Computing Saviors: Carbonite & LastPass

I’m far from being a techie. Tech stuff is just not that… succulent. But, given that we are more and more dependent on our computers, I thought I’d share a couple of geeky solutions that have spared me from much computer-related despair and hair-pulling.

A couple of months ago, I sensed that my two year old laptop was – prematurely- ready to call it quits. Usually, I give my laptops three years, but this one (I won’t mention the two-letter brand name) was not going to make it. I’m quite proud to have had the foresight – for once -  to avoid disaster by using an online (remote) backup solution. Sure, I have an external backup drive, but you think that I ever remember to backup? Never. And then, what happens if something happens to my backup dirve??? So, when I found out about Carbonite, it was like “Eureka”.

Carbonite automatically backups up all files on my computer: emails, photos, documents… The Carbonite program scans my computer to check for any new or updated files and backs them up automatically. There is nothing for me to do. The files are encrypted as they make their way to the Carbonite data center, so they are completely secure. There is a yearly fee of $54.95 which to me is completely worth it for the ease and peace of mind that it provides.

So when my computer did decide to give up, I was prepared. All I had to do was to access my Carbonite account and upload the files to my new computer.

The other solution that was extremely helpful in the computer transition was LastPass. It is a secure password manager. Since LastPass is web-based, all I had to do was to access my master LastPass account – from any computer. This saved me from having to remember and reenter the hundreds of convoluted passwords created for all my online accounts as these were now recognized on the new computer. Again, all data here is encrypted. There is a free version and another at $1/month. Again, totally worth it, especially with the now hundreds of online accounts that I’ve created.  There is also a spot to add secure notes (any personal information) and sites (like banking sites).  Here is video on how it works:

Both of these solutions are idiot-proof, i.e. no geekiness required to install them, use them and both highly secure. I like that both solutions are remote, so that should anything else happen to my computer (theft, coffee spillage, etc…) I will always be able to retrieve important data from absolutely anywhere.

Let me know if you try them.