I just lost all my downloaded plug-ins

[buckeyefreak 0]

I finally was starting to catch up on my plug-ins and what not for simcity and then the worst thing happened.  I had a hard drive crash.  And what made things worse was I had not yet got to back things up.  It was on my agenda in just a few more days but I didn't make it!......AHHH...

I was wondering...if it is not against site rules...if it is I appologize in advance, if anyone would be interested in copying their plugins folder to a cd or something.  I do plan on getting the Collectors Edition cd and dvd but I am sure my collection was far larger than what I will get from them.  Unless I am confused.  I just can't spend all the time downloading everything again.  It took me months to get to where I was just the other day and now all down the drain.  I would be willing to get a couple bucks to whoever will do this for me.

Again, if this is against the rules I appologize I just figured I would try.

[SC4BOY 20]

Can you say "BACKUP"? Sure you can.. And of course it's "Aww I'll do it in a couple of days".. Ends up costing WEEKS and MONTHS of hard work down the drain usually. Some shops can rescue some of the HD content, but not at a cheap price usually.

Bad break, but for HD's its not IF its WHEN.

You NEVER want to get someone elses plugins folder.. You'd find your SC4 is ALWAYS crashing and never working the way you want. Plugins are like fingerprints.. eveyone's is different.

If you're handing out "a couple of bucks" for stuff, you might consider donations allowing you to get the STEX CD's Vol 1 & 2..

Good luck on your recovery, but I'm afraid you're back to "reinstall" and redownload all you need and set it all up again.

[Constantina 5]

Prevention is better than cure. In my scenario, the My Documents folder is stored in an external drive, as Windows XP tends to corrupt hard drives at serious crashes. The NTFS file system is not directly accessable by Microsoft DOS. An alternate option is the fish out the problematic drive and retrieve it with a computer that has a NTFS-ready operating system.

In most cases, hard drives are the same.

[jaymeg 0]

I sympathise with you, I did back everything up onto a dvd disc but guess what when i came to install the DVD it was corrupt. my sympaties to you, im now forever sorting out my plugins trying to make sure those brown boxes dont show and then trying to remember where i got that great building - good luck

[Constantina 5]

There are disadvantages with CD and DVD back-ups: They do not last as long as hard drives. Try to investin an external one. They do good service for long-term if you look after it.

[callagrafx 3]

Originally posted by: Constantina There are disadvantages with CD and DVD back-ups: They do not last as long as hard drives. Try to investin an external one. They do good service for long-term if you look after it.quote>

I'm sorry, pardon?  If you burn to a CD or DVD, verify the data, put the disk away in a jewel case or DVD case, it will last for perpetuity.  Hard drives have a life of about 5 years before they start to go funny...I've had 4 total hard drive collapses (all Windows machines, my Mac's never crapped out on me, although the hardware is the same) but never come across a corrupt CD that I've created.

[Andreas Roth 607]

Originally posted by: callagrafxIf you burn to a CD or DVD, verify the data, put the disk away in a jewel case or DVD case, it will last for perpetuity. quote>

 

Unfortunately, no. CD-Rs and DVD-Rs are using some dye for the data layer, and it detoriates over the time, depending on the surrounding conditions. If you store the CD or DVD properly, it may last 5 or 10 or 30 years, some manufacturers guarantee even more, but certainly not forever. Now it's certainly true that harddrives don't last forever, either, but generally speaking, a HD that is safe and sound in your cupboard might last longer than a cheap CD-R. Also, many people are forgetting to verify the data they burnt (happened to me, too, and lost some video files, which luckily could be retrieved from somewhere else).

Anyway, backups are essential, and for the everyday usage, I recommend an external HD, since it's easier to use than a CD/DVD. There are backup programs that backup all your files by a single click, and they only copy the new files, so it doesn't take long, even with large amounts of data. With a CD/DVD, however, the capacity is somewhat limited, and even with a rewritable one, you always have to delete the old files and write them all again (I don't recommend those packet writing/UDF drivers where you can use a CD/DVD like a HD, since it's a lot more complicated to retrieve data in case you have problems with the CD/DVD).

It's a good idea to burn your plugins and your regions from time to time on a (rewritable) CD or DVD, and use an external HD at least every week or so. Two copies are always better than one, and with that strategy, you don't lose more than the work of a month or so, even if one backup medium fails. I guess this is acceptable for private usage. As I said, using an external HD is easy, and you even can configure the backup program to perform that task automatically. But you have to do it, procrastinating it will challenge your fate definitely...

[buckeyefreak 0]

Thanks for all the suggestions. Like I said, I am going to donate. I love this site and would hate for it to go away. I will just have to go from there I guess. Again, thanks all for the helpful advice, and backup will definitely come much sooner this time rather than later.