As I write this I have two laptops open. I am on a mission to get all the photos and files of the old laptop and reset it so that Phil can use it while I am away. I’m not silly when it comes to computers but I am also not a genius and I think I know where my limitations are. HA! I know what I know and try to learn what I don’t know – if I understand it! Understand me??? lol Not sure I understand myself!
Anyway – I have previously brought 2 external back up drives. One I backed up before we moved here (three years ago) and have lots of photos and files on it. Stuff I couldn’t replace. This stopped working – it was run by power and then plugged into the USB drive. I thought I was unlucky so didn’t worry too much but felt bummed that I had photos on it. So I got another one so that I could back up my photos and files. This time I went for another make. Could I be unlucky twice??? Oh yes! I was! I have had it sitting on the desk and working for at least a year or so. I had to reset my computer and put all the files from there onto the external drive late October – some of the photos I hadn’t printed for my PL album but I thought nah it would be fine – I couldn’t be unlucky for a second time – could I?? Oh Yes! I was! I took it to Rotorua where we went for a weekend away thinking it was a bit of a break and I would be able to get some down time to fiddle with some photos and sort the ones I wanted but the time was busy and when I did get some time I feel asleep. Ha!
So after we got home I found some me time to sort the photos but I couldn’t find the cord for the drive – did I tell you that am I useless with cords??? Oh Phil would lol. I have so many computer cords, camera cords, printer cords, usb cords – you know all that stuff. Well I went through them all and found what I thought was the plug. Um no, that one wouldn’t work, neither would that one – and that one over there… nup… that one didn’t work either. Ah – it happened again. I couldn’t get my photos off the drive. I decided not to stress too much and it has sat on the desk.
My BIL Gary came this weekend and I asked him to have a look. Nah… he couldn’t get them to work either. But he can take them and look at them and see what he could do. Great I said – all I want in the photos and files off them, not worried if you have to break into them.
So what is the point of this post? To tell you that I am NEVER AGAIN going to buy an external hard drive that needs to run with a power supply.
I had a small USB powered one and gave it to Gary so that he could put the files he can get off on to that one and today I brought another one so that I can back up and reset the computer that Phil will use.
So that is why I sit here with both computers open and one copying to a USB POWERED portable drive.
Stupid technology! Ha!
And YES you do need to back up!!!!
Chookys Chirps 
Hmm, I have an external hard drive that runs with a power supply … felt virtuous because I always back up on the hard drive, AND on CDs/DVDs, AND most important photos on Flickr, etc. But I am worried now!! I would be devastated if my hard drive stopped working. But it was fairly expensive so I don’t want to buy a new one … what to do?!
hahaha love that cartoon!!!
and yes i need to do this again!!!
am in charge of back up at work..and am always scared the days i forget too!!!
I hate that job with a passion, but it’s essential and even my IT husband didn;t back up not long after I meet him and he lost fove years of photos…..heartbreaking for him but lesson learnt. Back up back up back up. While my niece and nephew were here, we went through a pile of hard copy photos. I decided that I needed to cull those as well. Have fun backing up…..(okay that just sounds wrong) but you know what I mean.
Timely is right!!! We have just bought an external hard drive for all the photos for 2012 to go on. Can’t tell you if its a USB one or not though?? LOL. I was having problems with disks not showing our photos and coming up blank – I think I’ve got all the photos after rejigging them from one back up disk to another but you never know. Good luck.
How timely this is.. As You know i recently bought a new computer. I had copied all my pics to the external hard drive that i had, then sent the old ” It” to be squashed. Since then i think about certain pics and when i go take a look at that HD.. Farrrrk its not all there. Then I remember getting a back up from the last time i took it to be looked at you know the computer geek lol.. found the discs tonight and yay all is not lost just some lost… Major lesson learnt.. Get the experts to do it and Back up, Back up, Back up…xx