Friday, October 9, 2009
A recent tweet: "Time Machine: the backup volume is read only, invalid key length, volume check failed, 3 months of data. good thing I have @crashplan also." followed by this Facebook followup: "My opinion: Anyone interested in assuredly backing up his or her data must have more than one backup solution because every affordable backup solution available today will eventually fail. I've seen this over and over again not only with my own data but also with that of friends and students I help and with stories from other technology professionals. At least one backup must regularly take data offsite—outside of your local zone of environmental disaster. However, this is currently too difficult or too expensive for most people; even I do not yet follow my own recommendations. Apple's Time Machine works beautifully under ideal circumstances, but it also frequently can fail spectacularly. I've tried Mozy Home and Mozy Pro. Mozy Home on OS X repeatedly failed after working well for several months. Mozy Pro on OS X and Windows seems to be performing flawlessly, but I've never had to do a restore yet. Consequently I do not recommend Mozy Home, and I cautiously recommend Mozy Pro. After much research and testing, I have decided that CrashPlan is the easiest and least expensive option for offsite backup; you just need to find a backup buddy who will do it with you. Currently I use Time Machine for onsite backups at home and at work. I would like to use CrashPlan for offsite home backups but have been unsuccessful finding someone I trust outside of the Bay Area to be my backup buddy. I really like the simplicity and elegance of Time Machine, but I think it's time to abandon it for home use. If I do, I'm not sure if I will ever return to it. My list of Apple technologies I do not trust currently includes Spotlight ( http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9939572 ), Active Directory integration ( https://frankfarm.org/journal/2008/02/08/ ), FileVault ( https://frankfarm.org/journal/2007/06/26/ ), and Time Machine ( pick one: http://www.google.com/search?q="time+machine"+site%3Afrankfarm.org ), and the list grows longer every year I own a Mac. Time Machine does not back up online. A service similar to this is http://www.macminicolo.net/transport/ but it's very expensive in the long run, and I do not recommend it. Just compare the cost of Transport to CrashPlan, Particularly if you have a lot of data, it's a no-brainer." 1-on-1 meeting with Rodney. Minor web update for Carol: pharm sci pathway declaration. Met with student BA: iPod Touch email setup. Minor update for Shirin: grad fairs. Kiosk followup with Sierra A. Met with Eric D: facelift work. Met with student BA about iPod Touch email setup. Management activities. Dinner at home with Patrick: veggie burger with cheese and mayo, tater tots, steamed broccoli, hot water. Uploaded photos to Flickr.