👍 #857 – Can’t I Just Copy Everything to Back Up?

This week's articles & videos

"If a backup is a copy, then how 'bout I just skip the whole backup program confusion and copy everything manually?"

If only if were that simple. Sadly, it's not. Yes, a backup is a copy, but, no, you're not able to copy everything manually. A lot? Yes. Everything? No.

Can't I Just Copy Everything to Back Up? has the low-down of why you really do want that backup program to make the copy for you.

Also this week:

• Want some confusion? When it comes to images size and size are two different things.
• Speaking of size; megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes ... what's next?
• If passwords should be long and random and unique, wouldn't it make sense to treat user names the same way?
• What to do when malware gets extra defensive.

TEH Podcast

Took the week off. With the next Apple announcement happening on our traditional recording day, I'm not sure I can drag Gary to the microphone next week either.

That important article elsewhere...

A reminder to please read and share this article: Inside an International Tech-Support Scam.

Survey Results

Results of the survey I shared last week have been ... disappointing, I guess. I was hoping for a strong showing and a clear winner, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

• There weren't as many responses as I was hoping for. (Less than half a percent of newsletter recipients.)
• There wasn't a clear winner between email lists, discussion forums, or real time chat.

Nonetheless I consider the survey a success. Why? Because I believe it's telling me my energies are best spent elsewhere.

And given how much I try to pack into each day, that might be the best result of all.

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Share me!

Speaking of newsletter recipients -- I recently performed "spring cleaning" which reduced the number of people recieving the Confident Computing by about 20%. Ouch. It happens every year, but ... ouch.

You can help! If you know someome who would benefit from this newsletter, and from the things I write about, please forward this on. (Be sure and delete your own unsubscribe link at the bottom before hitting "Send".) It's one of the most important, and easy, ways you can help keep Ask Leo! alive and healthy.

Thanks!

Have a great week!

This Week's Featured Article

Can't I Just Copy Everything to Back Up?
Only if you really can copy everything. (Spoiler: you can't.)

It's tempting to just use file-copy tools to back up what you think you need. But you can easily miss something very important.

https://askleo.com/3117

Also This Week on Ask Leo!

How Pixels, DPI, Resolution, Picture Size, and File Size All Relate Why size and size are two different things.
Photographic images have a number of characteristics that we often don't consider or understand. I'll review how digital pictures are constructed and stored, and what you need to keep in mind when sharing or publishing. https://askleo.com/5947

What Comes After Terabytes? More and more bytes.
Zetabytes? Petaflops? Gigahertz? Confusing terms for our computers' ever-increasing capacity and speed. https://askleo.com/131697

Should Your Username be More Like a Password? Only if you like to make things more complicated than they need to be.
Occasionally people suggest that usernames should be treated like passwords. While there's some merit to the idea, it's ultimately impractical. https://askleo.com/131745

How Do I Remove Malware that Blocks Downloads It can be done, but it might take effort.
Some malware goes to great lengths to prevent you from downloading, running, or applying a fix. I'll tell you what steps to take. https://askleo.com/4686

Ask Leo! on YouTube

Subscribe to Ask Leo! on YouTube to get the latest on YouTube.com. Your subscription (and "Likes") help others find Ask Leo!, and the the answers they're looking for.

My External HDD Shows Not Formatted ' But It Has All My Data! ??? Occasionally, when moving an external HDD drive to another machine it'll show up as unformatted. I'll look at some possible causes and actions to take. https://youtu.be/PY-W4oG7WJE

How Do I Remove Malware that Blocks Downloads Some malware blocks you from downloads, running, or applying a fix. I'll tell you what steps to take. https://youtu.be/JmLTrFJ5qig

Should Your Username be More Like a Password? Occasionally people suggest that a username should be more like a password. While there's some merit to the idea, it's ultimately impractical. https://youtu.be/Y052XYZl9OU

What Comes After Terabytes? What comes after terabytes Is it Petaflops? O Gigahertz? Confusing terms for our computers' ever-increasing capacity and speed. https://youtu.be/5OlqrWpdJg8

Can't I Just Copy Everything to Back Up? It's tempting to just use file-copy everything tools to back up what you think you need. But you can easily miss something very important. https://youtu.be/EFMNZiDwFKw

How Pixels, DPI, Resolution, Picture Size, and File Size All Relate Photographic image size can be complicated. I'll review how a digital picture is constructed, file size, and what you need to keep in mind when sharing or publishing. https://youtu.be/6P03CGoo5UU

Support Ask Leo!

Ask Leo! is supported in part by people just like you! For as little as $2/month you can help, and view askleo.com without ads. For $5/month you'll also get the The Ask Leo! Tip of the Day

Here are examples of tips published this week:

• Tip of the Day: Open Windows File Explorer on a Specific Folder
• Tip of the Day: Change "?dl=0" In Shared Dropbox Links to Download
• Tip of the Day: Turn Off Vertical Tabs
• Tip of the Day: Make Windows HUGE
• Tip of the Day: Get Help or Give Help with Quick Assist

Support Ask Leo! and become a patron for these and other exclusive benefits and discounts!

Other ways to support Ask Leo!.

Share Confident Computing!

Share the confidence: forward this (without your unsubscribe link at the bottom) to your friends! They'll thank you! (And so will I!)

Did someone forward this to you?

to get your own copy each week. It's FREE!

Become a Patron
Ask Leo! Books

Social & more!

✓ Facebook
✓ Twitter
✓ YouTube
More..