So how do you backup your Itunes Collection?

[jen3003]

Whatever you decide do it now. I made that mistake a few weeks ago. Thought about backing it all up but didn't, wouldn't you know my computer crashed a few days later.
Had a friend look at it and everything was lost, music , pictures, everything! I am very mad at myself but learned a BIG lesson.
Today we went out and purchased a new computer and I will be backing up like crazy.
I knew better but just didn't do it. Yes, I am kicking myself and calling myself an idiot.

 

[CBisMe]

Three backups:
1. External Hard Drive via 'Drag and Drop'
2. Backup of entire HD using the backup software from .Mac subscription
3. Backup of iTunes on another Mac computer that is simply used as a backup of all my important files.

 

[CBisMe]

files/pictures uploaded to an online remote backup, and music is burned to CD's.

external hard drives CAN and WILL crash!!

You are sooo right. Hard drives last an average of 3 to 5 years. Any hard drive you buy at the store will have some kind of warranty on them. Assume the life of the drive is half the time of the warranty. It's an ongoing process after time you buy another hard drive and transfer data from the old one to the new one, keep doing this and you should be fine. At least until the figure out a longer lasting technology.

Just remember, the on-line backup places put all of your stuff on hard drives too - just theirs, not yours.. So, I would have another backup - just in case.

 

[noladave]

there's been an ongoing discussion as to how long a CD, or DVD, will last. It's not a lifetime, and depending on the manufacurer, can be as little as a year. Yes, that's right, a CD can go bad after a year. Not the media that I want my files on.

IN my case, I have a C: drive, and a D: drive. All OS files, plus some data files (like ITUNES) are kept on the C: drive. I simply copy them to the D: drive as the primary backup. Secondary backup is to an external drive. Tertiary backup is my IPHONE. I'm pretty sure that all 3 won't go together, unless it's a fire, and I lose all 3 at the same time.

Same thing with all of my photographs - I have over 750 GB of photographs (I'm an amatuer sports photographer), and I try to keep them on a minimum of 2 drives, with the current stuff being kept on 3 drives (1 internal, and 2 external). Doesn't always work out that way, but I try.

 

[Minnie Lor]

Intersting topic. I back up photos to shutterfly, burn to a cd, & print 70% of them.

Just burn the songs to CD, in regular music format.

That way you will never have to purchase the same song twice, or 3 or 4 times. That is what iTunes really wants you to do, buy the same song over and over again for each ipod you have.

Better yet, buy your music from Amazon.com, no DRM control, it is yours. No need to buy 3-4 times over many years.


Even better thought, don't use iTunes, use a different podcatcher software, then copy to your MP3 player. Everytime I see a post that it is not in iTunes I laugh. I always get the podcast right away when they are released. It takes a long time for iTunes to update, if it does it correctly at all.

It is your music, podcast, equipment. Take control of it, don't let iTunes control you stuff, it will loose it at sometime, and you will have to buy it all again if don't back it up correctly.

I don't keep a ton of music on my mp3 player. I'm into podacsts. I would love to have access the some of the archives without storing them.

Also, tell me about a different podcatcher. I'm not a huge fan iTunes so I could easily be converted.

 

[Demosthenes]

Any recommendations of a free program to convert iTunes files to mp3?

iTunes will do it for you. Right click the file or files, and the third option down will be "Create MP3 Version." You can also select the file, go to the advance tab in the menu, and select "Create MP3 Version." It duplicates the song, so you'll have both versions. You can sweep that with automator if you have a mac. I'm not sure if you can do it with Windows.

 

[tlhbdm]

My hubby and I have a public shared folder on our secured wireless network and we can get to each others songs from there. I just had to take my computer into get fixed and they told me I would lose everything so one of the tech guys at worked backed it up onto DH's computer then when we got my computer back we backed it up on the public shared folder