeping you backedup with little or no effort involved.
ViceVersa is a fairly small download and can be found at

http://www.tgrmn.com/free/

Sorry to nag, but it was an accident waiting to happen.
I don't agree with Jim's solution either.
They both have "risk" potential.

My solution is to have a three destination drive backup.

1.Your computer
2. portable disk drive 1
3. portable disk drive 2

If you have a master folder on your computer and dated eg: "My
Documents20081230"

You simply copy your so named folder to disk drive 1
after a suitable lapse ( can be 1 day or 1 month)
you simply copy the "my documents" folder to portable disk drive 2
and adjust the date.
My opinion "synchronised backups" like you suggested has knobs on it.

That's it.
You should ensure all your input data goes to the folder hiearchy in My
Documents.

What can also happen with a flash drive or external HDD
if you do not use the "remove" software, and just yank out the USB
you can lose data.

I don't understand why you have lost your data, sure you can lose the stick,
but didn't you have the data in your computer box as well?



"Ralphael1" wrote in message
...
As stated in previous posts I had problems with my stamp files being
stored in several places. I couldn't remember which files I had
changed on what computer.
I decided to store them all on one Flash drive and pull them up to the
computer as needed for pdating and then putting them back on the
Flash.
It came to me that if I updated a file I could add the date to the end
of the name and whould know when I updated that file.
All my stamp lists were on my brand new 8gb Flash drive.....I lost the
"stick". No more files, all gone. Much of it I have on hard copy and I
can replace that, in time.
Does anyone know how long it would take a two-finger typist to
recreate about 3 gigs of data, no pictures?
Never again will I use any portable storage for all my data.
cest la vie

Ralphael, the OLD one, much OLDER now.

Hi Ralphael,

It came to me that if I updated a file I could add the date to the end
of the name and whould know when I updated that file.

I am not familiar with flash drives but, in general, if you hover the
mouse over any file name you should get a 'tool tip' that displays, at
minimum, the date modified. I do add dates to files only if they are
of similar nature, like letters. Files that I update I rely on the
modify date. If an MS Office product, you could always 'right click'
the file name and get the properties which would tell you more. So,
bottom line, I do not think it necessary to date files that are
updated. Besides, just maintaining it could be a nightmare. On Word
stamp files I do add a footer with the filename and path and insert a
date from the 'Insert Menu' just before I finish my update session for
the day.

Does anyone know how long it would take a two-finger typist to
recreate about 3 gigs of data, no pictures?

If you are as old as you say, that may take a while. It really depends
on what product you are using for creating files.. I am also an old
bible typist, seek and ye shall find, and I can do a lot of Word
tables in a few hours. However, when updating the tables I do exit
and save the document since MS office products have been known to go
bump. For Word I also turn on the document 'backup' option so that if
it does go bump I open the backup and save as the original. For my
stamp files, which are all Word documents and tables, I have written
macros in VBA to facilitate the update and data entry process. For
instance, when updating a table I do not have to manually create a new
row as an entry screen button creates the row and fills in the data
with that entered on the screen.

Jerry B

Hi Rodney,

I agree with you about backups. I do a similar thing but with RW
CD's. I have 3 CD's, Current Backup, Previous Backup and Temp Backup.
The Temp Backup CD is not finalized so that each day I update stamp
files I add that days Master folder to the temp. Once a week, The
Current Backup becomes the Previous and I erase and write a new
Current on the Previous. The weekly backup conatins other than stamp
files and only takes a few minutes to do.

Once every 3 months or so I go out to my SUV and get the flash drive out of the glove box

I would think heat would affect the flash drive.

Jerry B

Hi Jerry,
I've never used RW, probably due to laziness,
all my computers are auction lots, P4 and upwards
and one usually only gets a CDRom with that for $45
So rather than install a writer, I have used external options.
But yes, the cyclical triplicate "copy as backup" is the way to go.

I have a 5 million record database on thoroughbreds,
and it was the only "no brainer" way to safely maintain
a reasonably safe backup, although I only backup once a fortnight- once
a month so I do temp fate in some ways I guess.

I use the windows explorer pane as a plan image of all
my files I have, so I always know what is what, and where it is.


Once every 3 months or so I go out to my SUV and get the flash drive out
of the glove box
I would think heat would affect the flash drive.

Good thought!

My son this year received second honours at college, due to a B in Sose,
He mapped out a hypothetical city plan, saved it on his flash drive,
and supposedly loaded it on the teachers HDD.
It failed unknowst to him, and he was failed for failure to submit.
I don't think he has the same confidence of flash drives now, as he once
did.
especially when they share real estate in his school bag with week old
sandwiches,
wrappers, damp swimmers etc etc.

Hi Rodney,

... second honours at college, due to a B in Sose, ...

Please update my Oz vocabulary. What is Sose??

Jerry B

Oops sorry Jerry,
should be "Soce"
Student vernacular for "Society and Environment"


wrote in message
...
Hi Rodney,

... second honours at college, due to a B in Sose, ...

Please update my Oz vocabulary. What is Sose??

Jerry B

Jim wrote:
Ralphael1 wrote:
All my stamp lists were on my brand new 8gb Flash drive.....I lost the
"stick". No more files, all gone. Much of it I have on hard copy and I
can replace that, in time.

I am trying ever so hard to avoid that problem from happening here. I
have a backup drive connected to my primary computer. Once a week is
takes a backup of all the important files (pictures, documents, pdfs and
some config data. It does the same thing for my wife's computer. I got
to thinking if the house were to burn or someone breakin and steal the
computers, likely they'd get the backup drive and I'd be no better off
then if I had never backed up anything. I put one additional step into
my backup process. Once every 3 months or so I go out to my SUV and get
the flash drive out of the glove box and bring it in and copy the same
data to it, then put it back in the glove box in the SUV. The odds would
be so incredibly slim of both getting destroyed at the same time I feel
pretty safe.

That's great against fire, but round here burglars would look for car
keys, and steal the car as well as removing portable electronics. Could
you perhaps leave the stick with a neighbour or in a shed?

Colin McKenzie


--
No-one has ever proved that cycle helmets make cycling any safer at the
population level, and anyway cycling is about as safe per mile as walking.
Make an informed choice - visit www.cyclehelmets.org.

From another Newsgroup,
FYI (HTH)


snipped
Regardless of the problem, what you're proposing isn't a very good idea, for
a couple of reasons.

The first is that these memory sticks have a limited number of write cycles
and will eventually stop accepting new writes.

Second, and more importantly, they also have a tendency to suddenly and
irretrievably fail. When this happens, you suddenly lose your backup.

Use a reliable media for backups, such as optical (CD or DVD/RW) or external
hard disks. Do not rely on only one copy, keep one copy at another site,
and verify that the backups can actually be read.

USB keys are good for transporting files that exist elsewhere, but are not
suitable for backup purposes.



"Ralphael1" wrote in message
...
As stated in previous posts I had problems with my stamp files being
stored in several places. I couldn't remember which files I had
changed on what computer.
I decided to store them all on one Flash drive and pull them up to the
computer as needed for pdating and then putting them back on the
Flash.
It came to me that if I updated a file I could add the date to the end
of the name and whould know when I updated that file.
All my stamp lists were on my brand new 8gb Flash drive.....I lost the
"stick". No more files, all gone. Much of it I have on hard copy and I
can replace that, in time.
Does anyone know how long it would take a two-finger typist to
recreate about 3 gigs of data, no pictures?
Never again will I use any portable storage for all my data.
cest la vie

Ralphael, the OLD one, much OLDER now.