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Losing important documents and most cherished photographs due to a hard disk crash is something which we dread the most. Even printed documents and photos, or files saved on an external hard disk or CD are not safe from mishaps which can mean possibly losing documents and memories forever. Luckily there are ways to make sure that your documents and photos are kept safe for many years to come.

Back Them Up!

One method in preserving digital content is by backing them up. Backing up is a very easy process that involves a lot copying from one location to another. Backing up on multiple locations is a good practice as this reduces the risk of deleting a particular file by accident on a particular location.

• On your computer
  A typical computer contains a single hard disk. Hard disks don’t last forever and sometimes "crash" for no apparent reason. When that time comes, all data stored will be inaccessible. By installing multiple hard disks on your computer, and setting it up to work as RAID, your files will be automatically backed up in an array of drives. RAID, or Redundant Array of Independent Disks, is used to increase storage performance and fault tolerance thereby preventing data loss due to hard drive failures.
• On the cloud (web hosting and photo sharing sites)
  If you have money to spend, you can also store your documents and photos to a web hosting service, or online backup service (such as Carbonite.com), or a free photo sharing website (such as Webshots.com or Yahoo's Flickr.com) which are can also be good places to archive them. With web hosting or online backup services, you use their service as backup storage for your documents and photos. You can use as much space as you want based upon the plan that you are subscribed to. This also goes with photo sharing services but it is only limited to photos (though space is usually limitless). The drawback in using is  the uncertainty that these services might just go out of business, or loose your data (since generally they have no liability).
• On external drives
  External drives also provide further protection from files that may be accidentally wiped out on your computer. This also serves as quick and easy way to transfer files from computers.  One significant advantage of external drives is that they are on a separate power supply, so have a degree of isolation.
• On CDs and DVDs
  Optical drives can provide additional storage for your files. However, it is not recommended as the only backup as they scratches easily.  However, they are the best way to store off-site copies of your data - CDs/DVDs easily fit in a bank safe-deposit box.
• On Flash Memory cards
  Flash Memory cards are small storage devices that offer huge capacities at cheap price. Just plug-in the card into a card reader device and easily transfer the files. Since the card is also prone for data corruption, it is recommended that you have more than one card available and transfer to multiple cards.  Like CDs, Flash memory can be a convenient way to store off-site backups - but Flash Memory has a shorter life span, and is not suitable to archival storage.

Use Copies

Working on copies of your original data automatically helps give you a chance to start all over again in case an edit on a file goes bad. When files, particularly photographs are edited and saved, you lose the original of the image and any change that has been applied becomes permanent.

Stay Organized

Keeping files organized helps you locate and manage them easier, especially if you have numerous files which can amount in the thousands. There are numerous ways of doing this, and one way is by grouping the file or photos together in a folder and using a name that is best describes that set. Another way of organizing your files is to group them folders labeled by date, and title. You can separate the date and title by dots which can then be easier to search for by simply entering any of the details found between the dots. For example: 2008.04.24.dad’s_birthday. Placing the year ahead, then the month, then the day, will help narrow down the search and also set your files in chronological order when sorted in your PC. Any other arrangement may work but be consistent for your own efficiency. For photos, you can also use image management software such as ArcSoft PhotoStudio Expresions that allows you to tag each photo, store a title, and rate it.

Preserving various kinds of documents including photos has become essential in today's modern living. By applying common sense, and safe practices you will be able to view and reminisce about your cherished memories, or critical documents, for many years to come.