Who Backs Up Your Data When There Are No Files?
Business Change takes many forms. For too many of us one of the forms that’s long overdue is putting a data backup and protection plan in place. Tell the truth: you know someone who’d have a very big problem if their hard drive crashed, right?
As we get more and more of the stuff we do and use into computers and need to get it back out, the issue becomes exponentially more important. This morning I noted a question at Droid Forums that got me thinking: what do you do to protect all that information on your SmartPhone?
As you know, I’m a Droid user. The device truly makes my life easier, organization-wise, or I would have stuck with my old regular-phone-and-PDA way of doing things. And when there’s a problem, like the one the SplashID password manager creates on Android phones, I tell you so.
So I started thinking: what does backup software really do for you, and is it any different on a SmartPhone than on a computer?
To start, there’s a metaphorical difference: backup on your computer means (minimally) grabbing safe copies of all your work files and (ideally) a copy of the way your entire hard drive is arranged including software and its setting, the operating system, and anything else you’ll need to get back up and running quickly after a crash. On a SmartPhone like the Droid, there’s no such bit-for-bit backup, but also no need for one, since the operating system is built in and restores automatically if you ever need to reset your device.
I use a piece of software called MyBackup Pro to keep my Droid safe. It does two things: MyBackup Pro copies my data, and it copies the applications I have installed on my Droid. The concerns I addressed in that forum?: is MyBackup Pro getting ALL my data? The answer is no, and on an Android-based Smartphone, that answer is fine.
Remember that most of what you do on a SmartPhone is interact with programs stored elsewhere; out in “the cloud” you have many accounts with companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter, and if your Droid crashed, all that data would still be there. So the issue is much smaller: let’s protect your contact data (hmmm . . . also likely to be stored elsewhere . . .), call and texting history, and . . . . that’s about all!
The biggest problem if your SmartPhone needs to be reset is restoring your programs. That can be time-consuming, and who knows what you’ll remember to do when the time comes?
With Google and Android, the Android store remembers what you’ve downloaded (including the programs you’ve paid for) and allows you to restore for free any time. All you need to do is re-download MyBackup Pro and then restore everything else. It takes literally under five minutes, and the software costs a whopping $5. Total no-brainer.
The larger question is this: what’s it going to take to get you to enact the kinds of business change that your business needs to make a difference? If you are the person I mentioned above who isn’t doing backups, please don’t wait another moment to start doing something about it. The Computer Answer Guy can even help, if you aren’t sure how to go about solving the problem.
But for goodness’ sake: if you use a Droid or other SmartPhone, please start using a program like MyBackup Pro, right now.
