Back up your data

I have been lazy about backing up my computer's data and really haven't done it since June. It was one of those "I should do that, but not now" kind of tasks. I just had other things to get done which were a higher priority to me.

Last night, I was watching a movie on my laptop ("The good, the bad, and the ugly") and about 3/4 of the way through the film, the laptop shut off without warning. I about dropped my drink when it happened. Checked over the power supplies and started it up again....started to load and then shut off again.

I've seen that happen before when a cooling fan failed about 3 years ago, so I opened everything up and emptied half a can of compressed air to clear out the dust bunnies. The fan spun fine, so I set it back up and turned it on. It loaded, but the rattles and banging coming from inside the body was not a good sign so I shut it down.

I was freaking out all day over the likelihood of a hard drive crashing and how I have a lot of data that is not backed up. Even my trip information was not saved anywhere except in an email. My biggest problem was that all my passwords were in a protected file....which I don't have an updated hard copy to any longer. The panic was very real.

So, with fingers crossed and external hard drive at the ready to try and save data before the platter decides to eat itself the rest of the way, I powered up the computer. I did power up with my dvd drive tray open in case that was part of the problem, but I was not optimistic.

Laptop loaded quickly, runs silent, and is faster than it has been in months. I quickly backed everything up and now I feel so much better. I am almost afraid to shut it down, but all seems good and it was likely the dvd drive that failed or maybe it was over-heating....I cooled the room down to 65 degrees when I fired it up in hopes that it would buy me some time.

So, I will be shopping for another computer and backing things up on a daily basis from now on. If you are like me, this is your early warning. SAVE YOUR DATA tonight.

You dodged a bullet. Last time mine crashed I lost a a lot of pics of the family

Dodging bullets is a losing affair most times. This was a warning shot, I am already looking for a replacement. Looks like I'm going over to an Apple IMac this time around.

Wow, close call huh Rob ?
I hardly back my data up, but I stored some things in online source, that way I always have access to them anywhere.
If I hadn't bought an iPad, I would make fun of your decision to buy iMac, now I understand why they are much more expensive than a PC.
I'm already considering buying an iPhone 6S+ for my next phone, not 100% yet, I still like my android phone as of now.

I am surprised myself Dp, I have always considered Apple to be over-priced and only for Yuppies until now.

My Sister used to manage an Apple store and loaned me her 2010 iMac in case my laptop was toast. I have to admit, I like it and the added screen size is a welcome benefit over my 17 inch screen.

I am also due to replace my Droid phone and I am now considering an iPhone, but that one is a harder sell for me.

Might be nice to start out the Spring season with newer stuff in the office for a change. It has been a few years since I updated my tech.

I usually upgrade on or around Father's Day, aside from great deals, it's also summer, it's busy season, so money is not an object around that time of year.