Everything on my computer is gone!!!!!!

Wes said:
Next time, maybe get a Chromebook. It can be set to automatically backup all your data to a second Google account.
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The problem with Google and Gmail is that they default to letting your Gmail address be public. At least that's how Gmail used to be. Example: You choose a Gmail address of Jane_Doe_1955 @ gmail.com . Jane Doe is your real name and 1959 is your year of birth. Now, you have accidentally told the whole world your real name and year of birth. For Seniors, that is not good because Senior Financial Scams, many of which are fueled by computers or our Smart Phones, are running rampant now. AARP runs articles on these scams in almost every issue of their magazine; 6 Top Scams to Watch Out for in 2024 and the FTC, Department of Justice, and Congress are even aware of this growing problem.

That is my grudge against Google. Their former motto is, "Don't be evil." They have since removed that motto. I guess they are just going for more data sales now, evil or not. Chromebooks are in so many of our schools, thus exposing kids to more lack of privacy. Fie on Google, IMO.

And, unless you are very Internet savvy, or you want to be found for some reason and have very good vetting skills for strangers, never use your full, real name or any other personal data for your email address. It's too easy for strangers with bad motives to find you that way.
Senior Scam Alert
Oh, it's ID Theft Awareness Week: Identity Theft Awareness Week
Fighting fraud against older adults
 
VintageBetter said:
The problem with Google and Gmail is that they default to letting your Gmail address be public. At least that's how Gmail used to be. Example: You choose a Gmail address of Jane_Doe_1955 @ gmail.com . Jane Doe is your real name and 1959 is your year of birth. Now, you have accidentally told the whole world your real name and year of birth. For Seniors, that is not good because Senior Financial Scams, many of which are fueled by computers or our Smart Phones, are running rampant now. AARP runs articles on these scams in almost every issue of their magazine; 6 Top Scams to Watch Out for in 2024 and the FTC, Department of Justice, and Congress are even aware of this growing problem.

That is my grudge against Google. Their former motto is, "Don't be evil." They have since removed that motto. I guess they are just going for more data sales now, evil or not. Chromebooks are in so many of our schools, thus exposing kids to more lack of privacy. Fie on Google, IMO.

And, unless you are very Internet savvy, or you want to be found for some reason and have very good vetting skills for strangers, never use your full, real name or any other personal data for your email address. It's too easy for strangers with bad motives to find you that way.
Senior Scam Alert
Oh, it's ID Theft Awareness Week: Identity Theft Awareness Week
Fighting fraud against older adults
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You make good points. I never use my (full) real name or DOB as part of my email address. Only one of my emails has my first name as part of the address. I never get spammed in that email because I only use it for financial and business communications. I've advised others not to use their full names as well but notice that quite a few people do it.
 
I don't use laptops so I ask, but I assume if it has a port for you to insert a USB drive, you can also plug in an external hard drive. I recommend doing that instead of using a USB stick. Guess I'm leery about those because I had important music files completely disappear from a USB thumb drive (stick). SSD external drives can hold a lot, so you can back up everything on them. They are also supposed to be everlasting.
@hawkdon
 
OneEyedDiva said:
I don't use laptops so I ask, but I assume if it has a port for you to insert a USB drive, you can also plug in an external hard drive. I recommend doing that instead of using a USB stick. Guess I'm leery about those because I had important music files completely disappear from a USB thumb drive (stick). SSD external drives can hold a lot, so you can back up everything on them. They are also supposed to be everlasting.
@hawkdon
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I think it was Leo LaPorte I heard say that ideally, we should all use three back-up methods. One should be the Cloud, another can be an external hard drive or even DVDs, and the third is, obviously, saving it on your computer's hard drive.
 

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