Posted by Sandi Winton on May 15, 2008 at 10:59 AM
I just bought a 2 GB flash drive to save some pictures on and was just wondering what everyone thought about using flash drives to save pictures on versus CDs or DVDs. If you use them, is there a brand that should be used over other brands of flash drives.
Sandi, flash drives as far as I know are as reliable as any other type of electronic storage media. This is not counting CDs or DVD's which can become damaged much more easily and are inherently more prone to failure. That being said the flash or thumb type drive I believe you are asking about is a very expensive way to store information be it photos or whatever. I have seen 2GB flash drives for around $10 and USB 500GB external hard drives for around $150. You would need to buy 250 of the 2GB drives to have the 500GB equivalent storage or $2500 worth of expense, Big Difference.
Sandi, there's mixed reviews of the reliability of flash drives, which is enough by itself to make me nervous. CNet reports that quality can be variable, making some flash drives unreliable. For a more complex look, see this article, but keep in mind it was written by a vendor. And, of course, as a long-term storage solution the jury is still out. They haven't been around long enough to really know.
Redundancy is best. CD-R and a flash drive. My own experience is that flash drives do get corrupted, and I have had really serious problems with x-ray baggage screening and flash drives.
As often as I lose flash drives, no way. They're sure small and oonvenient, but for me they're a lot easier to lose than even a memory card. There are programs and services for recovering data from corrupted CF cards, but I don't know of any for lost flash drives.
Sandi, I have a 2 Gb flash drive, but the only time I use it is when I want to transfer images from one computer to another. Since my partner is a computer graphic and Web designer and we both work out of our home offices, they are the most handy way to transfer images and other data from my computer to hers so she can turn the images into promotional brochures or post them on my Web site.
I don't consider them a reliable backup storage medium. I back up all my work on external hard drives (getting cheap, cheap, CHEAP now!) and DVD.
Hi Sandi, great question since I too was wondering about safe storage. I have a 128mg flash, and a 4gb flash but only use them for transfers from one computer to another, of if I want to show photos to another person, then I can just plug into their computer. I thought about the external HD, but they fail too. My opt after considerable thinking, is still CD's. I don't even store on DVD large amounts anymore. I know they scratch, sometimte fail, etc, but still all and all I think they are the safest. I keep them in sleeves, labeled, and in fire proof CD cases. My thinkng is that, one CD might fail, but at least I want lose everything like I would if I had store everything on and external media storage device. My workflow is, capture, download and immediately store on a CD, print a index sheet and , store in a fireproof vault according to date. The index sheets with thumbnails are stored in a large ring binder. May not be the best options, but so far they have worked for me. You wind up with a lotta CD's tho.and expense in printing the indexes.I will never stop storing on CD, but for convenience may purchase and external drive as well.If that goes I will still have the CD's as backup.
Jackie, I use the hard drive and the DVD both. Best of both worlds. There is no backup that won't eventually fail. I use my external hard drives as the working drives.
For me security is spelled R-E-D-U-N-D-A-N-C-Y in media, location, and strategy. The more formats, places and depositories the better.
Obviously it's an impossible burden to stow all your images on multiple duplicates of CD, DVD, and drives, then distribute them to multiple secure locations. But you can do that with your very best images culled from the masses. I've got my elites on a mixture of CDs and DVDs, while the masses in original downloads including the elites are on portable drives. Portable drives and one set of disc backup are here at home for easy access, and the drives often travel with me. Discs of elites are also stored in one of our safe deposit boxes 35 miles away in town. Another set is 1500 miles away at my mom's. It's work to extract those key images from the masses, but you're doing that anyway as a matter of course. It's a small extra step to regularly make discs of all your recent best images, then move copies to secure locations away from home.
Here's an upbeat way to look at it. Security for your images is so much easier and cheaper today with digital than in the days of yore with film. Thank goodness!
Hank, your right about multiple places and multipal storage. Steve, the CD idea plus portable external drive for working purposes sounds like a good idea for me , but my
cd's, I still want in a fireproofe vault.About 2 months ago Atlanta was hit with a large tornado, and another one was very close to us. I knew that if we were hit, all my CD's and external drives would not survive, so I'm thinking that at the least storing the CD's in a large vault maybe would assure that they would survive a tornado, and like you said, Steve, work from and external storage device. Best I could come up with. Any ideas to offer on this? You see, it's not just scratches, brackage, and drives failing, tornados, floods and fire can steal our unreplaceable photographs.
Hank's advice on redundancy is best. I don't store a full set of backup CD/DVD's off site, but the photos I've sold for books or other publications or as prints, what I consider my best work, is safe in a second location, as are backups of all my professional shoots for wedding, portrait, realty and other business clients. And while drives fail, neither has anyone tested the longevity of CD/DVD in a way that satisfies me. Only actual passage of time will do that.
And in 10 years, will anyone even have a new machine that can read today's CDs or DVDs or take a USB or Firewire connection?
Of course, off site can also mean electronic storage online at one of the archival vendors that have cropped up. It's another option, and is about as "off site" as you can get.
Discussion
12 repliesThank you for your help!
Sandi Winton
sandi@redbudphotography.com
Brad
Redundancy is best. CD-R and a flash drive. My own experience is that flash drives do get corrupted, and I have had really serious problems with x-ray baggage screening and flash drives.
I don't consider them a reliable backup storage medium. I back up all my work on external hard drives (getting cheap, cheap, CHEAP now!) and DVD.
I see 500GB drives going for a little over $100 now, with 750GB drives at about $150.
Obviously it's an impossible burden to stow all your images on multiple duplicates of CD, DVD, and drives, then distribute them to multiple secure locations. But you can do that with your very best images culled from the masses. I've got my elites on a mixture of CDs and DVDs, while the masses in original downloads including the elites are on portable drives. Portable drives and one set of disc backup are here at home for easy access, and the drives often travel with me. Discs of elites are also stored in one of our safe deposit boxes 35 miles away in town. Another set is 1500 miles away at my mom's. It's work to extract those key images from the masses, but you're doing that anyway as a matter of course. It's a small extra step to regularly make discs of all your recent best images, then move copies to secure locations away from home.
Here's an upbeat way to look at it. Security for your images is so much easier and cheaper today with digital than in the days of yore with film. Thank goodness!
cd's, I still want in a fireproofe vault.About 2 months ago Atlanta was hit with a large tornado, and another one was very close to us. I knew that if we were hit, all my CD's and external drives would not survive, so I'm thinking that at the least storing the CD's in a large vault maybe would assure that they would survive a tornado, and like you said, Steve, work from and external storage device. Best I could come up with. Any ideas to offer on this? You see, it's not just scratches, brackage, and drives failing, tornados, floods and fire can steal our unreplaceable photographs.
One set of mine is 1500 miles away because we have earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and fires. Oh my!
And in 10 years, will anyone even have a new machine that can read today's CDs or DVDs or take a USB or Firewire connection?
Of course, off site can also mean electronic storage online at one of the archival vendors that have cropped up. It's another option, and is about as "off site" as you can get.