Eric Cross

Q: What's the best way to backup a LARGE iPhoto 9 library

So, as the title states I currently have 29,713 photos in my library, and I'm looking for the best solutions for backing up.  In the past I have just dragged my libray over the EHD and moved on.  I have read stories of upgrading iphoto and how some have lost photos or they just don't transfer over.  I'm really looking to upgrade anytime soon but I'm wanting a solid plan that I can count on.  Before we switched to digital I used to have all my film pic's copied to CD's for backup so I have those, but since then I just import my digital photos to iphoto and erase the camera disk.  I realize I'm living on borrowed time since it's not IF my HDD with fail...it's When! 

 

So my questions are....

 

1.) Do I just continue backing up the library as in the past?

 

2.) Is it wise to backup the "Originals" folder in my library?

 

3.) How would I go about doing #2 without screwing up my current library

 

4.) Do you guys trust online backups like Carbonite etc...

 

Thanks for your help!

Eric

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8), 17" MBP GHz Intel Duo Core, 4GB RAM

Posted on Jan 27, 2013 10:51 AM

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Q: What's the best way to backup a LARGE iPhoto 9 library

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  • by Terence Devlin,

    Terence Devlin Terence Devlin Dec 13, 2014 7:14 AM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (139,582 points)
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    Dec 13, 2014 7:14 AM in response to clodo9

    Oh great, 9 months later he's back.

     

    But still no explanation of how such a back up is of any use when your computer doesn't have an optical drive.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Dec 13, 2014 8:43 AM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (85,414 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Dec 13, 2014 8:43 AM in response to clodo9

    clodo9 wrote:

     

    nobody's saying DVDs are the way of the future, but they're STILL the most SOLID, time resisting memory media we can use today.

    Tip: don't use "no-name-bulk-special-bargain" DVDs, larry. To know more, please see :

    http://adterrasperaspera.com/blog/2006/10/30/how-to-choose-cddvd-archival-media/

    in a nutshell, choose a R+ good quality disc.

    Have to repeat: this is for archiving VERY important ( to you ) data of a modest size ( remember such a disc contains about 4 GB of data ). Last warning: takes some experiencing to do it right, from iphoto, so buy  a few RW ( rewritable discs ) to practice. Very easy ( plus NOT costly ) as soon as you get the knack of it. Beginners NOT beware.

     

    Nearly a year later and still giving out bogus, really bad advice quoting eight years old blogs from totally unknown people as a valid source

     

    DVD's are NOT he best way to backup - nor even a good way - Hard drives are the best way today

     

    LN

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 11:31 AM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 11:31 AM in response to Terence Devlin

    external DVD reader-burners are not expensive and surprisingly useful, as many of us know ( the many who buy em )

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 11:55 AM in response to LarryHN
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 11:55 AM in response to LarryHN

    larry says : " eight year old blogs from totally unknown people"...

    Now here's the source from which i'm just about to quote a few lines:

    Methodology to protect your data. Backups vs. Archives. Long-term data protection

    As all can see this is taken on THIS "discussions.apple" site, and has been put to date in june 2014. It is a MUST read for anyone looking for a serious answer to the age-old problem of backups and archiving.

    IF you had read it, larry, you would have seen this:

    True longevity, long-term professional data protection. The Gold and Platinum standard

    When it comes to long-term data protection, there is optical and there is NOTHING else, period. While modern notebooks and macbooks have forgone, for the most part internal optical DVD/CD readers/writers, this is most entirely due to the fact that commercial videos and movies have gone to online rentals and Itunes purchases, additionally nearly all software now is online purchase and download. The other reason for this is the removal of a 'high' failure point of an internal optical drive which is both mechanically complex, prone to dust on the laser diode lens due to users inserting dusty disks / media, and that the superdrive is not currently capable of fitting in the super-slim form factor machines such as the current Imac, Macbook Pro and especially the Macbook Air. However external USB DVD burners and readers are going nowhere anytime in the foreseeable future,... and until a new optical technology emerges for data preservation, DVD writers aren’t going anywhere.

    Online media and software however has no bearing or impact on the fact that the fragile nature of ferromagnetic storage has not gotten any better now than it was 20 years ago aside from improved production specifications in physical hard drive builds. There are many that would point out in incorrect conjecture that “optical is a dying or dead medium”, such people don’t know what they're talking about and are directing their comments at optical based movies and software, not data archiving and protection which in fact is growing in scope, not declining.


    "totally unknown people" ? How's this from ken watson's  http://www.rideau-info.com/photos/index.html :

    My use of the term "archiving" is a bit misleading since what you are doing is saving your images to the currently best available inexpensive storage medium (such as a CD/DVD or external HD) while waiting for the next best available storage medium to come along 


    You, larry, of all people , should try to abide by the TOU of this forum, and try to discuss more amicably with others who dare to express an opinion different from yours.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Dec 13, 2014 12:10 PM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (85,414 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Dec 13, 2014 12:10 PM in response to clodo9

    WOW - as proof you quote an old, discredited post that you personally made - that is certainly has no credibility - that is worse that quoting a eight year old blog from an unknown person

     

    The fact is that personal optical media is outdated and is unreliable and is as a result no longer supported by most computer manufacturers - yes you can purchase third party devices just like you probably can still purchae an 8 Track tape system somewhere - but none of that changes the fact that  it is still outdated and unreliable.

     

    LN

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 12:21 PM in response to Eric Cross
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 12:21 PM in response to Eric Cross

    as for the original question of this thread, the first answer, as for any question dealing with backups ans archiving, the first answer is to read PV'sMethodology to protect your data. Backups vs. Archives. Long-term data protection.

    As for the "cream of the crop" data, the "gold nugget" data, for the great majority of us, it'll fit on a DVD !

    Just try it with a RW ( rewritable ) DVD, using the "export" feature in iphoto. A DVD backup is called a "passive" backup cause you can't change it once it's done...well wadyaknow, that's what we're lookin for...The charm of all this is that these pictures will now be impervious to any malware, or updating or upgrading of iphoto, or of the OS! These pix will remain readable ( and importable ) by ANY computer, running any OS, for years ! Oh yeah, and for terence, however shocking it may be, external DVD readers-burners will still be with us for a few years.

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 12:27 PM in response to LarryHN
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 12:27 PM in response to LarryHN

    WOW yourself larry, what the heck are you referring to by "old, discredited post that you personnally made " ?????

    I quoted Plotinus Veritas ( a very very respected member of this forum ) and ken watson, another very very respected member of this community !!!

    I ask anyone who is reading this to decide by themselves by reading the documents and decide on the credibility of each of us ( although my personal credibility has not much to do here, simply citing my sources ).

  • by Terence Devlin,

    Terence Devlin Terence Devlin Dec 13, 2014 12:49 PM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (139,582 points)
    iLife
    Dec 13, 2014 12:49 PM in response to clodo9

    The original question seeking the best way to back up a large iPhoto Library. It did not ask how to back up just a subset of the photos but the entire library. You seem obsessed with the idea that everyone wants the same as you. They don't. They want more than just a version of their photos burned to a dying technology, they want a back up of their library. Don't tell people what works for "the great majority of us" unless you have some supporting documentation, and not just the voices in your head. What you need to do is make you recommendations honestly. Point out the limitations - that what you propose isn't want the person was looking for, that the technology is inconvenient and drifting out of use, that ordinary optical media isn't appropriate but only specialised disks and so on - and then we have no argument. Feel free to link to that article, but I think you should warn people that they risk motion sickness trying to read it.

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 5:26 PM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 5:26 PM in response to Terence Devlin

    backups on DVD are NOT a " backup strategy ", they are PART of a solid backup strategy!

    The DVD backup is necessarily limited ( about 4+ GB per disc ) and will be used to backup only the most important ( to YOU ) data. Four plus GB can still store quite a lot of pics.

    It's simple ( even a bushwhacker gone lumberjack like me can do it ).

    It's extremely versatile : it can ( and will ) be read ( and imported ) by any computer, mac or pc, sporting any OS, and will not fear any update or upgrade !

    It's very "solid" compared to the fragility of ANY HardDisk ( HDs that have a limited life expectancy even when well taken care of ).Have to admit, though, that life is much easier for a DVD, nicely stored in its little envelope, in a tin can ( did i tell ya i was of the olde school ? ) , untouched by heat or rain.

    The abc :

    -use a rewritable dvd to practice exporting photos from iphoto, first creating a few folders on the desktop.

    -then export a few pictures to these folders ( click "file", then "export", then choose the settings ( that's mostly where the"practice" takes place: choosing these settings )).

    -then "burn to disc" these folders.

    d:

    -when you got the knack of it, use R+ DVDs ( tech reasons ) of reasonable quality, making at least two copies ( computer will probably ask you if you want to do another copy )

    -when finished, browse the resulting disc to make sure all went well ( my good  ole snow leopard verifies the disc on its own, but heck, its an old beast, much vilified by a few loudmouthed self-proclaimed pundits, but it remains a very dependable old beast ). As the Bard famously wrote ( sonnet XXIV ):

                 "Fear not, ye valiant olde sno leppard machyne,

                  That ever I should contemplate the ill-fated deed

                  Of upgrading  ye,  so gentle yet so rugged steed "

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 13, 2014 5:41 PM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 13, 2014 5:41 PM in response to Terence Devlin

    terence, your last line reads : " Feel free to link to that article but I think you should warn people that they risk motion sickness trying to read it "...

    Guess you're referring to the impressive discussions.apple tip  https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6031    .

    For the sake of anyone reading this, please read that text, and then assess the credibility of each party.

  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Dec 13, 2014 7:05 PM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (85,414 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Dec 13, 2014 7:05 PM in response to clodo9

    Interesting -- even your GOD Pontinus Veritas says that DVDs are not the solution

     

     

    Re: Facebook concludes optical is the best for their company in static data storage, and to heck with hard drives

     

    Mar 21, 2014 5:52 PM (in response to Alley_Cat)

     

    all about finding that magical substrate that doesnt degrade

     

     

    world doesnt need another VHS vs BETA format war.

     

     

    The future MUST be optical and not magnetic, but not disk optical [DVD], something else, and something a redneck dufus doesn't get a speck of dust on that cover up 100MB of data.

    And no DVD can backup up a large iphoto library

     

    As was true earlier this year you have no idea what you are talking about, ignore the facts and the question and simply love to argue

     

    If you have something correct and positive to contribute please do - if you want to continue to make incorrect arguments that are not even spported by you sources then please just go away - maybe your other will take you computer away again

     

    LN

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 14, 2014 6:45 AM in response to LarryHN
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 14, 2014 6:45 AM in response to LarryHN

    larry,larry,larry,

    here's what: everybody agrees that the FUTURE of storage does not lie in dvds.! Clear enough ?  Now, thing is that ( alas! ), in the PRESENT no other data storage media is as reliable ! And everybody who knows something about storage agree on that ! Clear enough ? I have only intervened on this forum on that subject ( storage,backups, archiving ) because i was dismayed at the number of threads starting by " I lost all my photos " and ending in oblivion, with nobody having been able to help them ( some despicable dimwits even crually writing "You should have made a backup" ) when the person was lamenting on having lost their children's or grandchildren's growing up pictures ! Some of these persons did in fact have an EHD and timemachine running, all falling in a domino effect after an upgrade gone wrong ! For many, many of us "commoners" a DVD backup is still the simplest way to create a VERY reliable, time resisting ( when was the last time you saw one of your old music cd or movie dvd fail  ? ), very versatile ( pc, mac, linux, all OS, all versions ! ) backup, a backup reseved, as i told you time and time again , to our most cherished data, which, again, for the vast majority of  us "commoners" will easily fit on a DVD ! So let's just try to avoid data-catastrophy with a simple mention that a little dvd backup can make a BIG difference!

    PS: you write that i " simply like to argue " as if arguing was a bad thing... Fortunately, crucifixion is no longer trendy, and every intelligent person nowadays admits arguing sometimes leads to something...

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 14, 2014 7:08 AM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 14, 2014 7:08 AM in response to Terence Devlin

    terence,

    you write  " ordinary optical media is'nt appropriate but only specialised disks ". This is incorrect : any R+ dvd of reasonable quality ( many use and recommend the AZO-dyed-verbatim discs ) will give you excellent perennity. It is only if you need a hundred-year plus range, that you will have to be "choicier".

    As for the "voices in my head", i must admit you're right : just this morning i happened to hear Bartoli's singing Bellini's "Casta diva", while taking a walk in the woods! I know, i know, it's sick, but i still prefer this to the cold deafening silence that goes on in your most honorable and "normal" head.

  • by Terence Devlin,

    Terence Devlin Terence Devlin Dec 14, 2014 8:28 AM in response to clodo9
    Level 10 (139,582 points)
    iLife
    Dec 14, 2014 8:28 AM in response to clodo9

    The trolling continues. Troll troll troll. Enjoy it.

  • by clodo9,

    clodo9 clodo9 Dec 14, 2014 12:16 PM in response to Terence Devlin
    Level 2 (194 points)
    Dec 14, 2014 12:16 PM in response to Terence Devlin

    forgive me for not seeing the technical value of the last post

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