Preservation Services at Dartmouth College: Preservation Tip of the Day #2

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Preservation Tip of the Day #2

Each day this week to celebrate Preservation Week 2011, we'll be posting a handy tip to preserving your own collections. Stay tuned, and check back tomorrow!

Back up your data!
Have you ever worked long into the night on a paper only to have your hard drive fail at 4am and lose everything? If you haven’t, be warned…this could happen at any time. So make sure your files are backed up to a cloud-storage system, external hard drive, or even DVDs if that’s all you’ve got. Here are some great, easy-to-use backup options:

Mac – Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) comes with a built-in backup program called Time Machine. Requires an external hard drive.
PC - Windows 7 comes with a built-in backup program called Windows Backup. Requires an external hard drive.
Cloud storage – There are several cross-platform, cloud-based storage systems that will back your files online so they are not only safe, but also accessible from anywhere. Look for one that syncs automatically and provides secure data storage (Carbonite and Dropbox are two examples). Requires an Internet connection to run.

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Contributors

Deborah Howe Is the Collections Conservator at Dartmouth College Library. She's been involved in the book community for over 20 years. She is a member of the Guild of Book Workers and teaches classes in the Book Arts program.

Ryland Ianelli Is a cartoonist and Project Specialist in the Dartmouth Preservation Services department. He graduated from Reed College with a BA in Art History in 2008 and, more recently, from the Center for Cartoon Studies with an MFA in Cartooning in 2010. In addition to his work in Preservation and the Digital Production Unit, he is currently drawing and writing for various independently published comics and anthologies.

Barb Sagraves has been head of Preservation Services since its creation in 1995. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan SLIS program, has an MA in Medieval History from Michigan State University, and a BA in History from the University of Oklahoma. In her role as department head, Barb has overall responsibility for the preservation program and policies at Dartmouth College Library and is in charge of the Book Arts Program.

Jenny Mullins has been the Digital Preservation Librarian for Dartmouth College Library since May of 2014. Prior to coming to Dartmouth, she preserved video and audio collections, helped build a digital repository and worked in book and paper conservation labs. Jenny is a member of ALA and co-chair of the Preservation Metadata Interest Group for 2015-17.