backing up files on my computers.
-
MisterCMK;207694 wrote:
Get an external hard drive, or buy another hard drive to re-install windows on and copy the files off of your old one right onto the new one when you get windows installed. Let me know if you need help.just my opinion here but that seems like an expensive solution to a small problem. granted he would have more hard drive space availible if he went this route, but this assumes he wants to spend a substantial amount of money on a new hard drive, and knows how to install it as well. for the most bang for the buck i'll go with copying the files to DVD-R, that way they are archived, you don't have to give them back to anyone (as is the case with a borrowed external drive), and you've spent what, $20 on a short stack of DVD-R DLs? Then again, maybe he wants the extra space as well? shrug
-
JohnW;207698 wrote:
just my opinion here but that seems like an expensive solution to a small problem. granted he would have more hard drive space availible if he went this route, but this assumes he wants to spend a substantial amount of money on a new hard drive, and knows how to install it as well. for the most bang for the buck i'll go with copying the files to DVD-R, that way they are archived, you don't have to give them back to anyone (as is the case with a borrowed external drive), and you've spent what, $20 on a short stack of DVD-R DLs? Then again, maybe he wants the extra space as well? shrugWhenever it is time for me to reformat my PC I always buy a new hard drive. I hate dicking around with copying files multiple times and I don't want to chance hard drive failures. Granted you can get a bad one out of the box or whatnot, but I don't like having old drives in my machine. With hard drives being cheap these days you can pick up a new one for $50 that is probably bigger than the one he has now.
-
If he needs more space, maybe. I guess there are several factors I would consider before buying a $50 hard drive, but thats just me. As for buying a new drive everytime you reformat, paranoid much? If I did that I'd have a new drive every 3 months
Really though, the MTBF on your average quality hard drive is insane, they last for a very very long time. Short of tossing it around, shaking it vigorously while it's writing, or playing with incredibly strong electromagnets in its vicinity, the chance of an actual physical failiure of a hard drive is very very small. Even if you have a wierd fetish that nessesitates overwriting every single bit on the drive once or twice a day to avoid evidence when the party van comes, that drive will last for years. I guess I could do the same thing, but I would keep the old drives up to the limit of the interface I am using and have fucking terabytes of storage. Next time you reformat, I'll be glad to take your old drives off your hands -
I guess I should say that the MTBF on a drive isn't an actual indicator of it's usefull life, but the usefull life of a hard drive, barring things like obsolecence, is in excess of 5 years, for a drive that is used constantly in a harsh environment. For your average interwebs and bittorrent user, I'd say closer to 8 to 10 years before that drive gives up the ghost due to hardware failure. Hell, I have the 250mb drive from my first destop computer which is maybe 14 years old, still works.
-
meh, I still feel better about replacing the drive that my OS is on. BTW, I only re-format once every year and a half or so anymore. I also end up with spare drives as a result that always seem to find their way into something else.
The price of hard drives is so cheap that it is worth it to me to purchase a new one to re-install windows on. It also makes copying my files over much simpler as I only have to copy them once and I still have the old install to use while I am tweaking the new one. -
MisterCMK;207748 wrote:
meh, I still feel better about replacing the drive that my OS is on. BTW, I only re-format once every year and a half or so anymore. I also end up with spare drives as a result that always seem to find their way into something else. The price of hard drives is so cheap that it is worth it to me to purchase a new one to re-install windows on. It also makes copying my files over much simpler as I only have to copy them once and I still have the old install to use while I am tweaking the new one.Ok, I guess I can see it if its only once every year or so, not my thing but, ok. My shit gets so cluttered up with all the downloadin and various little utilities and crap I only use once that never gets totally deleted that I end up doing it once every couple of months for freshness. The fuckton of niggly little files that things install takes up a chunk of drive after a while you know
The drives I usually buy are on the upper end of the ladder, and aren't usually sale priced, although I would like to have an extra 300-500gb for my music, so maybe I'll check into those $50 drives :icon_salut: -
torbs;207699 wrote:
get a 60gig+ ipod video...BOOM: A 60gig external hard drive that does more than just store stuff...BTW im in the market for a 60gig video heh.completely off topic but once you transfer your itunes format music to the ipod, it won't let you copy them back will it?
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login