EDL 585: Lesson 4 Technology Strand

"The dog ate my homework!" It's an all-too-familiar cliché to many teachers, yet online students utter the digital equivalent, "My computer crashed." You'll certainly want to protect the documents you create in this class, but don't you also want to save the many excellent projects you complete in other classes? What about time you have invested in the successful lesson plans from your classroom? In this strand, you will read about some strategies to prevent a computer crash from escalating to a catastrophe.

Developing a Reasonable Backup Strategy

The Internet has many excellent resources to help you figure out how you can back up your work. Choose one of the articles below for practical information you can use to protect your data.

Backup Basics --Or, How to Avoid Using Data Recovery Services

This two-part article is written from the perspective of a business owner. The first part describes the basics of backups. The companion article explains the strategy he uses. It won't work for you, but it should help you think about your own needs.

Personal Backup Strategies: Protect your data and save your sanity!

Also a two-part article, this writer describes the backup strategies he uses to avoid the horrible feeling of having lost his data at the worst possible time. He describes some solutions you might consider for your own needs.

Backup Related Links

Hardware-oriented backup solutions

Hardware-oriented backup solutions are convenient and inexpensive. One drawback to this type of solution is the (remote) possibility that your computer and your backup equipment can be destroyed in a destructive storm or fire.

Flash drives are available at many local stores. Capacity ranges from 16 MB to 2 GB. Look online for discount retailers, too. These are excellent for carrying files from one computer to another, but may not be reliable enough to implement a sound backup plan.
Pocket drives are another option. They are similar to flash drives, but capacity can be as large as 6 GB.
External USB drives are a relatively inexpensive hardware solution to your backup challenges. Visit your local retail store or look for an online vendor you trust.

Service-oriented backup solutions

A variety of Internet-based services are available to accommodate your backup needs. Most charge a small monthly fee for their services. The primary advantages to this type of service are that they are available from any Internet-connected computer and they store your data in a distant location that is unlikely to be impacted by a home disaster. The disadvantage, especially for dial-up users, is the time it takes to upload your files.

Although UIS does not make specific endorsements for these services, we are sharing links to a few companies that provide such services.

Many thanks to the Graphics Communications classes at City College of San Francisco for making the icons used on this page and for making them publicly available.