Does your automatic backup system actually, you know — work?

May 8, 2007

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Time publishes a magazine called Business 2.0. Circulation: 557,093. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. By all accounts, this fine publication has done a great job warning their readers about how dangerous it is not to back up their computer files. According to Slashdot, they made the following analogy between backups and flossing back in 2003:

“Everyone knows it’s important,
but few devote enough thought or energy to it.”

Those words have officially come back to haunt them. Just imagine the horror when they realized that the entire June issue was gone due to a computer system crash. Backup, you ask? Oh they had a backup system. No problemo. This is, after all, Business 2.0 we’re talking about here.

Unfortunately, the automated “don’t worry about it” backup system failed to back up. As in, completely failed. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for automated backups, but please test yours occasionally. Or at least one time. To make sure it works and all.

For those of you who really, really need a happy ending, this is for you. Here in the United States, we live in an INSANELY litigious society. In the corporate world, everything has to get the lawyers’ OK. Everything. And in this instance, fear of litigation saved the day (or the June issue of Business 2.0, anyway). Every word of the final text had been sent to the lawyers. Phew! The layouts had to be created again from scratch, of course, but it could have been so. much. worse.

P.S. I really enjoy these Digital Oops! stories. This one is my current favorite. If you’ve got one to share, why not post it in the comments section.

[link via slashdot]

Posted by Sally J. | Filed Under Blog, Preserve 

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