Author Topic: Posted up North . Backup problem. (Read 3505 times)

lefty · « **on:** August 30, 2010, 10:12 »

Summer trainee posting position is over. For dayjob I got new permanet post up North big pay but expensive moving. My biggest load is backup dvds because I make copy of all shoots . This and my movie and music. Problem now I cannot pay to move everything. Unrealistic broker quotation to transport. I don't use this stuff only archival .
Is it important to keep this stuff? I do not see uploading to new stock agency in future. Where I go, no high speed luxury .
Would you do in your own situation, trash all and say bye bye to dvd archival.
I can upload to remote site but again cost time, I have no time to do much but prepare relocation.
In your experience of many years in stock, do you find critical to keep arquival?
Thank you in advance for best idea.

Blufish · « **Reply #1 on:** August 30, 2010, 11:49 »

I cant seem to trash anything. Seriously. I dont think i could get rid of it. I would ask a friend to store them for a while and maybe ship at a later date when finances are better or hold them until you move back (if you are going to)

FD · « **Reply #2 on:** August 30, 2010, 13:00 »

DVDs are crap. They last maximum 3 years and they take too long to write. Who needs DVDs when USB external disks are 120 euro for 2TB? I travel between East and West 4x per year with one of those in my cargo pants pockets and a long T draped over it. (Unchecked luggage is still 7-12kg).

microstockphoto.co.uk · « **Reply #3 on:** August 31, 2010, 16:58 »

Everything is crap, possibly; even external disks fail. The only certainty is in redundance, as one must be really unlucky for all of the copies to fail at the same time.

@lefty: I would NOT throw it all away. Microstock is constantly changing and you MAY need to upload to a new agency in the future, possibly one which doesn't even exist yet - who knows? I'd copy everything to a 2 TB hard drive as FD-regular says, and maybe keep DVDs as well and just throw away jewel cases to save space.

What about USPS for shipping? Doesn't seem too expensive http://www.usps.com/prices/

RacePhoto · « **Reply #4 on:** August 31, 2010, 17:21 »

How much stuff do you have to move that it's going to be that expensive. I can't seem to understand the problem? A big box of DVDs or CDs can't be that much? How many pounds or what volume do you have that's such an extreme problem.

I would have said online backup, download your files later, but if it's so many, I'd have to agree with you about the time being a problem.

Copying it all to external drives takes time too, but if you do it while you are watching TV, it's just a second activity.

Still confused? How much do you have that you can't just box it and ship it, or fill some containers and have the movers take it along?

It's difficult to give answers to unknown sizes, weights and problems.

lefty · « **Reply #5 on:** September 01, 2010, 15:53 »

Thanks all. USPS, lol, where I am posted snail mail is a luxury. There is like one store that does everything. Computer is like a 286 and running water is amenities but don't touch the rose of the shower of you get electrocuted.
I have already left several storages of past arquivos with other friends in other outposts, and have not gone back there to pick them up, lol.
Which is why I am wondering if I should even worry about arquival storage.
FD your idea is cool. But I won't even have a computer to access that, no?
Micro, Race, I think I will just act like say I lost everything in a fire and hopefully
I will not have to upload all over again . For my own sake, I hope Shutterstock and Istock will survive, and when I come back to a more civilized place, ha!ha!
hopefully I will see I have money to collect.
Thanks all. I learned a lot from you all. Salut!

FD · « **Reply #6 on:** September 01, 2010, 16:38 »

Quote from: microstockphoto.co.uk on August 31, 2010, 16:58

Everything is crap, possibly; even external disks fail. The only certainty is in redundance, as one must be really unlucky for all of the copies to fail at the same time.

An external disk can fail, but if you just put it online to write backups, it will last much longer than a DVD that degrades in time, even if it sits in a box. Writing DVD's takes much longer than a backup on an external disk. And finally DVD's are much more expensive per GB. Redundancy is always a must, and one of the copies should stay unpowered in another place. Fire? I had it. Lightning? I had it. The EMP? Not yet.

RacePhoto · « **Reply #7 on:** September 01, 2010, 23:27 »

Quote from: FD-regular on September 01, 2010, 16:38

Quote from: microstockphoto.co.uk on August 31, 2010, 16:58
Everything is crap, possibly; even external disks fail. The only certainty is in redundance, as one must be really unlucky for all of the copies to fail at the same time.
An external disk can fail, but if you just put it online to write backups, it will last much longer than a DVD that degrades in time, even if it sits in a box. Writing DVD's takes much longer than a backup on an external disk. And finally DVD's are much more expensive per GB. Redundancy is always a must, and one of the copies should stay unpowered in another place. Fire? I had it. Lightning? I had it. The EMP? Not yet.

You left out flood, I had that once. My CDs after washing in clean water and drying, still work. So much for CDs will go bad in a year, scares. That was over ten years ago. Last I checked they were still fine.

But DVDs, the best, seem to self destruct while they are recording and get worse with time, losing data. I just won't trust a DVD without an external backup, which I suppose means, I don't like or trust DVDs at all. They are more of a back-up of the back-up, final emergency, last resort.

I have to agree that external is the best.

By the way, when I dump old computers, I save the Hard Drives, format them, fill them with backup materials (that no one will ever really want?) and write what's on them with a Sharpie. Nice way to have secure storage for "free". All it took was one external case that handles IDE drives. The age of the drives will match the size of the images and quality of the camera. 22-26 640x480 photos will fit on in MB of storage. (a floppy) So an old 20GB drive will save a massive amount of old photos. 3MP images are just over 1MB each... 20D 8MP images are about 2MB each.

The next computer I recycle will be a couple of 60GB drives, which will hold just about everything from the 10D and 20D, nice secure storage.

EMP? Lets hope not!

With more details, I guess the answer is pack them up in boxes, within plastic boxes (Rubbermaid/Tupperware Etc.) and store them someplace secure and hope you don't need them. You can always ship the whole archive someday when the time dictates, or maybe never. But it's nice to know you saved them, in case of some critical need. Find a safe place in the dark corner of a cool dry basement. That would mean, not stored on the floor, but a top shelf, where they have the best chance of surviving. And hope you never need them!