All posts by Yev

Holiday Gift Guide 2025

2025-11-18 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/holiday-gift-guide-2025/

It’s that time of year again where the holidays are barreling towards us at an incredible rate. With so many cyber sales and new things hitting the market, it’s the most wonderful time of year to read gift guides. To help, I’ve asked my fine companions at Backblaze to list out some of their favorite gift ideas for this year, and I’ve compiled them for you here. Enjoy the suggestions, and my rambling commentary!

Couch Cady

The couch outside of my office and the recliner are where I spend the majority of my at-home time. What better way to keep your drinks, snacks, and second screens handy than this caddy?

Cereal Cup

Have you ever put cereal and milk into a yeti mug and drank it after everything’s turned into a sugary mush? Me neither, but now you don’t have to—this cup allows you to maintain two great tastes that taste great together, but without them having to touch until you’re ready!

Slow Cooker Seasoning Blends

For the chef in your life—or for the aspiring chef that never quite understood what the word “seasoning” meant—this is a great seasoning blend. Let’s face it, if you’re eating their food, it’s a gift for you too!

Schmidt Brothers Stainless Steel 10-Piece Knife Block Set

Another one for the chef’s in your life. This knife block bundle looks good, by all accounts feels good, and also cuts good—which is great. By the way, does anyone in your life use pairing knives? It’s something I’m just now getting the hang of…fun!

Timeless Six Wine Exploration Bundle

I have this, I use this, and I love this. It’s likely been in gift-guides of yesteryear but it’s just that good. Whether you’re a single human like me who doesn’t want to open a whole bottle and just wants a glass from time to time, or you’re an aficionado wanting to taste his bottles before opening them for a fancy dinner, this pumps inert argon gas into your wine bottles without having to open the cork. Great stuff.

Graze olive oil in glass bottles

Popularized by Tiktok videos, this olive oil stands up to the hype and adds a good amount of actual flavor to your dishes. Whether you’re drizzling or frying, it’s a good recommendation!

Sustainably Raised Meat (for cooks or people who BBQ)

And speaking of frying, Butcherbox allows you to order sustainability sourced meats and have them delivered right to your door. It might be too late if you’re looking for a Thanksgiving bird, but you might need a few steaks eventually!

Terra Kaffe Demi automatic espresso machine

Espresso. Some pronounce it with an “x.” And while it does give you a caffeine boost in a hurry, there’s nothing express about it…except for getting a machine like this that can really speed up and boost your home coffee consumption.

Fancy Onsen Towels

Soft, cuddly, and rapidly drying—these towels are a treat. I got to use one a few months ago while visiting a friend of mine and I still think about them, seriously! It might actually be time to rotate my towels and these are at the top of the list.

Cordless Cleaning and Scrubbing Brush

Cleaning yourself with onsen towels is great, but what about cleaning the actual shower or bath? These allow you to get all the nooks and crannies between the tiles, and because they’re cordless you can also use them on your car rims. Do you ever wash those? You should!

Guardian Kids Bike and Guardian Adult Bike

What’s one of my top-10 favorite things? Assembling Ikea furniture while listening to music. But I also enjoy biking! This combines both as the adult and children bikes are shipped to you and you get to assemble them at home before taking them on the road! It keeps costs low, and satisfaction high!

Oura Ring 4

I have been wearing fitness trackers for a very long time, from smartwatches to fitbits to step-counters, and this is my favorite one so far! I love that I can quickly charge it every 4-5 days and it gives me great insights into activity and sleep, without having to wear something bulky to bed.

Patagonia Black Hole Duffel

I am often envious of people who travel with duffel bags because of all the stuff you can fit into them. I still use my old-timey rollaboard, but I do have one of these that I throw in the car with me when I hit the ski slopes. These are great, come with backpack straps, and also have a lot of clips where you can hook carabineers up to (which is a great way to bring shoes you don’t want to pack).

Bev Ledge

Airplanes have come a long way but unless you’re sitting in your own personal pod up front (must be nice), there never seems to be enough room for all your stuff! This ledge fits neatly onto your window sill and allows for you to get a little more utility out of your surroundings! Just…don’t get an aisle seat.

Trtl Travel Pillow

As the Wu-Tang Clan once sang, “protect ya neck.” This travel pillow helps do just that when you’re on the go. No one likes falling asleep on a plane and waking up to a stiff neck—this helps!

Wyze Solar Cam Pan

These are great for monitoring the outside of your home, but the real killer app comes from using the indoor ones as baby monitors. Seriously, my family has been using them for years in the kiddos’ rooms, and not only is the quality much better than a standard baby monitor, but the recording features make for some really cute videos, and there’s no range restrictions. It’s a win-win-win.

Bambu Lab X1C 3D Printer

3D printing has become very mainstream over the last few years, and this at-home unit with space for multiple filaments makes it incredibly easy to create your favorite designs.

Kindle

Books. You know them, you love them, you should probably read one of my favorites from the last 10 years (The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle) and any of the Kindles should help you do just that! I’m a book on tape guy now because I tend to walk a lot (and if you have Audible I highly recommend the Dungeon Crawler Carl series), but if you enjoy holding something in your hands, the paper white Kindles are fantastic.

Classic Diablo (or any “good old game” from GOG”)

Classic games are classic for a reason! The recommendation from our org was for Diablo on Good Old Games, but there are a ton of classics there to choose from. One of my favorite series: Quest for Glory. Version 4 my favorite as it dives into Eastern European folktale lore!

Voice Activated Transformer Robots

Transformers have always been popular, and these voice-activated robots are what I dreamed of when I was a kiddo. Now that I’m no longer a kiddo, I still kind of want one, because watching toys “build themselves” gives me real Toy Story vibes.

K-pop Demon Hunters Wooble kit

K-Pop Demon Hunters took the world by storm, and now you can turn it into a crafting activity for you or your kiddos! Wobbles are little crochet kits, and come with everything you need to make something cute and squishy, right at home!

Retroid Pocket G2

This little gaming handheld allows you to emulate the games of your youth. Whether you liked playing the Sega Game Gear or the Game Boy, you can get all your favorites in one place with these on-the-go systems.

Moondrop Space Travel Headphones

On the go or on the couch, good headphones are paramount. These are relatively shallow and offer noise cancelling technology to keep the outside world out while you’re listening to tunes, audiobooks, or podcasts!

Give the gift of Backblaze

An image of a gift box with the words "Give Backblaze Backup" overlaid

Of course you can always give the gift of Computer Backup. It makes a great gift and helps keep the data of your family and friends safe and sound. Peace of mind is a great gift.

Something you’ve had on your mind didn’t make our list? Tell us in the comments—we love hearing what people are excited about!

The post Holiday Gift Guide 2025 appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup

The Hidden Cost of Cloud Storage: What 400+ IT Leaders Wish They Knew Sooner

2025-10-30 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/the-hidden-cost-of-cloud-storage-what-400-it-leaders-wish-they-knew-sooner/

A decorative image showing pillars in multiple sizes.

Cloud storage was supposed to simplify infrastructure. Instead, it’s become one of the most unpredictable—and expensive—line items in IT budgets.

A new Dimensional Research report, commissioned by Backblaze, reveals that 95% of organizations experience unexpected cloud storage charges—costs that disrupt budgets, slow innovation, and limit flexibility.

The 2025 study surveyed more than 400 IT decision makers responsible for managing at least 250TB of data in the public cloud. The findings make one thing clear: as AI, analytics, and data-intensive workloads expand, hidden costs and limited interoperability are forcing companies to rethink their cloud strategies.

The problem: Hidden fees are everywhere

According to the research, nearly every organization surveyed has been hit by surprise charges like retrieval, egress, or PUT fees.

95% of respondents reported unexpected costs for cloud storage usage.
Larger organizations—those with more than 5PB of data—were even more likely to experience frequent charges.

These hidden costs have become such a burden that 85% of companies are taking steps to manage them. The top tactics include:

Reducing the size of datasets stored in the cloud (56%)
Shortening storage duration policies (45%)
Cutting spending elsewhere in the tech stack (40%)

In short: IT teams are making trade-offs to avoid surprise costs—trade-offs that can limit innovation and reduce the value of their data

Egress costs are locking companies in

One of the most striking findings:

55% of respondents said that the cost of egressing and moving data is the biggest barrier to switching cloud storage providers.

That means many organizations feel trapped in their current solutions—not because the technology is best-in-class, but because moving their data would be too expensive.

This dynamic creates what’s often called a “walled garden” effect—where providers profit from data lock-in rather than delivering value through performance or innovation.

The result? Slower cloud adoption, limited agility, and higher total cost of ownership for IT teams trying to scale modern workloads.

Flexibility and interoperability are the new imperatives

If cost surprises weren’t enough, nearly all respondents (99%) said that limited flexibility and lack of interoperability are impacting their ability to deliver and scale.

In other words: even when data is stored safely, it’s often stuck—difficult to move, integrate, or use across tools and platforms.

This friction hits hardest at large enterprises and data-heavy organizations that depend on cross-cloud workflows, hybrid architectures, or AI pipelines that require moving large volumes of data frequently.

A turning point for cloud storage strategy

With 62% of respondents preferring to select best of breed providers vs. one-stop-shops, these findings highlight a growing shift:

IT teams are no longer choosing cloud providers solely based on performance or ecosystem.
They’re prioritizing predictability, transparency, and interoperability—the ability to move and use data freely, without hidden penalties.

Backblaze has long championed this model with open cloud storage that puts customers—not pricing structures—in control. Our egress fee transparency, S3 compatible APIs, and simple pricing are designed to eliminate the pain points identified in this report.As one respondent put it: “We need a cloud partner that helps us use our data, not pay to move it.”

What’s next: Join the conversation

The full report—The Hidden Cost of Cloud Object Storage—is now available for download. Inside, you’ll find all the data, charts, and insights from 400+ IT leaders across industries and company sizes.

And, to dive deeper into the findings, join us for an upcoming live webinar with experts from Dimensional Research and Backblaze. We’ll unpack the key trends, share real-world stories from IT leaders, and discuss how to build a more transparent, flexible cloud strategy.

About the research

The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research in May–June 2025, included responses from 403 qualified technology stakeholders responsible for cloud storage strategy and budgets. All participants represented companies with over 250TB of data stored in the public cloud.

The post The Hidden Cost of Cloud Storage: What 400+ IT Leaders Wish They Knew Sooner appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup

Holiday Gift Guide 2024

2024-11-19 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/holiday-gift-guide-2024/

A decorative image showing a gift floating in the ether, waiting to be given.

Ah, the holidays. They can be both fun and stressful for many of us—not least because we have to make so many decisions around gift giving. The plethora of cyber sales and new products on the market make this a great time to try out new products yourself or buy some for the loved people in your lives. To that end, I’ve followed tradition and asked some of my fellow Backblazers to submit their gift ideas for this year and we’ve compiled them into this 2024 gift giving list!

Reading, (w)righting, (a)rithmatic

Kindle Paperwhite

For the reader in your life, the Kindle Paperwhite is a great way to keep reading regardless of the conditions. It uses e-ink technology to avoid glare and allows for reading in both high and low light conditions!

ReMarkable Paper Pro

This is one of the coolest devices out there, and I can personally say that I desperately want someone to gift me one (although it’s a bit on the pricey side, so I get it). This uses similar e-ink technology as the Paperwhite and allows you to take notes using your own handwriting—which (at least in my case when I write in cursive) helps me remember things!

Tekfun LCD Writing and Doodle Tablet

Mixing writing and artistry, this doodle tablet is great for kiddos that are with you in a restaurant or long-haul flight. In fact, I just bought one of these for my nephew!

Klein Bottle

Some people are math people. I don’t get it, but this Klein Bottle is basically an inside joke to math nerds (something about Möbius loops) and can serve as a lovely table prop for the math lover in your life.

Sounds good!

HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless Gaming Headset

For the gamer in your life, these are some of the best headphones on the market. They’re wireless, they sound great, and the microphone picks up all of the positive (I’m sure) feedback for teammates.

Apple AirPods 4

The latest and greatest from Apple. These come with a new chip that helps with transparency mode so you can cross the street with confidence.

Google Pixel Buds Pro 2

A product image of the Pixel Buds Pro 2.

If you’re an Android user (raises hand) you may want something built for your phone and the latest Pro version of the Pixel Buds are here for you. These come with little nubs for snug fit, meaning you can run or lift or meander without worrying that your tiny buds will fall out.

Experiences

Sur La Table Cooking Classes

A screenshot form the Sur La Table website that features their holiday cooking classes.

Who doesn’t want to impress loved ones with delicious dishes? If you have a Sur La Table near you, these are great.

Airbnb Experiences

If you’re a fan of traveling you’ve likely stayed at an AirBnB. But even if you’re more of a homebase person, their Experiences tab is worth checking out. From cooking to glass blowing to cow cuddle therapy (yes, that’s a thing).

Odds and ends

theFube Fidget Cube

I have one of these in my car and, let me tell you, as a person who used to bite their nails out of boredom (gross, I know), it helps keep my mind and compulsions at bay! Highly recommend.

Under Desk Foot Rest

Many of us spend our day sitting, sometimes standing at a desk. Even when you’re sitting, though, ergonomics are a big deal and having an adjustable foot rest can help you get into a position that feels solid and sustainable for long stretches of time. I recommend getting up and stretching every now and again, but if you’re like me and have a bad back, these are great.

Leatherman ARC

Whether you’re outdoors or indoors, sometimes you need to cut or saw or screw or open or pry or file something, and for that, these Leatherman tools cannot be beaten.

Give the gift of Backblaze

And, of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t remind you that Backblaze Computer Backup makes a great gift. Help your family and friends experience the sweet, sweet peace of mind that comes from a good backup strategy and make sure they never lose a file again. Bonus: you don’t even have to go to the store to get it.

A decorative showing a gift covered in Backblaze logos.

Go forth and gift!

We hope this guide sparked some ideas and simplified some choices. We love hearing about what folks are excited about, so feel free to give us some more good options in the comments below.

The post Holiday Gift Guide 2024 appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup

What Do Teachers, Parents, and Students Have in Common? The Need to Back Up

2024-07-25 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/what-do-teachers-parents-and-students-have-in-common-the-need-to-back-up/

Our world has moved more online, and blackboards have taken a backseat to laptops in classrooms and lecture halls alike. From homework to lesson planning and grading, to communicating with students and parents, educators and students rely heavily on their computers and sync drives like Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. And, when it comes to digital resources, there’s always a risk of data loss, which, when it strikes, can wipe out hours or days of work.

This is where backup solutions come into play. In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of computer backup for both students and educators, highlight the importance of choosing an affordable and reliable backup solution, and give you some talking points to help others in your educational community understand the importance of backing up.

Risks of data loss

Data loss can happen for a variety of reasons, including hardware failure, accidental deletion, theft, or cyber attacks.

Imagine this scenario: You’ve spent hours building a detailed lesson plan, preparing engaging multimedia presentations, and grading student assignments. Suddenly, your computer crashes, and you can’t get it to turn back on. Or, you lose your USB drive that has years of work, including lesson plans. Both situations are not great and the result is that all of your hard work is gone in an instant.

Data loss is an issue for anyone, but for educators, the consequences can affect not only your work but also your students’ learning experience. And the same scenario is true for students—working on a research project last minute only to have a blue screen of death five minutes before the deadline can be a frustrating turn of events—and one that affects your grade long-term.

The 3-2-1 backup rule

The good news about avoiding data loss is that there are some established best practices that can give you a great place to start. The most fundamental of these, the 3-2-1 backup rule, says you should have three copies of your data on two types of storage media with one copy stored off-site.

Sync is not backup

Sync services like Google Drive, OneDrive, and Dropbox are great, but they are not the same thing as a true backup. Sync drives are designed to keep all versions consistent with each other, which makes them vulnerable to things like accidental deletion and ransomware attacks. While some may have limited version history or “backup,” those features are typically for a limited amount of time (i.e., 30 days), or are lacking in some of the key areas that schools need to maintain compliance with data protection standards.

Cloud backup services are using a different tool for a different job—you want your synced files to change, whereas you want your backup to be a fixed point in time you can restore if you need to. That’s not to say that you won’t have your backup files constantly up-to-date, like you do with an automatic backup solution, just that you’ll be able to restore a file, or all of your files, to whatever time you choose.

And, if you think the difference is just splitting hairs, studies show that 58% of organizations that experienced data loss last year had some amount of unrecovered data. And, in that same pool of survey takers, 84% of organizations were relying on cloud sync services.

Benefits of backing up

Protection against data loss: The primary benefit of a backup solution is the protection it offers against data loss. By regularly backing up your files, you can ensure that your important documents are safe and can be restored quickly in case of any mishap, or even if you forget your laptop at home.
Enhanced productivity: With a reliable backup system in place, you can focus on what you’re working on without worrying about it getting lost. This peace of mind allows you to work more efficiently and creatively, knowing that your files are secure.
Compliance and accountability: While not at the top of many student’s minds, many educators know that educational institutions have policies and regulations regarding data storage and protection. Having a robust backup solution helps teachers, professors, and the organizations they work for stay compliant with these regulations.
Cost savings: Investing in a backup solution can save you money in the long run. Data recovery services can be expensive after the fact, and the time lost in trying to recreate lost work can be even more costly. An affordable backup solution provides a safety net that prevents these potential expenses.

Students: Back up your data regularly

Often, students are given space on cloud drives or required to submit assignments through learning management systems like Blackboard. But, even with cloud drives, many tools don’t account for adequate backups. When it comes down to it, students are responsible for turning in their work on time.

Getting a backup in place protects you and all the effort you’re putting into your coursework, and you can try it for free to see if it’s right for you.

Educators and faculty members often drive change

Collaboration is one of the hallmarks of an educational environment, and educators and students are often just as responsible for driving change as administrators are. Whatever role you take in your educational community, there are many ways you can make to help others understand why backup is so crucial, and how to choose the tool that’s right for you.

Choosing an affordable and reliable backup solution

When selecting a backup solution, affordability and reliability are key factors to consider. Here are some decision criteria you can share with others to help in choosing a backup solution:

Assess your needs. Determine the amount of data you need to back up and how frequently it changes. This will help you choose a solution that meets your specific requirements without overpaying for unnecessary features.
Cloud vs. local backup. Cloud-based backups offer the advantage of remote access and easy storage to a geographically separate location, while local backups (such as external hard drives) can provide faster recovery times. Both methods have a place in a solid 3-2-1 backup strategy.
Ease of use. Look for a backup solution that is user-friendly and doesn’t require extensive technical knowledge. The easier it is to use, the more likely you are to maintain regular backups.
Security features. Ensure that the backup solution you choose has robust security features, such as encryption, to protect your data from unauthorized access and cyber threats.
Cost-effective plans. Many backup service providers offer tiered pricing plans based on storage needs and features, or are based on the number of devices you need protected. Backblaze Computer Backup, for example, starts at $9 per computer per month for unlimited backup, with discounts for one year or two year plans.

Share resources to facilitate discussion

If you don’t have a robust backup strategy in place through your IT department or district, send them this article or this Texas A&M case study and recommend that they get started with a backup strategy.

Save your data (and yourself!): Think about backups ahead of time

Remember, regardless of how you’re creating data, the question isn’t if you will experience data loss, but when. Be prepared and make backup a priority—if not in your organization, then definitely in your personal tech choices.

The post What Do Teachers, Parents, and Students Have in Common? The Need to Back Up appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup

2024 State of the Backup: Survey Says Security Incidents and Data Loss on the Rise

2024-06-11 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://backblaze.com/blog/2024-state-of-the-backup-security-incidents-and-data-loss-on-the-rise/

A decorative image showing several icons that represent graphs, charts, and stats.

June is Backup Awareness Month, and every year, we work with the Harris Poll to survey the state of computer backups in the U.S. It’s our 16th year running, and this year, we expanded our lens and created a new survey focused on analyzing the state of backups among businesses, providing critical insights into organizational backup strategies and challenges.

And as in previous years, our consumer backup survey provides a comprehensive summary which reflects trends and changes over nearly two decades. The combination of these two audience surveys provides a more complete picture for the state of backups in the U.S. Let’s start with our new survey data.

Spotlight: Business Backup Is Coming Up Short

Our inaugural Business Backup Survey included 300 IT decision makers across the U.S. Part of what we wanted to learn was:

With all of the different ways IT professionals have to protect their user’s data, how are they choosing to back up and are backup solutions even working?

We can infer the answers to those questions by looking at the tools organizations use to back up their data, the frequency of data recoveries, and how successful or not those recoveries were.

What Tools Do Organizations Use to Back Up Their Data?

One of the most striking findings from the poll is that a significant majority (84%) of IT decision makers say their organizations utilize cloud drive services, which rely on syncing data to the cloud, for off-site data backup. You may have heard us say this before—sync is not backup.

What’s Wrong with Cloud Drives and Sync Services?

Cloud drives allow for file storage and sharing but may not protect against file corruption or accidental deletion. Sync services automatically update files across multiple devices, meaning that any changes or deletions are replicated everywhere, which can lead to unintended data loss. While some cloud drives have added minimal backup capabilities (i.e., 30 days of version history or similar), they are often lacking in key areas that are necessary for business continuity or compliance standards.

Cloud backup solutions, on the other hand, are designed to systematically and securely back up data, offering robust protection against loss, corruption, and security breaches. This makes cloud backup a better choice, particularly for addressing security concerns and ensuring the integrity and availability of critical data.

How Often Do Organizations Need to Restore Data?

39% of IT decision-makers report that their organizations need to restore data from backups at least once a month, with special requests for archived or deleted data (62%), backup software failure (54%), hard drive failure (52%), and cyber attacks (49%) reported as some of the top reasons. This frequent need for data recovery underscores the persistent vulnerabilities IT professionals face.

Are Data Recoveries Successful?

Not only do many organizations need to restore on a regular basis, but the survey also shows that among those that experienced data loss, only 42% were able to recover all of their data when they perform a restore. That leaves 58% with some amount of unrecovered data.

Are Backups Working?

The data shows a sizable gap between the use of backup services and the effectiveness of data restoration. Although a significant percentage of organizations indicate they’re using what they would consider a cloud backup solution (the shortcomings of cloud drives and cloud sync services aside), only 42% of those that experienced data loss were able to restore all their data. This discrepancy highlights the risks associated with inadequate backup measures and the potential for data loss, which can have serious repercussions for businesses.

Only 42% of organizations that experienced data loss were able to restore all their data.

There are all sorts of ways businesses need to slice their data management strategy in order to make sure all data is backed up. This includes data type (e.g., files vs. system information), frequency with which the data is updated or changed, retention requirements for compliance, and more. There are often reasons that businesses will employ different backup frequency or strategies for different file types—file-based versus block-level incremental backups, for example. However, incomplete backups can lead to situations where only parts of the data can be restored, disrupting business operations and resulting in downtime as efforts are made to recover or reconstruct lost data.

The importance of creating an end-to-end data backup plan, as well as choosing the right tools that provide comprehensive coverage, may be highlighted only at the moment of failure. As it stands, the Harris Poll data suggests that the limitations of cloud sync and cloud drive tools are leaving gaps in data protection and disaster recovery strategies.

This is further validated by the features IT decision makers report as being absolutely essential/very important in selecting backup tools, including security (97%), bandwidth and memory capacity (87%), a variety of features (79%), ease of operations and customizable elements (83% each). These rigorous requirements suggest that many existing solutions may fall short of meeting the comprehensive needs of modern businesses, and/or that the complex mix of tools may be contributing to blind spots in an overall data management strategy, only exposed at the point of recovery.

How To Close the Gap?

These insights underscore the need for innovative and robust backup solutions that address evolving business requirements. As the volume of data continues to grow and cyber threats become increasingly sophisticated, the demand for reliable, secure, and user-friendly backup systems will only heighten. Given the challenges many businesses face in fully recovering their data, there’s an opportunity to promote education and awareness regarding the importance of refreshing backup strategies and utilizing suitable backup tools.

Consumer Backup Practices: Less Than 1 in 5 Are Certain of Their Backups

The consumer portion of the 2024 Backup Awareness Survey seeks to understand a simple question we’ve asked year after year: How often do you back up all of the data on your computer? We also look at who backs up the most and the reasons people cite for needing to restore data, and we compare those trends over time. Let’s dig in to the results.

How Often Do People Back Up?

This year’s survey reveals that fewer than 1 in 5 Americans (15%) feel absolutely certain that their most important files are securely backed up. This is despite 84% of Americans who own a computer stating that they’ve backed up all their data and 45% performing backups at least once a month.

The survey also highlights the predominance of cloud solutions among backup methods. 63% of individuals who back up their data use a cloud-based system as their primary method. However, only 11% utilize dedicated cloud backup services, indicating a preference towards cloud drives (39%) and sync services (13%). As we noted above, cloud drives and sync services are fundamentally different from cloud backup solutions and can create gaps in a robust 3-2-1 backup strategy.

Who Is Best at Backing Up?

Every year, we highlight which demographic is the best at backing up their data, and in 2024, men (73% vs. 66% of women) and younger adults ages 18–54 (76% vs. just 61% of those ages 55+) take the lead backing up at least once a year.

The Reasons for Restores

The survey also found that 74% of Americans who own a computer have accidentally deleted important data (a 5.7% increase from 2023), and 57% have experienced a security incident on their computer.

Trends Over Time

For those interested in the data over time, let’s travel back and see how this year’s data compares to previous years. The first graph is one of our favorites. Since 2023, daily backups have dipped by 1%, while weekly and monthly backups have remained steady, which is encouraging. Additionally, there is a slight, but not statistically significant, increase of 1% in yearly and more-than-yearly backups. Notably, the percentage of people who have never backed up their data has decreased by 2%.

For all the table enthusiasts, you’ll appreciate this detailed view showcasing how 2024 compares with previous years. We love to see Never down to an all-time low, although Daily took a slight dip.

If you’re a visual person who appreciates vibrant pie charts for easier data digestion, here are pie charts comparing data from 2008 to 2024:

Within each population (business and consumer), the most striking data points are around the differences between backup and sync. Both consumers and businesses are leveraging cloud drive and sync services for ease of use, but that has not translated to successful data recoveries. With ransomware attacks on the rise, now more than ever, it’s essential to have a strong backup strategy.

Still, we’ve come a long way since 2008, and the consumer data shows positive change over time around backup awareness and tool adoption. Going forward, we’ll be interested to see how the business audience data changes over time. See below for our full testing methodology, and, as always, drop us a line in the comment section if you have any questions or insights.

Consumer Survey Method:

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Backblaze from April 25-29, 2024, among 2,058 adults ages 18 and older, among whom 1,877 own a computer. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level.

Prior year’s surveys were conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Backblaze among U.S. adults ages 18+ who own a computer in April 25–27, 2023 (n=1,857) May 19–23, 2022 (n=1,861); May 12–14, 2021 (n=1,870); June 1–3, 2020 (n=1,913); June 6–10, 2019 (n=1,858); June 5–7, 2018 (n=1,871); May 19–23, 2017 (n=1,954); May 13–17, 2016 (n=1,920); May 15–19, 2015 (n=2,009); June 2-4, 2014 (n=1,991); June 13–17, 2013 (n=1,952); May 31–June 4, 2012 (n=2,176); June 28–30, 2011 (n=2,209); June 3–7, 2010 (n=2,051); May 13–14, 2009 (n=2,154); and May 27–29, 2008 (n=2,723).

Business Backup Survey Method:

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Backblaze from April 30 – May 8, 2024, among 300 IT Decision Makers. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 5.7 percentage points using a 95% confidence level.

For complete survey methodologies, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact Backblaze.

The post 2024 State of the Backup: Survey Says Security Incidents and Data Loss on the Rise appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup

7 Data Dilemmas + 5 Backup Strategies for World Backup Day 2024

2024-03-22 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com/blog/7-data-dilemmas-5-backup-strategies-for-world-backup-day-2024/

Everyone’s favorite holiday is fast approaching. That’s right: World Backup Day is just around the corner on March 31 (if you’re new to celebrating). Many moons ago, we got together with some like-minded champions of the backup lifestyle to encourage people to protect their data, and World Backup Day was born. In the past we’ve shared internal metrics on backup trends, advice for talking to your family about backups, and learnings from our yearly backup poll (stay tuned in June for more of those!).

This year to mark the occasion, we’re revisiting some tales of bullets dodged and backup victories. You’ll find no scary monsters here—no, these tales end happily. We like to call them ReStories—heartwarming sagas of folks who found a data lifeline. And we’re throwing in some tips and tricks to help you protect your data, too.

Let’s take a walk down ReStory lane.

Rising From the Ashes of the Marshall Fire Crisis

In 2021, the Marshall Fire left many in despair, but for Christopher G., it was a test of foresight. “A lifetime of memories were kept in my data, and years before this I decided to get a permanent backup solution,” Christopher shared. When disaster struck, Christopher lost his data—including his on-site backup copies—but he remembered he had an off-site backup stored in the cloud with Backblaze. He initiated a restore, and we sent hard drives with everything he needed to get his precious memories back.

Tip 1: Mitigate Risks With 3-2-1 Backups

Christopher’s story is a powerful testament to being prepared with a 3-2-1 backup strategy, which means keeping three copies of your data on two different media with one stored off-site (and preferably in the cloud). When two copies of his data were wiped out by the Marshall fire, he could rely on his third copy to restore all of the data, including years of photos and important documents.

School District Protects Data for 23,000 Students

Bethel School District had 200 servers and 125TB of data backed up by Rubrik, a backup software provider, to Amazon S3, but high costs were straining their budget—so much so that they had to shorten needed retention periods. They moved their backup copies from Amazon S3 to Backblaze B2, resulting in savings of 75%, which allowed them the budget flexibility to reinstate longer retention times and better protect their data from the threat of ransomware.

It was really a couple clicks, about five minutes worth of work, and we were pointed to Backblaze.

—Patrick Emerick, Senior Systems Engineer, Bethel School District

Tip 2: Plan for a Ransomware Attack Before It Happens

Ransomware attacks specifically targeting school districts and universities are on the rise—79% of institutions reported they were hit with ransomware in the past year. A ransomware attack is not a matter of if, but when, and that’s true whether you’re a school, university, business, or just someone who has data they care about. Take a cue from Bethel School District and take proactive measures to protect your business data from ransomware, like establishing retention periods that allow you to recover adequately in the event of an attack.

Backing Up Years of Research

The Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute at Texas A&M–Kingsville needed an endpoint backup solution to protect data on researchers’ laptops in the field and on-site, knowing researchers in the field don’t always follow protocols to the letter when it comes to saving their data. The Institute’s IT manager implemented Backblaze Computer Backup which gave him the ability to remotely manage faculty and staff backups. And he knows that, with no added fees, recoveries won’t be cost prohibitive.

Tip 3: Manage Backups Centrally

Whether you’re a remote employee or managing them, it can help to have tools like silent install, fine-grained access permissions, and management controls (at Backblaze, you can access all of these via Enterprise Control for Computer Backup). That way you can stay focused on what matters most instead of updating backup clients and fiddling with settings. Plus, you don’t have to worry about backups being accidentally deleted or tampered with.

Glenda B.’s Emotional Rescue: 20 Years of Memories Reclaimed

Losing decades of family photos can be devastating, a sentiment echoed by Glenda B.: “Several years ago my photos were all inexplicably deleted from my computer—20 years of family photos gone in an instant!” Some of them were on iCloud, but there were years of older photos that were only stored on her computer. Fortunately, she had very recently installed Backblaze Computer Backup, so all of her photos were safely backed up in the cloud. Glenda initiated a restore with Backblaze, restoring her files and her invaluable memories.

Tip 4: Sync Is Not Backup

If you’re like Glenda, your digital life is probably scattered across your computer, external hard drives, and multiple sync services from iCloud to Google Drive. Glenda’s story is an important lesson that sync is not backup. Sync services are great for sharing data and accessing it on multiple devices, but that doesn’t help you when you lose data that’s only stored on your computer or when you accidentally delete a file and don’t realize it. One of the drawbacks of using sync services as a backup is that data outside those services is vulnerable. And the fix for that vulnerability is to use a true backup service to protect all of your data.

What Happens When One-Third of Your Employees’ Machines Crash?

BELAY Solutions is a staffing company that connects organizations with virtual assistants, bookkeepers, website specialists, and social media managers. While performing scheduled system updates across BELAY’s fleet of Macs, nearly a third of the company’s machines crashed. After shipping out replacement laptops, the IT team empowered BELAY employees to use Backblaze Business Backup to recover their own data independently in a matter of minutes.

Our work is very time intensive, so our team can’t be offline for long—you always need reliable technical assets to support virtual assistants in the field.

—Cam Cox, IT Systems Administrator, BELAY Solutions

AJ’s Tech Misadventure: Averting a Digital Disaster

Upgrading your computer’s operating system is routine until it results in an accidental wipeout, as AJ found out. “In summer 2020, I accidentally wiped my external hard drive while downloading a copy of Windows 10,” he recounts. But thanks to Backblaze, AJ could redownload everything, salvaging irreplaceable files.

Rob D.’s Professional Life: Recovering Years of Work

For Rob D., a graphic designer, losing years of work to a computer crash was catastrophic. He woke up to the “dreaded blue screen of death” and despite efforts, only scattered metadata could be salvaged. But, Backblaze came to the rescue. “As a graphic designer, YEARS of design projects were gone in a flash. Clients…were not too pleased…Enter Backblaze,” Rob said. With a new hard drive filled with his backed up data, he experienced immense relief. “Can’t quite describe the feeling of relief I felt at that moment knowing that I was going to be ok. THANK YOU Backblaze!! I’m a customer for life!”

Tip 5: Reduce Downtime With Self-Serve Backup Solutions

Even tech savvy folks like AJ, Rob D., and the staff at BELAY solutions can get flustered when they suddenly lose their data or ability to work, so an easy restore process everyone can use themselves no matter their level of IT knowledge is essential for those high-stress situations. BELAY initially chose Backblaze for its simplicity and ease of use. “I’ve been able to help someone get their data back within five minutes. I don’t think that ever would have happened using our previous tool,” said Cam Cox, IT Systems Administrator. And, Backblaze user AJ relayed that having Backblaze was “worth every penny for the rapid restore process.”

Take the World Backup Day Pledge This Year

As we celebrate World Backup Day, let’s take a moment to recognize the critical role that data backup plays in safeguarding our digital assets against unforeseen threats. Whether you’re a business owner, an IT director, or an individual user, investing in robust backup solutions is an investment in resilience and peace of mind. By embracing proactive measures and leveraging technology to fortify our defenses, we can navigate the complexities of the digital age with confidence and resilience. We encourage you to take the World Backup Day pledge, feel free to reach out to us on socials, and check back in June to see the newest results of our yearly backup survey.

The post 7 Data Dilemmas + 5 Backup Strategies for World Backup Day 2024 appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.

Now Available: Enterprise Control for Computer Backup

2024-01-17 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/2024-enterprise-control-announcement/

If you’re responsible for protecting company data, you know that any number of things can jeopardize the data on workstations, be it human error or natural disaster. It’s your job to reduce risk, but to do that you need the ability to fine-tune your backup systems.

Backblaze Computer Backup gives you an easy, automatic, centrally-managed solution for backup. And, starting today IT administrators can take greater control of their endpoint backups—from how employees authenticate to what they can and cannot restore—with the introduction of our new Enterprise Control for Backblaze Computer Backup.

Ready to Turn the Dials?

Enterprise Control is available for enterprises with more than 20 Computer Backup licenses at an additional $2 per license. To take advantage of greater administrative control, contact a Sales representative. Learn more about how to set up Enterprise Control by visiting our technical documentation on the subject.

What’s New in Enterprise Control?

Whether you’re an IT manager or an MSP responsible for protecting business data, Enterprise Control allows you to meet your full business continuity and data security standards for workstation data and better support a hybrid and remote workforce. Here’s what you can do with Enterprise Control:

Fine-Grained Access Permissions: Manage access to group member data on a granular level for enterprise operations. This includes control over members’ ability to delete their own backups, admin’s ability to delete member backups, and admin’s permissions for restoring data on a member’s behalf.
Advanced Single Sign-On: Enable OpenID Connect (OIDC) single sign-on (SSO) and the ability to use tools like Okta and Azure Active Directory in addition to GSuite and Microsoft. This enhances security control, allowing you to ramp up authentication practices, verifying member identity and streamlining identity management.
Group Management Controls: Prevent members from leaving a group, taking data with them, or ordering restore hard drives or snapshot hard drives without permission. You also have the option to hide the ability to update the client through the desktop app, rename or purge end user backups from the web application, and prevent Group members from updating the client app on their own.
Compliance Support: Benefits businesses who are mandated to apply greater controls given compliance, cyber insurance, or heightened recovery point objective (RPO) and recovery time objective (RTO) requirements.

We’ve been using Backblaze to reliably back up our 400 endpoints for years. We’re excited at the possibility of having even more control to meet our growing administration and data protection needs with this new Computer Backup with Enterprise Control solution.

—Sintya Pappagallo, IT Manager, North Point Ministries

Enterprise Control Gives You The Guardrails

Backblaze Computer Backup reduces IT burden with its simplicity, and consistently ranked as Wirecutter’s Best Online Cloud Backup Service. Now, we’ve wrapped that simplicity with the enterprise features larger organizations require so you can reduce risk, achieve compliance, and better support your cybersecurity and disaster recovery goals.

How to Upgrade to Enterprise Control

Enterprise Control is available for Groups with 20 or more Computer Backup licenses. To take advantage of Enterprise Control or to purchase Backblaze Computer Backup for your organization, contact your Sales representative. Or, learn more about how to implement Enterprise Control by visiting our technical documentation article.

If you have additional feature requests, please visit our Product Portal or let us know in the comments below.

The post Now Available: Enterprise Control for Computer Backup appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.

Holiday Gift Guide 2023

2023-11-16 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/holiday-gift-guide-2023/

A decorative image showing exciting images falling out of a present. The title reads Holiday Gift Guide.

The holidays are fast approaching and with them the many cyber sales that provide both inspiration and opportunity for gift giving on any budget. To help narrow the field, every year I ask my fellow Backblazers to submit the gifts that they are looking forward to both gifting and receiving. (Hopefully some of their loved ones read the blog?) And of course, I’ve sprinkled in a few of my favorites as well. Without further ado, here’s what we suggest looking into for your 2023 gift giving!

Health and Wellness

Oura Ring

This little thing is pretty neat. It helps you keep track of your health, tracking everything from sleep to stress levels. It lasts for a week on a single charge, and is super easy on the eyes, so you’ll want to wear it all over the place.

Garmin InReach Mini

We have a lot of hikers, joggers, and runners at Backblaze and, as firm believers in thinking about your backup options before a disaster, the Garmin is an awesome-to-have trail buddy.

Drinks On Me (You?)

Yeti Cocktail Shaker

While a cocktail shaker is a pretty common household item, this one is sure to impress. Ask questions like, “Could my drink possibly get any colder and stay that way?” and “Can I customize my shaker with a sticker of my cat’s face?” And the Yeti’s answer is yes. Also, you know we love when a product comes in red.

The Durand

A decorative image of a Durand removing corks from an old bottle of wine.

Wine anyone? If you or someone in your life is a big wino, older wines are a delicious treat, with a potentially fatal stumbling block: old, crumbly corks. The Durand corkscrew helps take them out with no breakage.

Coravin Timeless Three

An image showing a Coravin attached to a wine bottle pouring wine into a glass.

Another one for winos, the Coravin is an incredible wine system that uses tiny needles and argon gas to pour wine into your glass without having to actually open it. I can personally vouch for this one as a single human who has nice wine bottles and often wants a single glass once or twice a week.

Japanese Matcha Tea Set

A decorative images showing someone making matcha tea.

Tea time is a dreamy time and this matcha set allows you to make yourself a traditional cup. And if you need some matcha powder for it, this one comes high comes highly recommended: Organic Ceremonial Grade Matcha Powder.

Jet Boil Camping Stove

A decorative image showing a JetBoil camper heater setup.

Tea and coffee at a campsite are a must-have, and if you’ve never tried a Jet Boil, this model is easy to use. Also helpful for those times where you lose power and need to make some hot water in a hurry.

Food’s Good

Sous Vide

Foodies know and love the sous vide method, a.k.a. low temperature, long time (LTLT). If you’re into cooking your food in a hot tub, you’ll be happy to know that this accessory has come down in price dramatically over time. We like this version of a kitchen appliance, but there is certainly a wide world of sous vide gadgets out there if you’re interested.

Ooni Pizza Oven

Pizza night gets fancier with this pizza oven that can make you a Neapolitan style pizza in less than five minutes. You gotta love that efficiency.

Goldbelly Iconic Meal Kits

An image of the Goldbelly website showing iconic meal kits.

Love fancy foods but can’t travel to get them? Goldbelly has become the go-to for nationwide delivery of local favorites, and they now do meal kits as well. We’re not going to say you should give up on your standard, probably nutritionally balanced Hello Freshes of the world, but we will say that these are a whole lot more, well, iconic.

AeroGarden

Have your own mini-garden whether you’re in a house or an apartment. With just a little bit of counter space, a semi-green thumb, some patience, and water, you’ll never have herbs go bad in your fridge again.

Games and Gaming

Steam Deck OLED, Lenovo Legion Go, & Rog Ally

Not since the times of the Game Boy Advance or maybe the Nintendo 3DS have handheld gaming systems seen such a rise in popularity. Along with the Nintendo Switch, these three handhelds bring the power of a computer to your fingertips on the go. While it’s not quite a gaming rig, it’s good enough for most airline flights, and hey…they’ll all play Baldur’s Gate 3.

D&D Starter Set

It’s a great time to be a nerd. Critical Role, Dimension 20, The Adventure Zone, and many more role playing games (RPGs) are super popular nowadays, and it’s high time you take part. Get the D&D starter kit, some dice, and your soon-to-be best friends, create your character and get rolling.

Clothes

Ororo Heated Vest

Backblaze is based in California, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t know about weather. (What’s this wet stuff falling from the sky again?) That said, as a Midwesterner by heritage (dontcha know), I know something about staying warm. Heated clothes take the benefits of your favorite heated blanket and give them to you on the go.

Selk’bag

Camping? Walking? Freezing? How about a sleeping bag that you can walk in, eh?

Hats, Fanny Packs, & Bomber Jackets From Lower Park

A screenshot of the Lower Park website showing a lovely bomber jacket.

We’re all about being good community members, and this local (to us) company makes hats, fanny packs, and bomber jackets using environmentally friendly materials. They’re good products, in more ways than one.

Relax

Breathing Buddy

A product image showing how to meditate.

Studies have shown that meditation has measurable benefits for your mind and body. There are a plethora of tools out there to help you build good habits (see below), but this one is stinkin’ cute. Let this little guy help visually take you through a guided meditation. Bonus: it’s a great gift for kids, too.

Calm

Focus on your breath and the sound of crashing waves for just 15 seconds. pic.twitter.com/shf05o380U

— Calm (@calm) November 15, 2023

The Calm app helps people stay mindful with everything from guided meditation to celebrity-read stories. We’re big fans of their social posts that just encourage you to take a 15 second break—it’s a positive interruption to the doomscroll effect, and a great way to preview some of the app’s content.

Watch and Listen

Skylight

A twist on photo frames: you can send pictures to it and have all of your favorite memories staring back at you when you look over. Or, send photos to anyone, anywhere. Definitely some potential prank opportunities to be had; but it’s also a great way to keep in touch with far-flung family members.

Sonos Surround Set With Beam

A product image of a Sonos surround kit.

Sonos surround systems are a great addition to homes. Multiple speakers can sync up to make sure that you’re never far away from rocking out to Weird Al, no matter where you are in the house.

Ikea FREKVENS (Sound Activated Lightbox)

Music’s always better with light shows and this lightbox from Ikea matches beats and keeps things groovy. Yet another reason to love Ikea!

Apple AirPods Max

For the audiophiles in your life, the AirPods Max are the over-the-ear variant of the traditional AirPod. They’re much harder to lose, giving you that impressive combo of sound and noise cancellation you’ve come to expect.

Pixel Buds Pro

To balance the scales for our Android lovers, here are Google’s in-ear buds. They have a lot of bells and whistles including noise cancellation and built-in Android Assistant. Now when you talk to yourself, someone will answer. (That’s a good thing right?).

LEGO

LEGO is having a bit of a moment (at least in my family) and we have spent a lot of time building complicated models. For the adults in your life that love to tinker, we recommend some of these cool sets!

LEGO Ideas Typewriter

LEGO PAC-MAN Arcade

LEGO Sanderson Sisters’ Cottage

Give the Gift of Backblaze

A decorative image showing a gift box with the words "Give Backblaze Backup" overlayed.

Go Forth and Gift!

We hope this guide sparked some ideas and simplified some choices. We’ll also be publishing our second-annual book guide in December if you’re struggling with something for the literary folks in your life. (There’s some good stuff in the first one too.) We love hearing about what folks are excited about, so feel free to give us some more good options in the comments below.

The post Holiday Gift Guide 2023 appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.

Things That Used to Be Science Fiction (and Aren’t Anymore)

2023-10-31 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/things-that-used-to-be-science-fiction-and-arent-anymore/

The year is 2023, and the human race has spread across the globe. Nuclear powered flying cars are everywhere, and the first colonies have landed on Mars! [Radio crackles.]

Okay, so that isn’t exactly how it’s gone down, but in honor of Halloween, the day celebrates the whimsy of all things being possible, let’s talk about things that used to be science fiction and aren’t anymore.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Have we gotten reader fatigue from this topic yet? (As technology people by nature, we’re deep in it.) The rise of generative AI over the past year or so has certainly brought this subject into the spotlight, so in some ways it seems “early” to judge all the ways that AI will change things. On the other hand, there are lots of tools and functions we’ve been using for a while that have been powered by AI algorithms, including AI assistants.

Shout out to this content creator for a hilarious video.

At the risk of not doing this topic justice in this list, I’ll say that there’s plenty of reporting on—and plenty of potential for—AI now and in the future.

Aliens

This year, the U.S. House Oversight Committee was conducting an investigation on unidentified flying objects (UFOs). While many UFOs turn out to be things like weather balloons and drones designed for home use, well, some apparently aren’t. Three military veterans, including a former intelligence officer, went on record saying that the government has a secret facility where it’s been reverse engineering highly advanced vehicles, and that the U.S. has recovered “non-human biologics” from these crash sites. (Whatever that means—but we all know what that means, right…)

Here’s the video, if you want to see for yourself.

Weirdly, the public response was… not much of one. (The last couple of years have been “a year”.) But, chalk this one up as confirmed.

Space Stations

The list of sci-fi shows and books set on space stations is definitely too long to list item by item. Depending on your age (and we won’t ask you to tell us), you may think of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series (the books), Star Wars, Zenon, Girl of the 21st Century (or maybe the Zequel?), Babylon 5, or the Expanse.

Back in the real world, the International Space Station (ISS) has been in orbit since 1998 and runs all manner of scientific experiments. Notably, these experiments include the Alpha Meter Spectrometer (AMS-02) which is designed to detect things like dark matter and antimatter and solve the fundamental mysteries of the universe. (No big deal.)

For those of us stuck on Earth (for now), you can keep up with the ISS in lots of ways. Check out this map that lets you track whether you can see it from your current location. (Wave the next time it floats over!) And, of course, there are some fun YouTube channels streaming the ISS. Here’s just one:

Universal Translators

Okay, universal translators is the cool sci-fi name, but if you want the actual, machine learning (ML) name, folks call that interlingual machine translation. Translation may seem straightforward at first glance, but, as this legendary Star Trek episode demonstrates, things are not always so simple.

And sure, it’s easy to say that this is an unreasonable standard given that most human languages are known—but are they? Native language reclamation projects like those from the Cherokee and Oneida tribes demonstrate how easy it is to lose the nuance of a language without those who natively speak it. Advanced degrees in poetry translation, like this Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Iowa (go Hawks!), help specialists grapple with and capture the nuance between smell, scent, odor, and stench across different languages. And, add to those challenges that translators also have to contend with the wide array of accents in each language.

With that in mind, it’s pretty amazing that we now have translation devices that can be as small as earbuds. Most still require an internet connection, and some are more effective than others, but it’s safe to say we live in the future, folks. Case in point: I had a wine tasting in Tuscany a few months ago where we used Google Translate exclusively to speak with the winemaker and proprietor.

iPads

“What?” you say. “iPads are so normal!” Sure, now you’re used to touch screens. But, let me present you with this image from a show that is definitely considered science fiction:

Yes, folks, that’s Captain Jean Luc Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation. And here’s a later one, from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

These are plans for the arboretum, so Keiko is probably dropping some knowledge.

Star Trek wikis describe the details of a Personal Access Display Device, or PADD, including a breakdown of how they changed over time in the series. Uhura even had a “digital clipboard” in the original Star Trek series:

We’d have to revisit the episode to see what this masterful side-eye is about.

And, just for the record, we’ll always have a soft spot in our heart for Chief O’Brien’s love of backups.

Robot Domestic Laborer

If you were ever a fan of this lovely lady—

Rosie the Robot, of course, longtime employee and friend of The Jetsons.

—then you’ll be happy to know that your robot caretaker(s) have arrived. Just as Rosie was often seen using a separate vacuum cleaner, they’re not all integrated into one charming package—yet. If you’re looking for the full suite of domestic help, you’ll have to get a few different products.

First up, the increasingly popular (and, as time goes on, increasingly affordable) robot vacuum. There are tons of models, from the simple vacuum to the vacuum/mop. While they’re reportedly prone to some pretty hilarious (horrific?) accidents, having one or several of these disk-shaped appliances saves lots of folks lots of time. Bonus: just add cat, and you have adorable internet content in the comfort of your own home.

Next up, the Snoo, marketed as a smart bassinet, will track everything baby, then use that data to help said baby sleep. Parents who can afford to buy or rent this item sing its praises, noting that you can swaddle the baby for safety and review the data collected to better care for your child.

And, don’t forget to round out your household with this charming toilet cleaning robot.

Robot Bartenders

In this iconic scene from The Fifth Element, Luc Besson’s 1997 masterpiece, a drunken priest waxes poetic about a perfect being (spoiler: she’s a woman) to a robot bartender. “Do you know what I mean?” the priest asks. The robot shakes its head. “Do you want some more?”

Start at about 2:00 minutes.

These days, you can actually visit robot bartenders in Las Vegas or on Royal Caribbean cruise ships. Or, if you’re looking for a robot bartender that does more than serve up a great Sazerac, you can turn to Brillo, a robot bartender powered by AI who can also engage in complex dialogue.

Please politely ignore that his face is the stuff of nightmares…it’s what’s on the inside (and in the glass) that counts.

And, if leaving your house sounds terrible, don’t worry: you can also get a specialized appliance for your home.

It’s a Good Time to Be Cloud Storage

One thing that all these current (and future) tech developments have in common: you never see them carting something trailing wires. That means (you guessed it!) that they’re definitely using a central data source delivered via wireless network, a.k.a the cloud.

After you’ve done all the work to, say, study an alien life form or design and program the perfect cocktail, you definitely don’t want to do that work twice. And, do you see folks slowing down to schedule a backup? Definitely not. Easy, online, always updating backups are the way to go.

So, we’re not going to say Backblaze Computer Backup makes the list as a sci-fi idea that we’ve made real; we’re just saying that it’s probably one of those things that people leave off-stage, like characters brushing their teeth on a regular basis. And, past or future, we’re here to remind you that you should always back up your data.

Things We Still Want (Get On It, Scientists!)

Everything we just listed is really cool and all, but let’s not forget that we are still waiting for some very important things. Help us out scientists; we really need these:

Flying cars
Faster than light space travel
Teleportation
Matter replicators (3D printing isn’t quite there)

We feel compelled to add that, despite our jocular tone, the line between science and science fiction has always been something of a thin one. Studies have shown and inventors like Motorola’s Martin Cooper have gone on record pointing to their inspiration in the imaginative works of science fiction.

So, that leaves us standing by for new developments! Let’s see what 2024 brings. Let us know in the comments section what cool tech in your life fits this brief.

The post Things That Used to Be Science Fiction (and Aren’t Anymore) appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.

How to Manage Your Family’s Backups

2023-10-12 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/groups-speeds-family-backup/

A decorative image showing faces on laptop screens.

When it comes to navigating the treacherous landscape of a household’s digital ecosystem, from smartphones and laptops to smart homes and millions of subscriptions, there often emerges a silent hero—the ever-humble, quietly toiling, underappreciated Family IT Manager. This unsung role, typically filled by a tech-savvy-est member of the family, takes on the responsibility of keeping everyone’s digital lives running smoothly. Maybe you know one of these vaillant souls. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s you.

As the Family IT Manager, having one more arrow in your quiver with which to slay the dreaded data loss dragon is always helpful. And that’s what Backblaze Groups is all about—making it easier for you to keep track of everyone’s data in one place.

Today, we’re sharing some practical tips and tricks for using Groups to better manage your family’s backups.

Have You Checked Out v9.0?

Backblaze recently rolled out v9.0 to all Backblaze Computer Backup users. If you haven’t had a chance, you can read all about the latest version, including the new Restore App.

What Are Backblaze Groups?

Groups helps you manage the backups your family creates without having to log in and out of individual accounts. This makes it simple to keep track of everyone in one place. All the backup accounts are linked to the same credit card (they can Venmo you later), and you can even help someone else in your family create a backup or restore files easily with Groups. Need to help a family member with a computer emergency? Log in, access their most recent backup, and restore everything. Is your sibling unsure that you really added Backblaze to their computer? Log in, view their account, and get the screenshots to prove it to them (and everyone else).

By the way, this would be a great time to give the new Restore App, included with Backblaze Computer Backup v9.0, a spin.

One point of clarification: You might see Backblaze Groups referred to as “Business Groups,” but you don’t have to be a business to use Groups. They work equally well for businesses and personal users alike, including Family IT Managers (and, truly, running family IT is kind of like running a business, isn’t it?).

Why Use Groups?

You can already manage multiple computers on a single Backblaze account. So why use Groups instead? Well, with Groups, each user has individual access to, and control of, their account. You—as Group administrator—manage billing and, as needed, data recovery. This is a more secure and safer method than sharing the same account credentials among several computers used by different people.

Have multiple households or groupings of folks in your life that you need to manage? You can have as many Groups as you like to help you keep track of everyone and everything, and each of those Groups can have separate billing.

What Do I Need to Know About Setting Up Backblaze Groups for My Family?

The Groups feature streamlines the management of the accounts you need to monitor. As the Group administrator, you have total control over who’s included as part of your Group. You can send out email invitations, or alternatively, you can use a unique Group invitation link that allows anyone you share it with to easily join.

A screenshot of a Backblaze account showing how to create a Group. — Here’s the visual of where you’d find everything in your account.

Being in a Group is entirely voluntary. Any member of a Group can leave any time they want, and Group administrators can also remove individuals from a Group at any time.

If you dissolve your Group for some reason or if someone chooses to leave, the removed person can decide whether they want to keep using Backblaze by establishing their own payment method. Perfect for when it’s time to wean the kiddos off of your shared accounts—whether they like it or not.

One last note: while you can set up and administer more than one Group with separate billing, you can only be a member in one Group.

Those are all the caveats, really. If you want to read more about the step-by-step instructions, check out our Help article about creating a Group.

Invite Members: The More the Merrier

Once you create a Group, you can invite members to join it. Copy the Group invite link Backblaze generates automatically for you. Give it to friends and family via email, chat, or any other means you’d like.

A screenshot of a Backblaze account showing how to invite Group members. — We promise to send the emails. You may have to remind them to check their email.

When the person you’ve invited clicks on the link, they will be prompted to either create a Backblaze account (if they don’t have one) or log in to their existing account. After completing this step, they will be prompted to download Backblaze. If they are already using Backblaze, there is no need for a reinstallation; they will seamlessly become a part of your Group.

Once an existing user successfully joins your Group, they’ll be under your billing account. Their existing credit card will automatically receive a prorated refund for the remaining portion of their previous Backblaze license. There is no need to worry about re-uploading data—their backup remains securely stored in Backblaze.

Newcomers to Backblaze can download and install the client to initiate their initial backup process. As the Group administrator, you will have the capability to monitor their backup progress. Remember that the first backup of data may take some time, but after that, everything will run smoothly in the background.

Go Forth and Conquer, Mighty IT Manager

We understand that being the go-to “tech person” for your family and friends can be challenging. We hope that Groups simplifies the process, making it easier for you to help keep your family’s data safe.

The post How to Manage Your Family’s Backups appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.

Restore Like Never Before: Introducing Backblaze Computer Backup v9.0

2023-09-13 Yev

Post Syndicated from Yev original https://www.backblaze.com/blog/restore-like-never-before-introducing-backblaze-computer-backup-v9-0/

A decorative image displaying the title Backblaze Computer Backup and v9.0.

Get ready. The release of Backblaze Computer Backup 9.0 is rolling out now through the end of September.

Backblaze Computer Backup 9.0 is available today in early access, and restoring your files is about to get a whole lot easier.

What’s New in Backblaze Computer Backup 9.0?

Whether you’re a longtime user or just getting started with Backblaze, version 9.0 provides you with an unparalleled backup and restore solution. With our latest release, you get our most requested feature: a dedicated restore app for both macOS and Windows clients that makes the process of restoring your data even more intuitive, seamless, and streamlined than before. The new version also comes with essential bug fixes and performance improvements to keep your back up experience ahead of the curve for both security and speed.

Backblaze Restore App: macOS and Windows Highlights

Whether you’re using our macOS or Windows clients, you can now recover your important data with even more ease.

Here’s a peek into some of the new features we have in store with our new Restore Client App:

Simplified restore initiation process. When you’ve lost important files, the last thing you want is a demanding process sitting between you and restoring your data. With the restore app, you authenticate your Backblaze account and initiate the restore directly from your desktop. Once authenticated, you can browse your file tree and kick off the restore process immediately.
No limits for restore size. There are no limits to restore sizes inside of the restore app. Conserving disk space is important and you shouldn’t have to worry about downloading a .zip and having enough additional space to unzip it as well.

If you’re interested in a comprehensive tutorial on how to use the new restore app, we’re here to guide you. Let us walk you through the process.

We’re excited that our version 9.0 release compliments your already robust methods of accessing your data. To access your backup from anywhere, you can log in to www.backblaze.com to initiate a restore and use our iOS and Android apps to access your files on the go.

Backblaze v9.0 Is Available in Early Access Today: September 13, 2023

We will be taking feedback and slowly auto-updating all users in the coming weeks, but if you can’t wait and want to download the early access release now on your Mac or PC:

Go to: https://www.backblaze.com/status/backup-beta
Select your operating system and download the v9.0 app.
Install the early access release on your computer.

Please note, since this is in early access you might hit some bugs. Please reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions or if you want to give feedback—we always like to know how things are going.

The post Restore Like Never Before: Introducing Backblaze Computer Backup v9.0 appeared first on Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup.