Cloud Storage? Who should i use?

[gogo419]

Well i have been wanting to put a lot of our families photos and documents into the cloud for a long while.. I have finally decided its time to make a backup "up there" before it is too late!

I have found justcloud.com. It is $6.95USD a month for 2 years. Unlimited storage and access on iOS devices etc.. Does anyone on here use justcloud? Or have any better recommendations? I Would prefer something with unlimited storage.. The reviews i have read online give it good ratings!

I look forward to peoples opinions!

Cheers gogo

 

[Paddy55]

It's an interesting question I'm considering myself!

Have had Crashplan recommended.

V interested in other opinions

 

[SeatBackForward]

It's an interesting question I'm considering myself!

Have had Crashplan recommended.

V interested in other opinions

If, you have a Gmail account, then you already have access to Google Drive. What used to be Picasa is now Google+ Albums. They're all free and are cloud storage.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using AustFreqFly

 

[here2go]

It depends what you plan to store in the cloud. As soon as you've got financial or personal data, Wuala to me is the only one I'd trust, as it is hosted in Europe between CH, DE and FR, and encryption is done on the device, not in the cloud. This protects you from the US Government snooping under the Patriot Act. Furthermore, as it is NOT a web service that can be viewed in any browser, you have a chance of being better protected from other snooping. You can use a Browser where Wuala is not installed, but it creates a Java App on the desktop to encrypt and decrypt files. This could be a problem in a tied down Office Desktop Environment.

I use it for some photos (I need unlimited upload to send them all up) and am happy enough with it, although I must admit iOS integration (as with any iOS cloud app) is painful, as the file system is separate from iWork, and for iPhotos, you will need to duplicate your data. For this reason, I am looking forward to Wuala for Windows 8 Metro, as I will be moving my administrative world to Windows 8, and leave the iPad and probably my beloved Mac for what it was intended for, games and entertainment. (I know I've probably just started World War III saying that according to the Apple Fan Boys - and I've been a dedicated Mac User for 7 years)

Inviting friends and family to access files with Wuala is tricky, as it is a two step process, and the second step I have found is too much effort for family and friends (ie accepting the request in the client to join a specific photo group) because it is a Document and Record Management System (albeit a simple one), which from my experience always freaks people out.

I can't say I've heard of justcloud. Where is it hosted and how is the data being managed is the question I asked myself when selecting a service, and for anybody going to the cloud in my opinion is what they should be asking themselves. (I am a former Information Architect for a government agency, so I am supremely paranoid).

 

[Simo]

I am not a fan of storing personal/Financial info in the cloud.

I store photo's/calendar appointments/contacts in the cloud but that is it.

My employment/dealership agreement will not allow offshore storage of information.

 

[gogo419]

Thanks for all this. Yes i think i am only serious of having a copy of all our family photos up there. Then i am happy that i have a personal backup and that there is a backup in the sky, just too be safer..

Does anyone do backups to a hard drive that is then stored in a safe? Or fireproof box etc..? Or stored somewhere off your property?

gogo

 

[here2go]

I am not a fan of storing personal/Financial info in the cloud.

I store photo's/calendar appointments/contacts in the cloud but that is it.

My employment/dealership agreement will not allow offshore storage of information.

Data sovereignty is a big issue with any cloud solution. It's a pity there are few Australian players at the consumer end of the market.

 

[here2go]

Thanks for all this. Yes i think i am only serious of having a copy of all our family photos up there. Then i am happy that i have a personal backup and that there is a backup in the sky, just too be safer..
Does anyone do backups to a hard drive that is then stored in a safe? Or fireproof box etc..? Or stored somewhere off your property?

If it is simply to backup, this looks good Welcome to iosafe Australia. Consumer grade hard drives in their own fire safes.

 

[here2go]

SeatBackForward. Google Drive is not a "free service". In signing up you give away ownership of the photos in perpetuity. So in otherwords, they let you use the photos for free once they are uploaded, even if you cancel the service. Nobody else in the Western World is that evil. As Steve Jobs said, the Google mantra of "Do No Evil is Bull%h1t!". Google are a data mining and business intelligence company that make products to allow them easier access to your life. For this reason I will never touch Android.

Microsoft Sky Drive will give you 25GB for free, and you get to keep ownership of the data, and they won't mine it. However, you are subject to the US Patriot Act.

 

[Simo]

Thanks for all this. Yes i think i am only serious of having a copy of all our family photos up there. Then i am happy that i have a personal backup and that there is a backup in the sky, just too be safer..

Does anyone do backups to a hard drive that is then stored in a safe? Or fireproof box etc..? Or stored somewhere off your property?

gogo

Yes I do have a back up in the safe at work.

 

[serfty]

I was alerted to Dropbox here and it works quite well. (http://www.australianfrequentflyer....s-software-and-hardware/getdropbox-18349.html)

I am quite happy with it (but, yes, I do regularly back up, just like I do with the USB drive I carr around).

 

[Rallo]

I pay $24.95 US a year for Flikr Pro with unlimited upload for photo and video.
After having videos of my children stolen from our house I decided to keep family photos somewhere safe

 

[nlagalle]

I use dropbox for file Syncing between machine as that is what is was designed for. Its a great tool. I do back up my pics into the Amazon Cloud though and also use Shutterfly to store images on i get prints done from there too).

 

[beardoc]

I stumped up the cash (USD4.99/month) for 105GB with Google Drive, and just took my My Documents and My Pictures folders and dumped them in. The big plus for me is versioning of Office files - a copy of each version is kept!

But then I am very heavily invested in the Google ecosystem already - pretty much everything now has been moved into the Google Cloud (mail, contacts, personal data, Docs). Drive was always going to be the service that I wanted to use - that it works so well is very satisfying.

 

[equus]

If it is simply to backup, this looks good Welcome to iosafe Australia. Consumer grade hard drives in their own fire safes.

But not electrically isolated (if using the internal versions), and subject to being stolen along with the source device. For backup, I prefer something disconnected from the system, which prevents any possiblity of accidental deletion.

I am one that stores hard drives (USB ones now, used to use IDE drives connected via caddies), in a fire-proof safe (not all safes are fire-proof). It is not off-site (that brings other issues), but in a different area.

I utilise a layered backup approach. Everything is automatically backed up to an internal drive (used just for backup), with daily incremental and periodic full backups. Periodically, a copy of the current backup is taken to an external drive, and stored in the safe. I use multiple external drives, and copy the new backup to the oldest one in the rotation.