As a college student today, your life is on your computer. All of your school work will be saved in Word documents and Excel spreadsheets, and the majority of your social life will consist of your Facebook wall and instant messaging chat logs. What happens if you lose your computer?
Lose a term paper? You may have just failed the class.
Lose your resume? Not much hope getting a job without that.
Lose those spring break pictures of you and your pals at the bar, being swarmed with bikini-clad girls? Emotionally devastating. (Maybe not having those pictures floating around will be a blessing in disguise when it's job hunting time, but it will suck to lose your memories like that!)
To prevent that from happening, it's essential to backup your computer because it's just too easy to lose your files. Here are six reasons all college students should have their data backed up:
Spilled Drinks and Food
With your dorm room being your house, and your desk functioning as both a work station and kitchen table, there's a good chance you're going to spill a food or beverage on your laptop. And when your laptop keyboard goes under, it could mean your motherboard and hard drive are fried, too.
Computer Crashes and Viruses
We all know what college kids do on their computers. All these online activities and downloads open you up to a lot of risky stuff, including viruses and malware which could crash your computer without warning.
Students Are Forgetful
Rushing between classes and meetings, it's easy to get lost in the moment and leave something important - say, your computer - behind. Even the most responsible students eventually mess up, and when you do, it will be at the worst possible time. Your computer might not get tossed in the trash if left in a classroom, but it could very well be locked up overnight where you can't get to it.
Thieves Are Everywhere
Thieves love to target college campuses because they know there will be tons of items all over, including laptops, MP3 players, etc. Even your fellow students will pilfer your stuff given the opportunity. If you turn your back on your laptop, you might never see it again.
Data Recovery Is Too Expensive
If you break your computer and want to salvage the data on the hard drive, expect to take out more student loans! It's sad, but most students can't afford data recovery. (You don't even want to know how much it costs to recover just one file from a damaged hard drive. It's far from affordable.)
Online Backup Also Comes With File Sync and Remote Access Options
So far, we've only talked about the dangers of not having your data backed up. But there's a huge benefit to students using online backup, and that is the file sync and remote access option available from most online backup services.
This is life-saving if you forget something in your room, or you need your files and you don't have your own laptop with you. Just open a web browser and your files are right there! (Trust me, this looks smooth and professional compared to emailing files to yourself.)
If you sign-up for an online backup service (some of them are free,) it will really save your butt in a disaster. Quit procrastinating and take a look at ADrive and IDrive, or just search for "computer backup reviews" to see what services are getting the best reviews!
Daniel English is a graduate of Penn State University who is so old, he didn't have online backup until after he graduated. He now writes for PCBackupReview, the #1 source for online backup reviews, to spread the word about the importance of computer backup.