Would you lose all your art if your computer was stolen today?



This could have been an artist's letter.

Just like a parent would be alarmed if they found out their child was not wearing a seat belt, I often have been alarmed when I find out a designer does not have an online backup system of their art.

If your digital art is irreplaceable, then you really need to get an online storage system because it is in a different location from your computer.   External hard drives that you plug into your computer are not sufficient, because they can be damaged in a fire or stolen.

I spent a whole weekend working on a piece of art and realized the next day I accidentally lost it! That is like getting a punch in the stomach.  It feels like you need to have trauma counseling.

Luckily I realized my offline backup system would allow me to go back to a specific time period and retrieve the file ("versioning" ).  I could pick the 2:00, 3:00 or 4:00 and day of the art in different states of development.  I didn't realize that, I thought a backup only meant you could get the last copy.

There are many online backup systems to choose from. I tried Crashplan and Carbonite but ended up using Backblaze for $5 a month because it was the most user-friendly and had unlimited storage. And I like that it backs up automatically in the background so I never have to think about it.

I know many people never think they will lose their art, or that they have an external drive to store things on, but I also know artists whose computers have been stolen and hard drive crashed.  It's happened to me.  As one graphic designer told me "it's not if it will happen, it's when it will happen."