Energy tech guru Amory Lovins sent this note by email:
Sorry to hear this. Out, damned entropy!
To avoid such events, I use both Time Machine (backing up hourly) and Carbon Copy Cloner backing up eveyting hourly to a solid-state RAID1 array making two duplicate copies that mirror my 4-TB main Apple Studio drive. The solid-state RAID1 drive is 2 x 8 TB (Oyen Digital MiniPro RAID V4), set up as hardware not software RIAD to be faster, and the solid-state Time Machine is Glyph (Plus U2, 8 TB). Both run off their signal cable from the Apple Studio’s Thunderbolt ports, .so thy don’t need wall-warts. The RAID drive isn’t visible to any thief who might scoop uyp the Apple Studio and the Time Machine drive. I also store all work products automagically in the cloud via Dropbox to have a good offsite backup.
I’ve been using Mac gear since they started, and have been given several bum steers, so your experience isn’t unique.
Andy, I am so very sorry for your ordeal! I went through something similar that left me floundering and computerless for 10 days, but I lost nothing like your trove of wisdom, words, and music. I think you made the right move by seeking solace in your guitar and dogs in this moment!
On a related, but non-disaster note, I love Amory's advice, even though I'm not a Mac user! Years ago, I met Amory when I worked for Sheldon Adelson's Boston tradeshow group, the Interface Group. They were best known for the ginormous Comdex computer expo, but were trying out some new tradeshow ideas, including a brand-new environmental technology event, which they called ETEX. I saw their ad in Business Week, got the job, and moved up to Massachusetts from D.C. to run the new tradeshow (ETEX), for which I was the conference director. They had to have a credible, educational-with-CEUs, conference program to draw the corporate environmental staff to the exhibition floor, and I took that mandate seriously. One of my first accomplishments in that role was to recruit Amory Lovins to serve on the advisory board for the event. Getting to regularly consult him (and a bunch of other luminaries in the field) was the best part of that mostly hair-raising job. The stories I could tell you over a beer sometime!
Keep on strumming and singing the blues, Andy. We hear you, and at the end of the day that’s what matters because the other important stuff is still between your ears waiting to be released.
Well this is a good post to prompt readers who do not do regular backups to get their act together. I recommend Carbonite, excellent service reliable. I also have my very own hard drive sitting here right next to me on which I do a weekly files backup update and semiannual total disk image. That's kind of belt-and-suspenders but I will never never rust the Cloud.
Damn, Andy. So sorry you're going through this and glad you see a silver lining. I'm in the middle of an office move, so years of work are packed and stacked all around me. Your experience has me questioning keeping any of it, maybe rather starting with a blank page and seeing where that goes. Before I read your post this afternoon, I thought about such silver linings and this song. Maybe it rings some truth for you (and others) in this moment too... "every silver lining's got a touch of gray" - https://youtu.be/mzvk0fWtCs0?si=93_dLSJa85GSEp_5
Yikes😱. Been there done that, actually Potomac Edison did it to me about 25 years ago before backing up was almost automatic. Only worse was forgetting to get copies of some TV stuff I did many years ago. Interview with Carl Sagan and another with Isaac Asimov. Too busy is sorry now excuse. Charge on - know you will 👍
A harrowng episode! The moment when you realize that your material is gone into some seamless ether and you can't get it back--well, I have been there also --as have lots of us.
To the moment when you change directions and go to your human brain and believe that if you created this once you can do it again and possibly do it better the second time. And that it will be a lot of work but that's what --that's something we can do.
I offer you my condolences, especially about the talks! I'm sure you've had lots of helpful advice, all after the fact, of course, which is really no help at all now. I'm seeing more and more that these people who are on the other end of "chats" are not really all that well-informed, although they profess to be. Good luck with the reclaiming of what you can-- so time consuming, and glad you have the dogs and Maine to console you.
Even from the worst things we can learn a lesson: please backup often , and also for a physical hard-drive also, not only the cloud.
We had a large blackout in Portugal and Spain in April… real cause still unknown, but it was an eye opener for many people: we must build resilience in our lifes. We are too dependent on the electrical grid, and complex systems colapse at the tipping point: a few seconds and it cascaded trough 2 countries.
Ugh, sorry Andy, I can imagine that sickening moment when you realized what was happening. I admire your being able to find a bit of inner peace about it.
Ouch. Maybe all is not lost. Can the genius bar people help? Some one recovered all of my documents that I thought were lost. And all of may emails were recovered. Worth a try.
Oh, dear ... you're living the nightmare we all dread.
So, so sorry Andy ...
Thank you for sharing this with us. Hopefully we (and me) will take a closer look at how well protected (or not) our data is in the event of the unthinkable and take action accordingly.
Yowsa. Sorry to hear, yet appreciate your vivid retelling. Guitar and dogs sounds about right for a first step! (and thanks for the nudge to stay the course with Backblaze…)
Energy tech guru Amory Lovins sent this note by email:
Sorry to hear this. Out, damned entropy!
To avoid such events, I use both Time Machine (backing up hourly) and Carbon Copy Cloner backing up eveyting hourly to a solid-state RAID1 array making two duplicate copies that mirror my 4-TB main Apple Studio drive. The solid-state RAID1 drive is 2 x 8 TB (Oyen Digital MiniPro RAID V4), set up as hardware not software RIAD to be faster, and the solid-state Time Machine is Glyph (Plus U2, 8 TB). Both run off their signal cable from the Apple Studio’s Thunderbolt ports, .so thy don’t need wall-warts. The RAID drive isn’t visible to any thief who might scoop uyp the Apple Studio and the Time Machine drive. I also store all work products automagically in the cloud via Dropbox to have a good offsite backup.
I’ve been using Mac gear since they started, and have been given several bum steers, so your experience isn’t unique.
Happy recovery — Amory
Andy, I am so very sorry for your ordeal! I went through something similar that left me floundering and computerless for 10 days, but I lost nothing like your trove of wisdom, words, and music. I think you made the right move by seeking solace in your guitar and dogs in this moment!
On a related, but non-disaster note, I love Amory's advice, even though I'm not a Mac user! Years ago, I met Amory when I worked for Sheldon Adelson's Boston tradeshow group, the Interface Group. They were best known for the ginormous Comdex computer expo, but were trying out some new tradeshow ideas, including a brand-new environmental technology event, which they called ETEX. I saw their ad in Business Week, got the job, and moved up to Massachusetts from D.C. to run the new tradeshow (ETEX), for which I was the conference director. They had to have a credible, educational-with-CEUs, conference program to draw the corporate environmental staff to the exhibition floor, and I took that mandate seriously. One of my first accomplishments in that role was to recruit Amory Lovins to serve on the advisory board for the event. Getting to regularly consult him (and a bunch of other luminaries in the field) was the best part of that mostly hair-raising job. The stories I could tell you over a beer sometime!
Keep on strumming and singing the blues, Andy. We hear you, and at the end of the day that’s what matters because the other important stuff is still between your ears waiting to be released.
Well this is a good post to prompt readers who do not do regular backups to get their act together. I recommend Carbonite, excellent service reliable. I also have my very own hard drive sitting here right next to me on which I do a weekly files backup update and semiannual total disk image. That's kind of belt-and-suspenders but I will never never rust the Cloud.
Damn, Andy. So sorry you're going through this and glad you see a silver lining. I'm in the middle of an office move, so years of work are packed and stacked all around me. Your experience has me questioning keeping any of it, maybe rather starting with a blank page and seeing where that goes. Before I read your post this afternoon, I thought about such silver linings and this song. Maybe it rings some truth for you (and others) in this moment too... "every silver lining's got a touch of gray" - https://youtu.be/mzvk0fWtCs0?si=93_dLSJa85GSEp_5
Yikes😱. Been there done that, actually Potomac Edison did it to me about 25 years ago before backing up was almost automatic. Only worse was forgetting to get copies of some TV stuff I did many years ago. Interview with Carl Sagan and another with Isaac Asimov. Too busy is sorry now excuse. Charge on - know you will 👍
A harrowng episode! The moment when you realize that your material is gone into some seamless ether and you can't get it back--well, I have been there also --as have lots of us.
To the moment when you change directions and go to your human brain and believe that if you created this once you can do it again and possibly do it better the second time. And that it will be a lot of work but that's what --that's something we can do.
Good luck with the redo!
Carolyn Ricapito
Oh I needed that… Thanks!
All I can say is"Wow!"
I offer you my condolences, especially about the talks! I'm sure you've had lots of helpful advice, all after the fact, of course, which is really no help at all now. I'm seeing more and more that these people who are on the other end of "chats" are not really all that well-informed, although they profess to be. Good luck with the reclaiming of what you can-- so time consuming, and glad you have the dogs and Maine to console you.
Hello Andy:
Murphy is attacking everywhere, everyday…
Hope you can recover the most possible.
Even from the worst things we can learn a lesson: please backup often , and also for a physical hard-drive also, not only the cloud.
We had a large blackout in Portugal and Spain in April… real cause still unknown, but it was an eye opener for many people: we must build resilience in our lifes. We are too dependent on the electrical grid, and complex systems colapse at the tipping point: a few seconds and it cascaded trough 2 countries.
Have a nice Sunday with your Family and dogs!
José António
Ugh, sorry Andy, I can imagine that sickening moment when you realized what was happening. I admire your being able to find a bit of inner peace about it.
Ouch. Maybe all is not lost. Can the genius bar people help? Some one recovered all of my documents that I thought were lost. And all of may emails were recovered. Worth a try.
Much luck.
Oh, dear ... you're living the nightmare we all dread.
So, so sorry Andy ...
Thank you for sharing this with us. Hopefully we (and me) will take a closer look at how well protected (or not) our data is in the event of the unthinkable and take action accordingly.
Wishing you a speedy "recovery" ..
I think you're a better person than I am, Andy.
In which way? :)
i suspect I would have been far less Zen and way more Brooklyn about the whole thing
Yowsa. Sorry to hear, yet appreciate your vivid retelling. Guitar and dogs sounds about right for a first step! (and thanks for the nudge to stay the course with Backblaze…)