Online Storage

The Wall Street Journal had a good article on Online Storage and how about numerous companies are trying to get us to store our important data online as a back-up. Frankly, this is an idea whose time has come. If your computer dies, or you accidentally delete an important file and don't have an onsite back up, or god forbid if your place burns to the ground taking your computer and back ups with it, what will you do? With online storage, you simply fire up the computer, login and retrieve your important data.

If you already pay for virus and malware protection on your computer, paying to back up important data shouldn't be a foreign concept. Isn't that what is really important on your computer anyway?

There are numerous ones offering a taste for free, offering anywhere from 1 to 5GB for free, and then of course charging $50 to $100 a year for much more storage. Here's some I already knew about:

Xdrive - 5 GB online storage for free from AOL. All it takes is an AOL account, which is now free as well. You can designate files to share as well. $100 per year for 50 GB
Mozy - 2 GB for free. Has the virtue of encrypting your data with Blowfish, a well respected ciper, so only you can read your data. $50 buys you all the storage you can eat.
Carbonite - No free plan. Unlimited for $50. Has utility that automatically backs up your documents for you all the time.

There are several others, each with it's own specialty. Also I'd like to mention Yahoo Photos, which allows unlimited photo storage, and the ability to get those photos back at full resolution, although only 1 at a time. Still, it's free too, and you can view, share and order prints as well.

Right now, I'm currently in the process of backing up all my music and documents to Xdrive, and my photos to Yahoo Photos. What great services, and for free if your need is small, or cheap if you have lots to back up.