Most people and even quite a few companies using computers consider their data to be critical, representing many man-hours of work. It is often difficult if not impossible to replace.
So... what do most of us do to safeguard this vital information? NOTHING! We assume that it will still be there tomorrow and... it usually is. But now and then something happens and that precious data is missing or corrupted in some manner (that doesn't mean that it took a bribe to disappear).
Each user (at home or at work) should learn how to make a backup of their important files. This can be as simple as copying them to another drive, CD or DVD. If the amount of data is large enough, using a software program to backup your data is recommended. There are several products out there that can do the job. Your computer’s operating system may have a backup application built in.
It seems that we never have time to make those needed backups, and then, when disaster strikes, we need the computer folks to be like Harry Potter. We expect them to wave their magic wand and get it all back in 10 minutes because we have a report we need to get out, a presentation to show, or a letter to finish for that 9:00 am meeting. Take the time!
If you have the availability of a managed server environment that gets backed up routinely, check with your IT folks to see if they can set you up with a "home" directory where all your data is stored. That will give them the power for that magic wand, and they can restore your data more reliably.
Of course, if you want to get rid of all that data... well, that's another topic.
