Your backup, 20 years ago...
If you’ve read a newspaper in the last week, you probably noticed the minor snafu that occurred with some NHS trust computers. In that they were held to ransom, and all of the files on the infected computers were completely inaccessible.
But what does this have to do with photography? Well, my question to you is: where are your photographs? Because if they live on your computer, what would you do if your computer was held to ransom? Or when the inevitable happens, and your hard drive fails? (Which it will.)
Having a good back-up procedure is important (at least one copy on another drive, preferably not connected to your computer). But even better is (you know where I’m going)... to print your photographs.
A print will last much longer than you (the earliest photographs, from the 1820s, are still surviving), assuming you don’t burn it or take it in the bath (and you’ll have no better luck doing that with your computer…). And, kept out of direct sunlight, it’ll fade less quickly than your hard drive will degrade (or your media become obsolete).
So, before the worst happens, find your favourite images and send them off for printing. You’ll thank me in 20 years...