Hi Grace, There is one additional "best practices" item for backing up that has not been mentioned in this thread. You should also keep some kind of log that identifies in general terms what is different about each backup. For example, you might have a log that contains entries for Date, Filename, Comments with entries something like: July 14, 2005 Inman-2005-07-14 Completed Match/Merge for Millar line July 16, 2005 Inman-2005-07-16 Corrected errors in Connecticut place names July 18, 2005 Inman-2005-07-18 Added birth of Georgina Helen Inman July 20, 2005 Inman-2005-07-20 Added GEDCOM from Robert White (rwhite04.ged) and so on. If you ever had to go back and restore from a back up, this log of information about each back-up will be a great help in deciding which backup to restore from. If you happen to be running Windows XP, there is a way you can do this directly in the backup file. You will need to be familiar with Windows Explorer to do it. This is not the Internet Explorer that you use to surf the Internet. It is a utility program that comes with Windows that allows you to navigate and work with your files on your system. To run Windows Explorer, right click on the START button and select the Explore option. That will pop up the Explore window showing the usual Windows file system with folders listed on the left side and the folder contents on the right side. With your mouse, click on the folder where your backup files are located. You may have to click on more than one folder to "drill down" to your specific backup folder. Once you have highlighted the backup folder on the left, you should see your back-up file listed on the right. With your mouse pointing to the backup file name, right click on it. That will pop up a new dialog box with a Properties option at the very bottom. Once in the Properties pop-up box, select the Summary tab. There you will find a variety of fields you can use to enter information about your file. I suggest you enter the comments about the file in the Comments box at the bottom. Click OK. You now have saved the log information with the file itself. To show that info on your screen, you will need to use the Windows Explorer program again. So before you close it, click on the View pull down menu at the top of the Explorer window. Select the option Choose Details. In the list of details to be displayed, check the box for Comments and then click OK. Now every time you use Windows Explorer, and navigate to your backup folder, you will be able to view the comments with each backup file. I recognize that this sounds complicated at first, but once you do it a few times, it will become second nature. Good Luck, Richard Rands At 05:07 AM 7/21/2005, Grace Inman wrote: >Hi Stewart. Your method looks good. It's easy to do and seems to cover >all the bases. As mentioned in another email, I'm waiting for a tech to >replace my CD and DVD drives, which should happen in a few days. Right >now, they're both unusable. After they're replaced, I plan to do the CD >backups you describe, plus send my PAF file to my husband's PC for >additional protection (if he'll let me. :^ ) That thought occurs to >me, though ... you've gotta have a friend or relative who has the >available space on their PC, and is willing to use it for you. Thank you >so much. I really appreciate the help I get from this list. God bless you >folks in the U.K. Many prayers and petitions have gone up for you. >Grace in Georgia, USA > >----- Original Message ----- From: "Stewart Millar" <sm999@tiscali.co.uk> >To: <PAF-5-USERS-L@rootsweb.com> >Sent: Thursday, July 21, 2005 4:27 AM >Subject: RE: [PAF-5] Backup files > > >>Grace, >> >>Good Question! Despite backups being an essential safety net, over the years >>I have seen great confusion and actual loss of data because of the way in >>which backups have been handled. >> >>The steps that I teach and advocate are as follows: >> >>1. In Tools > Preferences > Folders set up a specific folder for your >>back-up files. This would be somewhere on your hard drive - mine are kept in >>C:\........\My Documents\PAF\Backup. >> >>2. When selecting or requested to do a backup - the suggested name of >>the zipped backup is your PAF database name - this should be changed to >>include the date of your backup - for example, my database is millar.paf, >>which for a backup (today) I would change the suggested name to >> >>millar-2005-07-21 (the .zip extension will be added automatically for >>you) >> >>This example of course is using the reverse European date system (Y-M-D) >>which is recommended for keeping a series of files in date sequence. >> >>For any time where you have multiple backups on the same day - for instance, >>where you create a backup to take to a FHC or on a research trip - add some >>data at the FHC - then create a backup at the FHC to take home - simply add >>an additional version number at the end of the second backup file name, for >>example: >> >>Millar-2005-07-21-2 >> >>3. The backed-up file should then - for security reasons - either - be >>burned onto a CD - copied to a floppy disc (if your PC still has a floppy >>disc) - copied to a USB memory stick - attached and emailed to a friend - >>uploaded (ftp) to a secure internet site. Whatever suits your off-site >>storage arrangements. >> >>Using this approach you will then have a series of past backups - all date >>marked. >> >>Periodically you would delete the older backup versions. >> >>This way, any restored backup will create a PAF file with the same name that >>has the date incorporated in it. From any restored backup, you can then make >>the deliberate choice to rename the restored backup as your main file (using >>Save-As). >> >>Backups are not only a safety net for restoring a lost file but used in this >>way can allow you to open up (restore) a past back for a specific date and >>compare it with your current database to track any changes that you may have >>made. >> >>Good luck, >> >>Stewart >> >> >>-----Original Message----- >>From: Grace Inman [mailto:Grace@eufaula.rr.com] >>Sent: 21 July 2005 04:03 >>To: PAF-5-USERS-L@rootsweb.com >>Subject: [PAF-5] Backup files >> >>Could someone please explain to me in real simple baby steps how to make the >>best kind of backup files? When I click "Backup" on the File menu of PAF.5, >>I always tell it to overwrite the current file. Is that the way I should do >>it, or not? If not, how should I be doing it to provide the maximum >>protection for my file(s)? Please and thank you very much. >>Grace in Georgia, USA >> >>In God we trust. >> >> >>==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== >>PAF @ FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service >>http://www.familysearch.org/eng/paf/ >> >> >> >> >>==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== >>FreeBMD - Free Access to England and Wales Civil Registration Index >>Volunteer as a Transcriber Today! >>http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/ >> > > > >==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== >PAF-5-USERS Mailing List >http://www.ausbdm.org/p5uindex.php