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Cautionary tale- AAAARGH! - Viv Wigley's Blog

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Cautionary tale- AAAARGH!

Blog Posted:1/6/2016 7:00:00 AM

Greetings, fellow wordsmiths, and a happy new year to all.

We are often reminded by TPS about making sure that we have our work held offline, in the event of the Site getting problems, but I thought I should mention making sure that you backup your much loved poems onto an external device, and yes, I know, many of you do.

For no apparent reason, and with no warning, one of my hard drives failed on my PC. No burning smell, no clicketty-clack or chunk-a-chunk (which is more serious), it just went to bed and never woke up next morning. I lost an awful lot of recent payware, plus license keys, and hadn't backed up the important stuff for a while. Fortunately my bookmarks get saved and emailed to a remote PC, and my documents go onto a data stick.

Anyway, as we start the new year, it is easy to take our machines for granted and become complacent, but I just thought a timely reminder to back up your work to an external source, and include writing to CD or DVD so you have an archive not susceptible to electro-magnetic interference, would be a good weekly/monthly resolution. Hopefully a similar fate will never befall you.

I'm off into the shed to find a hammer.

Best wishes,

Viv

Post Comments

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Andrea
Dietrich

Date: 1/6/2016 8:22:00 PM

I have two backups , Viv. I do hard copies every week of all my poems and put them in scrapbooks. Plus the files and plus what is here at Soup. good blog!!

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 11:31:00 PM

....and I bet you photocopy your hard copies as well. God, Andrea, you're so organized- can you sort out my closet? Viv x

Carrie
Richards

Date: 1/6/2016 3:15:00 PM

Thank you for the reminder, Viv, this is such good advice, and yes....we take our computers for granted until they mess up !! I'll loan you a shovel to bury yours after you smash it to smitherings with that hammer !!

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 11:29:00 PM

By the time I've finished, it will just require one of your teaspoons, Carrie. Thanks, Viv x

Suzanne
Delaney

Date: 1/6/2016 11:00:00 AM

Good reminder, Viv: Sorry this happened to you. I certainly need to do this and soon. It is always as if part of us dies when our computer does its final sleep. SuZ

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 12:14:00 PM

Yes, Suz, nearly as bad as when my keyboard starts to misbehove, and the kays don't wirk properlo. Ob no, it's sturtung agoon... Vov x

Mark
Woods

Date: 1/6/2016 10:51:00 AM

We've had that happen twice now. My wife is an acountant and I also use our main pc for spreadsheets and blogs for the cricket club. Backing up has saved our bacon but like most people life gets busy what should be done weekly gets done every few months.

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 12:16:00 PM

I've stuck a memo on the pinboard in angry lettering, Mark. It will become a Saturday morning ritual. Regards, Viv

Eve
Roper

Date: 1/6/2016 8:27:00 AM

I am so sorry, Viv, I do need to do that :-(

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 12:18:00 PM

"Action this day" quoth Sir Winston Churchill. Go forth, Eve, and fulfil thy vow. Viv x

Casarah
Nance

Date: 1/6/2016 8:09:00 AM

Mine did that about a month ago, I know how you feel, no warning just snap gone. I lost a lot of passwords and programs because it was my main drive, and the paper I used to write all my passwords was missing too. My mental harddrive felt like it was going to crash! Hugs xx

Viv Wigley
Date: 1/6/2016 12:19:00 PM

I have a separate notebook for passwords now, Casarah, slightly encrypted, as a backup. My only fear is that I forget how to decrypt them. So I have another notepad that.......... Catch 22, anyone? Viv x

My Past Blog Posts


A strange emptiness Date Posted: 11/8/2023 6:41:00 AM
Just a word........ Date Posted: 9/9/2018 10:46:00 PM
Pick a theme contest finalized Date Posted: 9/2/2018 2:33:00 AM
Five senses- finalized Date Posted: 8/14/2018 8:10:00 AM
One, nine, sixteen V3.0 finalized Date Posted: 7/24/2018 1:17:00 AM
One nine and sixteen V 3.0 Date Posted: 6/24/2018 8:02:00 PM
One nine and sixteen upgrade finalized Date Posted: 6/20/2018 11:06:00 PM
One nine and sixteen upgrade contest- clarification Date Posted: 6/3/2018 11:01:00 PM
I wish I was a finalized Date Posted: 5/7/2018 12:26:00 AM
One, nine and sixteen finalized Date Posted: 5/2/2018 3:27:00 AM
What's in a name contest finalized. Date Posted: 6/7/2017 2:46:00 AM
WARNING- finalized Date Posted: 11/5/2016 2:31:00 AM
Viv's missing lttr contst- finalizd Date Posted: 10/12/2016 9:43:00 PM
A body of work contest- finally finalized Date Posted: 10/7/2016 12:12:00 AM
Body of work- Update Date Posted: 9/11/2016 1:20:00 PM
Body of work contest- a clarification Date Posted: 9/11/2016 12:38:00 AM
Problems with pictures in your poems? Date Posted: 9/7/2016 6:31:00 AM
In memorium- salute a fellow poet Date Posted: 9/6/2016 12:03:00 PM
My abiding memory contest- the results Date Posted: 2/1/2016 12:08:00 AM
Cautionary tale- AAAARGH! Date Posted: 1/6/2016 7:00:00 AM
My abiding memory contest- a clarification Date Posted: 12/24/2015 12:31:00 AM
Funny old language, innit? Date Posted: 10/25/2015 1:59:00 AM
It's all about perspective Date Posted: 7/27/2015 10:41:00 PM
Old friends Date Posted: 7/11/2015 8:53:00 AM
Putting the feelers out Date Posted: 4/1/2015 12:09:00 AM

My Recent Poems

Date Posted	PoemTitle	Form	Categories
1/31/2024	Commitment	Rhyme	relationship,
7/23/2022	A Wedding Is Announced	Rhyme	celebrity,
3/18/2022	Happy Couple	Rhyme	humor,relationship,
3/4/2022	Cat In a Box	Rhyme	cat,humor,
2/1/2022	A Funeral	Rhyme	funeral,
1/30/2022	Resolution Graveyard	Rhyme	new year,
1/16/2022	New Me	Rhyme	health,
11/3/2021	Cold Start	Rhyme	age,humor,
10/19/2021	Take Me To Your Leader	Rhyme	humor,space,
8/21/2021	Ambush	Sonnet	animal,
8/15/2021	To the Young	Rhyme	beauty,youth,
8/13/2021	Saint Mum	Sonnet	mother,
8/5/2021	Idle Olympics	Rhyme	humor,sports,
7/22/2021	July Summer Sky	Free verse	age,
5/16/2021	Artificial Intelligence	Rhyme	humor,technology,
4/30/2021	Requiesce In Pace	Rhyme	heaven,humor,
2/21/2021	The Lotus Eaters	Rhyme	age,humor,
2/1/2021	Arms Race	Rhyme	humor,
10/26/2020	Halloween 2020	Rhyme	halloween,
10/25/2020	The Sack	Rhyme	humor,
10/10/2020	Behind the Mask	Sonnet	beauty,
10/10/2020	Clock Watching	Free verse	age,
9/28/2020	Victim	Free verse	abuse,
9/28/2020	Relatively Creaking	Rhyme	house,
9/6/2020	Little Friends	Rhyme	insect,
9/6/2020	Slow Down	Rhyme	age,
9/4/2020	Donald Trump	Clerihew	political,
8/29/2020	Conkers	Rhyme	childhood,
7/25/2020	Odd Jobs	Rhyme	humor,work,
7/7/2020	Two Sides	Sonnet	character,
5/10/2020	Greed	Couplet	bird,
4/22/2020	Lockdown Week Three	Rhyme	humor,
3/24/2020	There Will Come a Day	Free verse	hope,society,
3/18/2020	Covid-19 the Upside	Rhyme	humor,
2/19/2020	Good Deeds	Free verse	blessing,
2/12/2020	Man of Ages	Sonnet	age,
2/9/2020	A Passing	Rhyme	death of a friend,
1/1/2020	Thats Settled Then	Rhyme	food,humor,
11/27/2019	Stuck In a Christmas Globe	Rhyme	christmas,
9/7/2019	Together Apart	Rhyme	caregiving,
9/4/2019	Pigeons	Rhyme	bird,
4/14/2019	Thermos Flask	Rhyme	age,humor,
3/28/2019	Thicker Than Water	Rhyme	health,
3/20/2019	Spectrum	Rhyme	color,life,
3/20/2019	Rocket	Rhyme	humor,space,
3/18/2019	Naked Butlers	Rhyme	humor,
3/9/2019	The Man At Number Ten	Sonnet	humor,marriage,
3/9/2019	Early Light	Sonnet	spring,
1/3/2019	December Farewell	Rhyme	death,
12/28/2018	New Year	Sonnet	day,
11/14/2018	Hello	Sonnet	friendship,
11/4/2018	Books	Free verse	books,
10/28/2018	In the Bin	Rhyme	age,humor,
10/25/2018	Try Something New	Rhyme	humor,jobs,
10/24/2018	Rainbow	Sonnet	rainbow,relationship,
10/17/2018	Tributes	Rhyme	sorrow,
10/1/2018	A Sonnet On Ageing	Sonnet	age,
9/23/2018	Seasonal Affected Disorder	Rhyme	autumn,sad,
9/22/2018	In the Beginning	Rhyme	creation,god,
9/18/2018	The Ockbrook Incident	Rhyme	dog,
9/15/2018	Somewhere In the Arctic	Rhyme	autumn,
9/13/2018	Bad For Business	Rhyme	business,
9/12/2018	Shush Did You Hear That	Rhyme	fear,
9/10/2018	Booby	Limerick	animal,humor,
9/10/2018	Prove It	Rhyme	faith,
9/10/2018	Third Light	Rhyme	war,
9/9/2018	Night Horror	Rhyme	pain,
9/9/2018	Describe Heaven	Rhyme	heaven,
8/26/2018	Shopping Scenters	Rhyme	senses,
8/26/2018	The Haunted House	Rhyme	house,
8/25/2018	Eat, Drink and Be Merry	Rhyme	food,
8/22/2018	Who Do I Think I Am	Rhyme	appreciation,humor,
8/19/2018	The Deal	Sonnet	love,
8/12/2018	Everyday Angel	Rhyme	angel,
8/11/2018	Pick N Mix	Rhyme	beauty,humor,
8/8/2018	A Rattling Rhyme	Rhyme	humor,sensual,
8/5/2018	Clair De Lune	Free verse	night,peace,
7/31/2018	Seaside	Senryu	beach,
7/29/2018	Step In the Past	Rhyme	dance,memory,
7/25/2018	Be Not Sad	Epigram	death,
7/25/2018	Waiter There's a Fly	Rhyme	insect,
7/22/2018	Last Train	Sonnet	marriage,
7/21/2018	Everything Will Be Fine	Rhyme	loss,
7/15/2018	Baby Joys and Tears	Rhyme	father daughter,
7/15/2018	A July Dawn	Sonnet	summer,sun,
7/12/2018	After the England Semi Final	Rhyme	football,humor,
7/10/2018	An Incomplete Love Story	Rhyme	loss,love,
7/1/2018	My Feet	Senryu	age,
6/28/2018	On the Pull	Rhyme	desire,humor,
6/26/2018	Childhood Fun	Rhyme	child,
6/25/2018	Nine Seventeen	Free verse	time,
6/24/2018	The Sun Will Shine Brighter	Rhyme	love,
6/21/2018	Say What	Rhyme	humor,life,
6/10/2018	What I Learned From Old Music	Rhyme	life,music,
6/5/2018	These Are the Days	Rhyme	endurance,thanks,
5/9/2018	First Encounter	Rhyme	humor,
5/7/2018	The Hangover of 1985	Rhyme	humor,pain,
5/6/2018	Intruder	Rhyme	fear,
5/3/2018	Three Ghosts	Rhyme	humor,
5/2/2018	Dating Advice For Women	Rhyme	humor,love,

My Photos

Fav Poems

PoemTitle	Form	Categories
Blossoms and Bubbles	Sonnet	flower,garden,
One Green Leaf	Verse	color,green,holiday,image
Dream Come True	Sonnet	blessing,
Death To the Mockingbird	Rhyme	dark,jealousy,
Everything's Okay	Quatrain	emotions,feelings,hope,hu
The Song of Wisdom	Terzanelle	character,growing up,wisd
Love Passing By	Rhyme	love,love,pride,
Fire Star	Free verse	inspirational,mystery,spa
Night Burns	Quatrain	fear,moon,night,
Do You Remember	Free verse
Too Many Yesterdays	Free verse	lonely,time,
Scripted Tears	Blank verse	emotions,feelings,hurt,lo
The Crone	Quatrain	courage,dedication,fantas
The Color of Silence	Free verse	imagination,morning,sound
Bright Last Quarter	Quatrain	dark,moon,morning,
Strange Redemption	Sonnet	tree,
I See You	Couplet	confusion,corruption,emot
Quietly In the Night	Free verse	anxiety,dark,death,fear,n
Ask Not Why You Reap Such Ills	Sonnet	allegory,conflict,cry,dar
Horsing Around	Rhyme	humor,
Sol Squints	Quatrain	beauty,imagery,imaginatio
Raindrops On My Window	Rhyme	grief,
Everything Froze	Rhyme	storm,winter,
Inside My Head	Sonnet	introspection,
Gait Keeper	Free verse	dog,love,relationship,
I Soar	Free verse	nature,
Crack Like Fissures	I do not know?	angst,beauty,dedication,
The Conscience	Sonnet	conflict,
Quietude and Boom	Free verse	devotion,mother daughter,
- Peace, Love, and Gods Greatest Gift -	Terza Rima	celebration,christmas,dec
When Winter Comes, Remember Me	Quatern	assonance,autumn,heartbre
Lost Echoes - For Contest	Free verse	environment,pollution,riv
I Want To Believe	Quatrain	faith,feelings,god,religi
Blessed Be	Verse	nature,
Breakfast of Good-Bye	Free verse	emotions,lust,
Remnants of Time	Rubaiyat	absence,hope,
October's Crown	Sonnet	light,nostalgia,seasons,
- Yearning -	Light Verse	farewell,i miss you,
A Timeless Love	Rhyme	love,tree,youth,
Without Lament	Sonnet	introspection,
Love Affair	Quintain (English)	butterfly,
Half of a Heart	Concrete	health,heart,
Echoing Thoughts	Free verse	life,muse,
The Morn's Alive With Skylarks Singing	Verse	tribute,writing,
Probabilities	Haiku	creation,earth,life,math,
Mary's Shrift	Free verse	devotion,discrimination,
The Wintered Soul Among Wisteria	Sonnet	grief,
My Grandmother's Diary	Prose Poetry	age,family,grandmother,id
A Mother's Envy and Pride	Free verse	art,child,love,metaphor,m
A New Year - Time For Love	Sonnet	romantic,time,
Fallen Star	Quatrain	earth,hate,heaven,life,li
Spiritual Joy	Abecedarian	joy,love,spiritual,
Broken People	Free verse	people,
Goodbye Song	Free verse	bird,break up,heartbreak,
Like Feathers, Fly	Choka	appreciation,journey,life
Chasing Pandora	Epic	hope,
Shadow To Shadow Revised	Monorhyme	abuse,anger,assonance,bet
To Never Cry	Sonnet	poetry,
If I Could	Quatrain	true love,
Sold	Didactic	bible,christian,corruptio
One Brief Moment	Rhyme	imagery,nostalgia,
One Lone Oak	Free verse	introspection,poetry,
Yellow Shoes In the Darkness	Couplet	adventure,perspective,yel
What Is a Moment	Rhyme	appreciation,change,ident
Prickly Heat	Haibun	lost love,
Questions	Prose	poetry,
on tranquil lake -	Rubaiyat	earth,introspection,natur
Winter Blues - I Cry For Color	Free verse	depression,loneliness,lon
Dream Sustained Friendship	Lyric	confusion,dream,friend,fr
An Early Morning Walk On the Beach	Free verse	beach,holiday,ocean,stars
Horse of the Highlands	Rhyme	animal,horse,mystery,natu
The Daughter of the North Wind Sings In Soprano	Imagism	passion,snow,winter,woman
Thought Changer	Sonnet	beauty,change,color,
To Dream	Sonnet	dream,loss,love,
The Flowers In My World	Free verse	flower,
Mind the Paint	Sonnet	international,
The Tempest	Pantoum	lost love,
Fiddleheads On the River Walls	Italian Sonnet	life,
Flying Over Vietnam, 1974	Rhyme	allusion,conflict,loss,re
When Again We Meet - Sijo	Free verse	absence,appreciation,deat
Butterfly Dance	Lyric	beauty,
To All the Pens I'Ve Lost Before	Lyric	humor,
A Song For Autumn	Sonnet	autumn,
Spring Luna	Sonnet	grief,heartbroken,hurt,mo
There Are Days When	Dramatic Monologue	remembrance day,
Observations From a Messmate Stump	Lyric	nature,
Double Sided	Lyric	anxiety,emotions,lost,
Beautiful Mystery	Sonnet	autumn,love,mystery,
Forgotten Words	Free verse	poets,
Pipe Dreams	Free verse	analogy,symbolism,travel,
Finding My Way	Quatrain	blessing,faith,hope,

Fav Poets

Poet	Country
William Gray	United Kingdom	Read
Jan Allison	Isle Of Man	Read
Barbara Gorelick	United States	Read
Peter Lewis Holmes	Viet Nam	Read
Paul Callus	Malta	Read
Rob Carmack	United States	Read
Casarah Nance	United States	Read
Andrea Dietrich	United States	Read
Emile Pinet	Canada	Read
Jack Ellison	Canada	Read
Lindsay Laurie	Australia	Read
Laura Leiser	United States	Read
Rhonda Johnson-Saunders	United States	Read
Eileen Manassian	_Not Listed	Read
Edwin Hofert	United States	Read
Frederic Parker	United States	Read
John Williams	Australia	Read
Njeri Hunjeri	Kenya	Read
Julia Ward	France	Read
Brian Baumgarn	United States	Read
Judy Konos	United States	Read
The Grahamburglar	United States	Read
Leon Enriquez	Singapore	Read
Robert Lindley	United States	Read
Dorian Petersen Potter	United States	Read
Anne-Lise Andresen	Norway	Read
Lawrence Eberhart	United States	Read
Lee Carter	United States	Read
Duke Beaufort	United States	Read
Suzanne Delaney	United States	Read
Darlene Gifford	United States	Read
James Inman	United States	Read
Connie Marcum Wong	United States	Read
Kp Nunez	Philippines	Read
Debbie Guzzi	United States	Read
Sandra Haight	United States	Read
Richard Lamoureux	Canada	Read
Constance La France	Canada	Read
Keith Bickerstaffe	United Kingdom	Read
Arthur Vaso	Canada	Read
Caycay Jennings	United States	Read
Jean Murray	Ireland	Read
Susan Gentry	United States	Read
Harry Horsman	Australia	Read
Robert Stoner Jr	United States	Read
Becca Teagan	United States	Read
David Smith	New Zealand	Read
Eve Roper	United States	Read
Anthony Mark	United Kingdom	Read
Carrie Richards	United States	Read
Indiana Shaw	United Kingdom	Read
Agnes Krampe	United States	Read
Rhoda Tripp	United States	Read
Tom Cunningham	United Kingdom	Read
Line Gauthier	Canada	Read
Jan Terry	United States	Read
Space Cadet	United States	Read
Joan Donnelly Ellis	Canada	Read
Carole Duet	United States	Read
Carol Eastman	United States	Read
Sherif Goda	Egypt	Read
Lycia Harding	United States	Read
Muhammad Imtiaz	Pakistan	Read
Gail Lewis	United Kingdom	Read
Paloma P	United States	Read
Vijay Pandit	United States	Read
Freddie Robinson Jr.	United States	Read
Kishan Sharma	India	Read
Sonny Ransom	United Kingdom	Read
Ashok Kumar Mishra	India	Read
Sneha Rv	India	Read