Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Whether you use a flash drive or your optical drive, keep these tips
in mind:
•
Even if you normally back up every file on your Macintosh, save
time and media while traveling by backing up only your most
important files—specifically, those you've worked on during your
trip. (When in doubt, you can do a Spotlight search in the Finder
for just those files modified in, say, the last day).
•
If your backup software supports encryption, use it. You wouldn't
want someone who stumbles upon your backup discs to get easy
access to any personal information stored in your files.
And if you're using optical discs, also consider the following:
•
If you need to back up just a few files each day, you can get away
with inserting a blank disc, manually dragging files onto the disc's
icon, and using the Finder's File > Burn Disc command. Otherwise,
use backup software just as you would normally. But configure it
to back up only those files that have been modified since your trip
began.
•
If you'll be gone for more than a few days, consider mailing one
of your backup discs home once a week or so; that gives you an
additional measure of safety.
Yet another option is an external hard drive, which might be a good
idea for backing up your entire disk if you're away for an extended
period of time. For ease of transportation, I suggest a bus-powered
(no AC adapter required), pocket-sized model. See the
Online
Appendixes
for suggestions.
Remote Backups
You can go about backing up your files remotely in any of several
different ways, depending on your circumstances and preferences.
As I mentioned earlier, though, all these methods presuppose that
you have a relatively small amount of data to back up—you'll likely be
constrained by the upstream bandwidth of your Internet connection
