John, Try Folder Watch (http://www.diginaut.com/shareware/fw/download.htm). It will back up to a local or network drive. You can have it overwrite the backed up file or create multiple backup copies. It's shareware, I think $20. I own it and like it. By the way, I definately agree with the CD-R side. It may seem like you save a few cents by reusing CD-RW's but since you never can be sure your CD-RW will be readible on another machine where is the gain? -Les ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lester L. Noll lnoll@netnitco.net http://ww2.netnitco.net/users/lnoll ----- Original Message ----- From: "John S. Wilkinson" <jwilkins@twcny.rr.com> To: <FAMILY-ORIGINS-USERS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, December 31, 2002 6:51 AM Subject: RE: [FO] Backing up Files to CD-R > Does anyone know of a program to automatically mirror a directory to another > hard drive? > > Have A Great Day > > John S. Wilkinson > WILKINSON, McCOTTER, GREENWELL - Maryland > DELAMAR, McCOTTER - North Carolina > mailto:jwilkins@twcny.rr.com > > -----Original Message----- > From: Joyce Ragels [mailto:jragels@comcast.net] > Sent: Tuesday, December 31, 2002 1:43 AM > To: FAMILY-ORIGINS-USERS-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [FO] Backing up Files to CD-R > > > Allan > > All your arguments are true except for one - again rare occurrence - the > failure of the cd writer itself. In that case you still have magnetic > scarecrows. > > I used to use both CDRW and CDR. With the cost of CDRW so cheap, I save > to zips and then burn to CDR. I'm not sure there is a sure fire method > of being totally safe. Most of us screw up from time to time and then > pay the price. I haven't backed up many of my file except for FO since > the first of Nov even when I know that a hard drive can blow at any time. > > You still have a good system because you sound like you are doing it > often. So on any medium, that fact alone will safe most of us. > > J > > Allan Plucinik wrote: > > Yes, it is true that CD-RW media is usually only readable on the same unit > that burned the CD. But I still think it is a good backup. Because even if > the worst case scenario happens where my PC is dead as a doornail, all is > not lost. I have two options: > > > > 1. Eventually my PC is going to be repaired so I'll have access to my > hard drive again or even if I lost all data on the hard drive, at least I > still have the data backed up on the CD-RW disk. The CD-RW drive will be > operational again. > > > > 2. I buy a new PC or use another PC that is available to me. In which > case I remove the CD-RW drive from the old PC and install it in the new PC > including the same CD burning software. There shouldn't be any problem > restoring the data. This might seem like a lot of work, but this type of > scenario should be a very rare occurrence and hopefully unlikely to happen > anyway. > > > > As for needing a CD-R disk in order to share data with others, yes the > CD-RW disk won't be very useful. In that situation I would simply burn the > data to a CD-R on an as-needed basis. The data on CD-RW disk is intended > for my own personal backup & restore, not for sharing data. > > > > Allan Plucinik > > Colorado Springs, CO > > > > Tom Longman wrote: > > > > > >>One important reason to use CD-R instead of CD-RW is that CD-RW media is > usually only readable on the same unit that "burned" the CD, and often times > requires that same program as was used originally when writing the CD. This > can easily preclude sharing the CD with others, but also means that you > might not be able to read your CD on your CD-ROM drive, should you have to > replace the unit for whatever reason. > >> > >>Tom > > > > > > > > ==== FAMILY-ORIGINS-USERS Mailing List ==== > > GETTING THE MOST OUT OF FAMILY ORIGINS by Bruce Buzbee - FO DEMO > > http://formalsoft.com NO WEB ACCESS? Write to FormalSoft@aol.com for > ordering information. > > > > > > > -- > Joyce Ragels > Tucson Arizona USA > > Let us so live that when we come to die > even the undertaker will be sorry. > - Mark Twain > > > ==== FAMILY-ORIGINS-USERS Mailing List ==== > GETTING THE MOST OUT OF FAMILY ORIGINS by Bruce Buzbee - FO DEMO > http://formalsoft.com NO WEB ACCESS? Write to FormalSoft@aol.com for > ordering information. > > > > ==== FAMILY-ORIGINS-USERS Mailing List ==== > Searchable ARCHIVES - > http://listsearches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=FAMILY-ORIGINS-U SERS >