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View Full Version : Backing-up with firefox and gmail


ErinBoBerin
03-29-2007, 01:44 PM
I just discovered the coolest add-on for firefox, and I thought I'd share. We have invested so much into our scrapbooks, and we need to make sure they're backed up. I've been backing up to an external hard drive pretty religiously, but I was starting to think that just wasn't enough. What if both hard drives fail, or the house burns down. If you back up to a CD's or DVD's, what if they fail?

One option is to back-up to DVD's and store them somewhere besides your house, but everytime you complete a layout it isn't practical to burn a DVD and mail it to your parents or take it to work. An online back-up is very practical in that you can keep it current easily, but they can be expensive too. If you have a lot of information to back-up it might be worth paying for a service, but if you only have a couple hundred layouts and pictures, this method will work great for free.

1. If you don't have firefox running on your computer, download it (http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/) (you'll love it compaired to internet explorer), and you'll need it for this.

2. In firefox, go to this link (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1593), and install the gspace add-on.

3. restart firefox

4. Open a new gmail account (https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?service=mail&passive=true&rm=false&continue=http%3A%2F%2Fmail.google.com%2Fmail%2F%3F ui%3Dhtml%26zy%3Dl&ltmpl=ca_tlsosm_video&ltmplcache=2) People won't be emailing you at this account, so just make your username something that's meaningful to you. Like erinslayouts1, erinslayouts2. Adding a number to the end is a good idea, because you might need multiple accounts.

5. In firefox go to the tools menu--gspace. A new tab will come up that will look a little like this
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b228/erinandmarilyn/gspace1.jpg.

6. click on the manage accounts box, and add your new email address and password in the box, press add, and then close.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b228/erinandmarilyn/gspace2.jpg.

7. choose your email address from the drop-down menu (next to the manage accounts button), then click "log in"

8. You're ready to start copying files now. Your window has 4 sections. One shows the files on your computer, one shows the files in your gmail account, 1 shows the files being transfered, the other is a status box.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b228/erinandmarilyn/gspace3.jpg

9. Browse to file files you want to copy on your computer, select the files, the click on the arrow pointing to the right (in between the "your computer" and "gmail" windows).
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b228/erinandmarilyn/gspace4.jpg

10. That's it! It will take some time to upload them (especially if you're on dial-up). At the bottom of the window you can see how much space you have used up, and how much you have left.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b228/erinandmarilyn/gspace5.jpg

brookiewookie
03-29-2007, 01:55 PM
Wow, thanks Erin! I'm definitely going to have to try that. Love the detailed instructions!

April
03-29-2007, 03:12 PM
Thank you so much for posting this Erin!

Keith
03-29-2007, 03:56 PM
Here is another program that works very similar. It attaches to your gmail account in a very similar way, only this integrates with windows instead.

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/E-mail/Mail-Utilities/GMail-Drive-shell-extension.shtml

After it is installed if you go to "My Computer" where all of your normal drive letters are at you will have one called a "Gmail Drive". Anything that you drag into that folder, or copy and paste into that folder will act as if it where on your computer, but if you check gmail it will be an email with an attachemnt. And anything you delete from the "GMail Drive" will also delete out of your gmail account.

Gmail accounts hold almost 3 Gigs of data now, so that is a lot of free storage.

ErinBoBerin
03-29-2007, 04:52 PM
so that is even cooler Keith!

Keith
03-29-2007, 05:31 PM
I think that the firefox extension has a little more of the geeky control, and probably is a more advanced tool. But the Gmail Drive is a very simple and easy to use tool. Both are good in my opinion, some may like one, some may like the other.

Amanda J.
03-30-2007, 04:40 PM
Very very cool. I downloaded the "gmail drive" one. I've got to go through and see what needs to be backed up now.

Thank you!