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Occasionally, in my more whimsical moments, I sometimes muse that computers are an accident waiting to happen. Now I don’t want to sound like a doom-bringer but computer mishaps, and I use the term advisedly, can easily happen. Your computer can be running fine, without any speed degradation or other system problems, one day but the very next day could bring more problems that your system can cope with and leave you in a mess. It happened to me recently.

These problems could be as the result of an accidental conflict between devices and / or applications or one of the more insidious attacks to which unprotected computers are susceptible. The cause of my problem was of the former type and fortunately I was able to fall back on a recent backup. Hopefully you would have something similar available if the situation arose.

See also: Backups

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Backup software does tend to fall into the same category as Antivirus software in that you never think you will need it until you actual do. By then it is too late. Perhaps if you have not already got backup protection in place, you might be interested in BackUp MyPC Deluxe.

This title has been developed by Roxio which is now part of the Sonic family. Installing the software does require the entry of a 17-character serial number but otherwise is quick and straightforward. At the conclusion of the installation you will be presented with a readme file, of which more later, and will need to restart your system before using the software.

BackUp MyPC divides its functionality into Backup, Restore and Compare categories, each with its own section of appropriate choices. There is also a Quick Start section which provides access to wizards for backup and restore tasks plus the ability to schedule your computer to be backed up on a regular basis and prepare your system for full recovery if the worst comes to the worst.

When using the backup wizard you can opt for a total backup or pinpoint selected files, folders and drives. A two-pane view presents a hierarchical view of the system plus the content of the currently selected folder. A further option allows you to specify all files or just those that are new or altered for an incremental backup. The final action is to select the destination location for the backup.

BackUp MyPC supports a wide selection of devices. For a start it supports all major CD and DVD formats up to and including the DVD9 Dual Layer format. It will work with hard drives, USB and Firewire external devices plus tape drives and the ubiquitous ZIP format.

When you need to restore a backup, you will be given access to a catalogue that BackUp MyPC has created from its backup activity. You can use this catalogue to select the files and folders to be restored or access the appropriate stored media and work from there.

The third section, Compare, allows you to check the backup data against that of your hard disk – in other words verify that the backup is a true representation. Options are available to include file access permission and any files that are currently busy.

As is becoming increasingly prevalent, BackUp MyPC’s printed documentation is limited to brief set up instructions. You have to rely on the help feature for any additional information. Fortunately the more common operations are fairly self-evident. You also get a readme file containing late-breaking information which relates to some issues that have arisen. These include problems with earlier versions of Windows Media Player 7.0; Windows XP occasionally disabling the recorder’s drive’s ability to burn data; and large FAT32 drives. None of these problems manifested themselves during the review process.

BackUp MyPC is priced at £34.99 and should bring you peace of mind. The program requires Windows 2000 or Windows XP either Home or Professional edition. Your computer will also need a Pentium 3 300MHz processor or better with 128MB of RAM and 50MB of free hard disk space.

http://www.roxio.co.uk/products/backupmypc_deluxe/index.jhtml