An essential piece of technology is something everyone will tell you about. It’s the latest thing! It’s shiny and new! It’s special. Don’t let them fool you. There are definitively things you will desperately need. Some of these things are cheap, and some are not. Despite what BestBuy will tell you, however, you do not need the newest supercomputer to start doing business.

In that light, here is an itemized list of everything you need. Seriously though: without this stuff you’ll fail.

Really. Fail as in epic fail.

Without further ado: the list

1. A computer that runs. If you want to do business online, you need something that runs. You don’t need to have the latest operating system or the fastest processor. It just has to start and run.
2. The Internets for extended periods of time. If you want to do anything online on any recurring basis, you’ll need the internet. It could be dial-up for all I care, it just has to connect. {You know, some days I think I’m gonna loose my Internets. It’s no fun. This really is the number two thing.}
3. A web browser. You’re going to have to look at the internet somehow. Go and get FireFox. Seriously. Go. There isn’t any other browser ever. Well… maybe Google Chrome, but that’s it. Anyone who uses the word “explorer” around me gets shot. {I’m not kidding. I just killed Phil, and he was a cool guy.}
4. A webhome where you can publish content. What in God’s name is a webhome, you might ask? Oh, simple, it’s your little piece of the internet. “Isn’t that a website?” Nope. A website requires a domain and hosting – these cost money. A webhome could be a WordPress blog, a Tumblr, anything. All that matters is that people can find it. {Coincidentally, if you’re looking for a website, Johnny B. Truant can help you. He does websites for $100, and blogs for $40. He’ll so pay me if you click those links, btw.}
5. An e-mail address. Preferably something like you@yourname.com or a gmail account, an email is how people will send you hate mail. It’s very important you check this often, because people will send you stuff all the time, even if you don’t want them to.

Tada! Now you know what to gather. Rejoice… ok, so this may have been a little bit of silliness, but it’s 4:30 am.

What am I really trying to get at here?

I’m trying to tell you that you already have what you need. I’m sitting here with no money and no hope, but I’m still here. I’m still making this blog creature, and I’m hoping it’ll help me move some cash eventually. Don’t let the new shiney stuff blind you. Just do with what you have, and when you’ve done then you can upgrade. No rush, no hurry, no stress.

There are several different things you can do to backup your data, and most of them are fairly easy to do. As far as price goes, they can fluctuate depending on how much data you have. In this post, I’ve gathered together a summary on how to backup your stuff.

Let us count the ways

1. Use an external hard drive. An external hard drive is really just a giant USB drive {flash drive, jump drive, memory stick, “thing I put files on that is small and can be carried around”, you know}. You plug it into your computer and presto, you’ve got a nice big space to put all your junk. Pros: The drive is yours, and you can put it a fireproof safe if you like. Cons: If you’re on a low budget this option can be a little expensive, and if you have lots to store you’re going to need more than one.
2. Use CD’s and DVD’s. Pop a CD/DVD in and burn it with your information. Pros: If you already know how to burn disks, this can be mindlessly easy. Cons: This can take way too many disks if you’re properly backing up the files for a business. It can turn out to be pretty expensive and labor intensive. Plus you need a safe place for all those disks and a way to organize them.
3. Use Online storage. There are lots of different websites that will hold onto your files for you. Pros: Cheap and fairly easy to do  if you can wrangle the internet. Reputable sites will keep your data very secure. Cons: Some sites pose a security concern if they handle their data without the proper respect. People who generally need help with setting things up on their computers my have trouble.
4. Use your friends/other computers in your house. You and your friends can swap data and keep it for each other. Pros: Free! Cons: Sensitive business data is most likely something you don’t want to hand off to your buddies. If you’re saving stuff on computers on the same network {using the same internet connection}, they can all get a virus at the same time.

My suggestion

In general, I recommend using more than one of these methods. Here’s my personal breakdown:

• Backup your most sensitive data on an external hard drive. This way you can keep a close eye on it and put it somewhere you deem safest.
• Use a secure online service like Mozy to hold onto the bulk of your data. This way you can keep it all in one safe place. You can set scheduled backups so you don’t need to think about it.
• If you have tons and tons of music, movies and photos, a smaller external hard drive is a great way to hold onto them. If you’re looking for a cheaper route, CD’s and DVD’s are awesome too.

As mentioned last post, backing up your files can save you lots of stress in the long run. It’s one of those things your mom would bug you to do. For a lot of people it just never crosses their mind. Remember that spending half an hour managing your data today can save you weeks of confusion and frustration later when things go haywire.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at Aislyn [dot] Laurent [at] gmail [dot] com.

If you own a business, you own files

That’s right. If you own a business, online or offline, you have data, and usually lots of it. Most of this data is very sensitive and important. If you were to loose even a quarter of this data, you could be in trouble.

What kind of trouble, you may ask?

Paper trail trouble. Client information trouble. Loss of product trouble.

You – yes you, with the information product – I’m talking to you especially

When something happens to your computer, it’s not just the machine that’s effected. It’s your entire system. Your files, your music, your pictures. Receipts, contracts, ebooks and emails. Suddenly they’re all in jeopardy.

How to reduce your information stress levels by half

I’ve seen it before, people. I’ve seen it many times before. You’re going along, dealing with your normal bumps in the road, taking your data for granted. You’re moving through your life just assuming that your information will be there tomorrow. Then boom. Dead computer. Epic sad-face all around.

To keep your precious stuff from going bye-bye birdie in the event of a massive computer crisis shutdown, there’s one very simple thing you can do. Backup.

Backups are easy, important and have the potential to be very cheap

I’ll be straight with you. If you’ve got a business the best advice I can give you for covering your arse is to back up everything ever. Keep a copy of it somewhere and somewhere safe. Make sure you do. Do it NOW if you know how. Seriously, go and do it. It’s important. GO!

You could keep a physical copy of everything, but for a lot of people that’s inconvenient and possibly expensive {if you have tones of data}, and maybe even impractical {if your backing up blog posts}

Hard copy’s of some stuff are necessary, but for a lot of things – most things - keeping a digital copy makes much more sense.

But no digital platform is completely safe, is it?

No platform can guarantee that you’ll never loose a single speck of info. Not even if you print it all out and keep it in Fort Knox. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t at least try silly beans. That’s right. I just called you silly beans.

Not to mention backing up your files can free up lots of space on your computer

By moving some of your files to archive, you can free space up on your computer. The more space you free up on your computer, the faster it’s able to run. This is a big bonus for people who have bloated systems from data overloading every corner.

Alright, I get it, I’m so ready to backup every delicious byte of digital non-existent cake ever! How do I do it?

Now that you know why, next post we’ll talk about how. Stay tuned.