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Copy and backup important documents
Comments 0 | Recommend 0Paper isn't waterproof. Your house title, insurance information, Social Security card and wedding photos could be ruined in a hurricane, and so could your computer and the data stored there.
So when preparing for a hurricane, it is wise to both safeguard the original versions of your vital documents and to make sure you have your most important data backed up.
Fortunately, the cost of scanning and storing information is dropping all the time, and it is easy to create digital copies of your photos and documents and to find a safe home for them.
Some public libraries, including the Palm View branch library in McAllen, will help you scan your documents for free. But if you're less tech-savvy or short on time, stores like Fed-Ex Kinko's and McAllen's Copyzone offer scanning services. Kinko's will burn a CD with 100 of your old snapshots for around $10, while Copyzone charges $0.49 to scan a color document and $1 to burn it to a CD.
Once you have digital copies of your information, it is best to store a set where it can be accessed easily, no matter where you end up.
The simplest method is e-mailing documents and information to yourself. High-storage free e-mail systems like Google's Gmail and Microsoft's Hotmail will save these e-mails and allow you to retrieve your information from any computer hooked up to the Internet.
In order to back up your larger files, like digital photos and music, there are a host of online computer back-up and storage centers, some free, some of which charge a monthly fee. For example, Carbonite.com will automatically take your computer's hard drive and regularly back up files for around $50 per year. Sites like AllMyData.com will allow you to store 1 gigabyte of the most important files in an individual account for free.
Of course, the easiest way to take your digital information with you is to burn files to a CD or DVD and put them in a plastic bag with your passport, checkbook and other vital information, ready to be grabbed on your way to the car if you have to evacuate.
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