Backing Up My Data

Hi there. My computer is really acting up lately, so I would like to backup all my important data just in case something catastrophic happens to this PC. I had a large slave drive as a backup, but that seems to have failed or be in the process of failing at the moment. What I would like to do is burn my data, mostly photos, a few word documents, and TONS of music onto DVDs. Is there a right and a wrong way to go about doing this? Is there some sort of program I can use to compress the data to fit more onto each DVD?

I have really never backed up my data, and I figure now is as good a time as any to start. Any help would be much appreciated.

-Sean

I wouldn't compress the files, especially the photos.

You can use XP's software to burn them or something like Nero. Just keep track of the total size of the files, and remember that a DVD has a capacity of 4.7GB. If you are going to keep these disks for a number of years I would suggest purchasing some good media, like Taiyo Luden or Verbatim.

Find a place on your hard drive to set up and organise the data to be backed up; once you have decided on the structure, and have purchased enough disks to allow backup by general category of these folders, as well as future additions, then you can begin the burning process. Once burned, you can simply delete the folders/files. The more organised the folder structure, the easier it will be to really make use of them later.
Regards,
John

Another option would be, USB Flash Drives.
More costly than DVDs, but easier to add, remove, and re-organize information, at a later date.
Think of it as a miniature external drive, without the moving parts.