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[H847]How To Back Up Your Computer

by Bert Moen, Ber

In a perfect world you'd never have to worry about losing any of the important files on your computer. But in reality the chances of you losing everything on your computer are pretty high. Most people have pictures, tax files, resumes and a host of other important files on their computer but have never made a backup copy. A hard drive crash or a virus could wipe out everything tomorrow, so why haven't you backed up your data yet?

I believe the reason most people haven't backed up their files is that they're not sure how to do it. So let's look at some simple ways to give your data a second life and give you some peace of mind.

An important first consideration is to insure that all your files are in one place. By that, I mean that if you save all your files in your My Documents then it makes it easy to find all the files you need to back up. In fact you can simply backup that one folder, along with its contents, and you're done. On the other hand if you commonly save files on your desktop or other places on your computer you have to remember where they are so you can back them up as well. Personally, I'd move everything into the My Documents folder.

If you don't have a lot of media like music and pictures to back up the easiest thing to do is buy an inexpensive USB flash drive. If you do have a lot of media I'd suggest buying an external hard drive. You can find an external hard drive online for around $100.

Once you have an external device to back up your files you could simply copy your important files by dragging your files from your My Documents to the external drive. For a one time backup that works great, but if you're like most people, you're constantly creating new files that should be backed up as well. If you'd like to easily schedule regular backups I'd suggest using a free program called SyncBack, which can be found on Download.com. SyncBack allows you to choose what you want to back up and schedule it to run automatically. I'd suggest setting up a weekly or monthly backup of your files.

In case of a fire or natural disaster it may be a good idea to keep a copy of important files in another location. If you can't afford to buy an external drive or would prefer having your files offsite I'd suggest using MediaMax.com. They allow you to store 25GBs of data online for free. They've even recently added a free backup & synchronization service. It's secure and easy to use.

An article about data backups wouldn't be complete without mentioning Acronis True Image. If your hard drive were to ever crash you'd have buy a new hard drive, then reinstall your Operating System, the drivers, all your programs and finally re-load all the files you backed up. Acronis True Image costs $50 but it allows you to make an exact image of your entire hard drive so, should yours fail, you would install a new hard drive and restore the Acronis image and your computer would be exactly like it was the last time you created the image. An Acronis image would save several hours of work so unless you were intending to just buy a new computer if yours ever crashed you may want to consider this option.

This article has given you several simple options to backup your computer files but the most important thing I can leave you with is to do something now. Knowledge without action is useless and you'll appreciate the piece of mind you'll have knowing your most important files are safely backed up.

The Windows Registry or simply Registry is considered as the grand focal point for everything you do with your computer and its Windows operating system. The Registry is the database that collects all the information about every little thing you do online that's why in time, it gets bloated and you will be prompted to learn how to repair registry files, else your computer crashes completely.

The Registry has been introduced in Windows 95 and has become one of the most crucial parts of the Windows operating environment. This database exists in all 32- and 64-bit Windows OS and acts as the warehouse for every data needed for the computer to boot up, and to load settings and tasks.

The more we use the computer, the more we fatten up the Registry with more files that soon will be outdated, obsolete, and unwanted. This repository changes whenever we:

- Change settings using the control panel
- Browse websites
- Download programs
- Install software applications
- Uninstall software applications
- Configure a new hardware component

When something goes suddenly wrong there is a big chance that you might need to tap on a few notes on how to repair registry files. More often than not, something is really wrong there and you need to clean up immediately. Here are some of the symptoms of an obese registry:

• The Blue Screen of Death appears before you
• PC crashes at random instances without the Blue Screen attack
• Error messages at random
• Extremely slow operation
• Unresponsive system
• Error messages about hardware and software drivers
• Errors on Internet Browsers
• PC constantly freezes up on you while in use
• Endless DLL and EXE errors
• Failure messages on Add/Remove Programs
• Javascript errors
• Etc., etc.

These things happen because your registry is corrupted. The warehouse cannot anymore take additional load because it is already jam-packed with old keys, user settings, configurations, and other information. Since there is too much information to process, the system malfunctions.

Corrupted files, obsolete files, malware, spyware, improper installing and uninstalling of software are some of the main reasons why the registry turns in the white flag and surrenders. This is especially alarming if the user does not do routine checkups of his computer. Unchecked errors contribute to the instability of the computer.

How to Repair Registry Files now

To address this problem, the simplest thing to do is to use a registry cleaner. You can bring your computer to the experts and let them handle the repair if your technical skills are nowhere near theirs.

In general, registry cleaners are fairly easy to use. These software programs will scan your system for any and all errors in the registry. When all the suspects are lined up, the registry cleaner can automatically deal with them if you let it. IT will remove and fix all the errors in the registry and your system will be up and about soon.

Those who want to learn how to repair registry files, they just need to purchase a registry cleaner or download the free ones just to scan and check if there really is a registry problem.

Article Source : Pg. 175

About Author

Both Bert Moen & Kelly Purden are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Bert Moen has sinced written about articles on various topics from Computers and The Internet. This article has been brought to you by . Your home and family computer guide to online safety, security, reviews and how-to tips & videos.. Bert Moen's top article generates over 1300 views. to your Favourites.

Kelly Purden has sinced written about articles on various topics from Flirting Tips, Registry Cleaner and Computers and The Internet. Does registry software really make your computer run faster? 97% say it makes their computers run 10 times faster. Learn how and get your FREE Registry Cleaner download today and learn. Kelly Purden's top article generates over 246000 views. to your Favourites.