Before going too far with the Swiss Army Knife analogy, I need to point out that there are two tasks GoodSync can't accomplish: You won't be able to use it to make an image copy of a disk or back up the operating system. Given the application's other capabilities, those shortcomings don't matter.
GoodSync can back up data files locally, to a network drive, to another computer, or to an on-line service. There's a free version that will probably convince you to spend $30 for a full license.
When you start GoodSync the first time, you'll be asked if you want to connect to other computer or use it as a standalone program. If you choose to connect to other computers, you'll need to sign up for GoodSync Connect, a free service that provides a foolproof way to connect your computers. If you skip that step initially, you can set it up later.
Here's one use case for why that's a good idea: I use an on-line backup service for my primary computer. In addition to the computer's relatively small internal solid-state disk drive, there are 5 external hard drives, four for data and the fifth for immediate backups of working files. My wife takes a lot of pictures; they're on here computer and I want those to be backed up.
In the past, she used to bring me the camera's memory card so that I could copy the files to one of the drives that gets backed up. The problem with that is that sometimes it was several weeks between download times and any changes she made to files on her computer wouldn't be backed up. GoodSync resolves that problem.
On my computer, GoodSync runs as a server. There's another licensed copy on her computer and it runs as a client. Once a day, GoodSync checks to see if there are any new photographs or any changed photographs on my wife's computer and, if so, copies them to a data drive on my computer. From there the files are backed up to an on-line server, to a network attached storage device, and weekly to separate USB backup drives. Most of that work is handled by GoodSync.
The free version of GoodSync is limited to a total of 3 jobs with no more than 100 files, so it's adequate for testing, but not much else. A job establishes the source of the files that are to be backed up or synchronized, the location they'll be copied to, any rules that might be used to include or exclude specific files, whether the jobs will run automatically or manually, any scripts that might perform extra actions, and certain explicit conditions to be taken on the source or destination location.
Creating a job starts with a name for the job and determining whether it will be used to back up files from one location to another (one way) or to synchronize files on two devices whenever any change is made in either locations (two way).
Then it's time to choose a connection type for each folder. The options range from a disk or folder on the computer, GoodSync Connect, Windows network shares, FTP or secure FTP, and a variety of on-line locations such as Google Drive, Amazon S3, DropBox, Box, and more.
Two of the most common choices are network shares and folders on external drives. Windows network shares are assigned drive letters by the operating system, but these can change. The same is true with USB drives. The backup job would break if the identity of the device changed, so GoodSync automatically looks for a name that won't change, or at least that are much less likely to change.
For USB drives, GoodSync will suggest using the disk drive's volume name. For network drives, GoodSync will recommend using the universal naming convention (UNC) path. So instead of drive E, GoodSync will look for "WebsitesData2" and instead of network drive Z, it will select "\\readyshare\USB_Storage".
After that, you'll set various conditions in 6 panels for each job.
(1) The first tab is used to set whether the job will back up files or synchronize them, whether file deletions should be propagated, whether deleted or changed files should be sent to the Recycle Bin, and a few other less common settings.
(2) Next, the user sets filters to explicitly back up or exclude certain files. By default, all files in the specified directory will be backed up, but users often want to exclude temporary files, lock files, and other files that have no value.
The third screen is for automation and I'll come back to that in a moment.
(3) Advanced users can create scripts that run when certain conditions are met. For example, GoodSync could send an email if the job generates a certain number of errors or an email with a summary of the number of files backed up when a job runs.
(4) The final two panels are used to set conditions that apply to the source folder or the destination folder. Safe Copy using temporary files is turned on by default, but there are also options for encryption and compression.
Possibly the most useful set-up panel is the third one in the list, the automation panel.
For jobs that run with a USB drive that is usually not present, a manual job is the best option. However, backup jobs that involve network attached storage, another user's computer, or an on-line system are often good candidates for automation and there are many choices for automation.
Jobs can be run whenever GoodSync notices that a file has changed, either immediately or following a specific delay; when a disk that isn't always present is connected; when GoodSync starts; on a periodic schedule, such as every 2 hours; or on an explicitly defined schedule.
I have scheduled a few jobs, ones that deal with critical information, to synchronize whenever a file changes. To avoid repeated backups during the time a file is open, I often set a delay of 3600 seconds, which is 60 minutes. Most of the automated jobs use a system that will be immediately familiar to anyone who has ever set up a cron job on a Linux or Unix system.
Don't let that scare you, though. GoodSync makes the set-up easy and offers a Test function that displays exactly when the job will run using the parameters you've established. There are settings for minute, hour, day of week, day of month, and month. So if you want a job to run at 5:20 pm each day, you'd enter 20 in the minutes cell and 17 (5pm) in the hours cell. Any cell that has no value defaults to "every". To narrow the run times further, you could enter a day of the week value or a day of the month value. Entering 2 for the day would limit the job to running only on Tuesday, or entering 15 in the day of month cell would limit the job to running only on the 15th of each month.
This is the function I use for nearly all of my automated jobs, but that's not all. It's possible to use more than one automation function. In a few cases, I have a job run when a file changes and also on an explicit schedule.
The main panel displays a list of defined jobs and the display can be expanded to show its current status (analyzed, synced, or idle, for example).
Selecting one of the jobs will display information in the top panel showing the source location, destination location, and whether it's a one-way or two-way job.
When it's time to run a job manually (automated jobs can be run manually as desired), select the job and click the Analyze button. GoodSync will display the number of changed files and the number of files that need to be synchronized or copied. Depending on the number of files in the source and destination locations, the analysis may take just a few seconds or several minutes.
Click the Sync button to start the process and you'll see a display that shows progress. On completion, the Sync button dims and GoodSync will report any errors or conflicts along with the files that have been successfully updated.
Unlike most backup applications, GoodSync doesn't really have a restore process. Files that have been backed are in directories that are identical to their source directories. The files are not compressed or encrypted unless you specified that in the setup process. This means that files can simply be copied from the destination directory back to the source directory.
That also explains why GoodSync doesn't create disk-image backups or back up the operating system.
If you connect one computer to another, you'll probably want to set the automated job up to run without the user interface. This allows it to run without bothering the person who's using the computer as well as to run when the user is logged off.
Using this function is best accomplished by using GoodSync Connect, but it can also be done with FTP or secure FTP connections. Given GoodSync Connect's advantages, that's the best option for me and setting it up is easy.
Start by selecting Tools, GoodSync Connect Setup from the menu. (1) Then select Yes and move to the next screen. (2) There you'll need to fill in the ID of the computer you're on and your GoodSync Connect credentials. For the initial setup, you'll of course need to select the option to create a new account. GoodSync Connect is free and handles only the process of establishing a secure connection between two computers.
(3) The next screen requests the Windows user name and password and then (4) displays all of the settings.
On the computer that will be backed up, you'll perform a similar set of steps using the GoodSync Connect account created for the computer that will receive the files.
GoodSync doesn't do disk imaging, but it does everything else so well that you might never notice.Despite the fact the GoodSync can't handle disk image backups, it's the one of the most comprehensive file and folder backup applications for Windows and Mac computers. The ability to copy files from nearly any imaginable location to any other location is a plus and automation makes it even better. A license for the first computer costs $30, the second $20, and after that, $19 per computer for 3 through 29 machines.
Additional details are available on the GoodSync website.
If you've been wondering when Microsoft would start charging a monthly fee for Windows, this might be the answer, but it's somewhat inconclusive.
CNet is reporting that Microsoft will soon launch a "Microsoft Managed Desktop" service that will help system administrators deal with configuration and update issues. In other words, it appears that the monthly fee for the service will apply only to corporate users. For now.
Back in 2015, I tried to get a straight answer out of Microsoft on the cost of updates and this is as close as I could get: Abby Smith at Waggener Edstrom Communications, Microsoft's public relations agency: "[O]nce a qualified Windows device is upgraded to Windows 10, we will continue to keep it up to date for the supported lifetime of the device, keeping it more secure, and introducing new features and functionality over time – at no cost." [http://www.techbyter.com/2015/0125.html]
Windows 10 was positioned as an operating system that would be paid for ONCE when the user purchased a computer and that future updates would be provided at no cost as long as the computer was owned by the original purchaser and was in service. But not the weasel words in the statement: "we will continue to keep it up to date for the supported lifetime of the device." "Supported lifetime" can mean just about anything Microsoft wants it to.
And yet the managed desktop service seems to be aimed at enterprise users, at least as far as the few murky details that have slipped out suggest.
CNet's Mary Jo Foley says that Microsoft's former director of the Windows Insider Program, Bill Karagounis, is now part of the Enterprise Mobility and Management team that will run the Managed Desktop program. She also notes that Microsoft has the processes in place needed to launch the service.
Even though the current plans target business class users, the unanswered question is whether the fees will eventually apply to non-enterprise users -- in other words, home users. Foley says that Microsoft refused to answer that question.
I read a lot of books and, as a result, I have a lot of ebook readers on my various devices. There's the Kindle reader, of course. The Nook reader is present on some devices. The Kobo reader. Adobe Acrobat, of course. The UB Reader was my favorite for a while, but a few months ago I gave Amazon's Play Reader a try and it's the one I use most of the time.
Some books require the Kindle reader and books from the library need to be read either on a Kindle device or reader, or Adobe Digital Editions, if the books have digital rights management enabled.
But Play Books is the easiest reader to use if you read books on different devices. I use an Apple Ipad most of the time and it's fine when I'm sitting in a chair. The Ipad is heavy and cumbersome in the evening when I'm reading after going to bed. That's when I pick up the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which is about the size of a trade paperback book.
Why the Play reader? If I stopped last night at page 51 on the Tab and read to page 253 on the Ipad, the Play Books app will remind me about that when I open the book again on the Samsung device and offer to take me to that page. It's a nice feature.
I also like the fact that all of the books I use the Play Reader for are stored on an Google server. They're downloaded to the tablets when I'm reading them, but once I've completed the book, I can remove it from the device while leaving it on the server in case I want to read it again or use it to review something.
Google likes this, too, of course, because the app offers a way to buy books instantly on-line.
The Play Reader app is also on the Google Project Fi phone, an Android device. If I don't have either of the larger tablets with me and feel like reading, I can always grab one of the stored books from the server and continue reading on the phone.
Although I don't like ebooks for reference materials or educational materials, I've found them generally to be more accommodating than paper books for one primary reason: If I need to look something up while using an ebook, I can do so without putting the book down. The process varies slightly between Apple and Android versions of the Play Reader app, but checking the definition of a word consists of no more than selecting the word in the book and tapping a dictionary symbol.
Looking up a foreign term is slightly more complicated. After marking the word or words, it's necessary to copy them to the buffer and paste the text into a browser. It's all too easy, particularly when reading fiction or non-fiction primarily for pleasure, to simply skip over unrecognized words by guessing at the meaning based on context. This can be a problem when the reader guesses wrong about a meaning.
Some people like the weight, smell, and tactile sensation of holding a book while reading. I have to admit that I miss those aspects, but the advantages more than make up for what I'm missing.
So if you're just getting started with ebooks, download a good selection of readers and see which one works the best for you.
