No, this is not a post about backing up your data. It’s about something few of us tend to plan for – power outages. As I write this, I’m sitting in the local library plugged into one of their outlets. A wind storm last night brought down our electric and phone lines, so I’m totally awash. Had there been phone, I could’ve popped batteries into the recorder and conducted some phone interviews.
Luckily (or not), I grew up in an area where power outages were pretty common. The longest was 36 hours, but we were prepared for them most times. One shouldn’t expect them in the suburbs, but here I sit. I’m very glad I scoped out my options beforehand. Had the library been unavailable, I had the option of a Burger King, two McDonald’s, one Panera, and the last option was any one of four Starbucks (though they charge for Internet connection, the bums!). I had most of my files printed out (thanks to my lack of trust in hard drives), so I grabbed the laptop and out I went.
Are you prepared? Do you have that Outlook calendar synched with your cell phone or your PDA? See, I don’t. But I know I don’t have any appointments today. Otherwise, I’d be up a creek.
What are some of the tools you use or the plans you’ve made for power outages or hard drive failures?
Very timely post, Lori. Power outages happen a lot where I live too (even though we are exeriencing a drought right now…). Still, I have had experiences where right in the middle of writing the power goes out! And do you think I was saving my document as I was writing it? Noooo…
We’ve had a couple of power outages and the husband has hooked up my computers and the modem to the generator and some battery thing he has. If the phones go down, then it is off to Panera’s or I could go to the McDonalds downtown, or at the very least, stop at the library to check my email.
As for schedules, I don’t keep any of my schedules electronically. It’s all done with several paper calendars.
I back up using an external hard drive for both computers, so I can flip flop between systems if necessary, and I send all my important email to a gmail account for extra back up and easy accessibility. I like have email that is download to my computer.
I think it’s time I get a laptop for my desk. I mean, really. I can just unhook and go somewhere else, right? Then everything is right there on the little hard drive. And I desperately need to get an online calendar function of some sort. I have a PDA without its peripherals (and without a clue how to use it), but remembering to upload and actually doing it is the issue. I need something automatic.
One thing – I use a free backup service called Mozy. It backs up my hard drive every day (I set the time), and it’s online, so you can access your files from any computer. http://www.mozy.com
Thanks for mentioning Mozy, Lori. I couldn’t remember the name for the life of me, and I desperately need to start using it!
It’s great, Kim. It really is. I’m not saying the 1GB space they give you for free will save everything, but it’s a lifesaver when you’re working on a new project and your hard drive dies. Still, I’d be more inclined to buy an external drive too – just in case. 🙂
Thanks for the contribution. Your side likes to me, makes fun here reading.