Re: I'm getting new but want to transfer only some... - Page 2

glb613 · ‎03-09-2010

On 4/24/2014 susan_ca said:
On 4/24/2014 glb613 said:
On 4/23/2014 happy housewife said:
On 4/23/2014 susan_ca said:
I am not computer-savvy either.

I save important files on a thumb drive in addition to hard drive...... as a backup if not for anything else. In your case, because you only want to transfer a few things, you can either save those files onto a thumb drive or save them onto a cloud and download them onto your new computer.

Thumb drives are very affordable.

I do the same thing - save everything to a thumb drive.

You better have a second copy if this is how you back up your files. Flash/thumb drives should never be used as a backup device.

I think you misunderstood the word "backup" here. I am not using it to backup my computer SYSTEM, just some files.

I haven't misunderstood anything. Flash drives shouldn't be used as a backup device whether it's one important files or the entire system.

sipp · ‎03-10-2010

On 4/23/2014 glb613 said:
Why not connect the laptop to a monitor?

I assume you're suggesting that I ""save"" the laptop by connecting it via a cable??- but wiring runs through the ""screen""-- so I still need to keep it attached or expose the wiring. Not an acceptable solution.

glb613 · ‎03-09-2010

On 4/24/2014 dgluvr said:
On 4/23/2014 glb613 said:
Why not connect the laptop to a monitor?

I assume you're suggesting that I ""save"" the laptop by connecting it via a cable??- but wiring runs through the ""screen""-- so I still need to keep it attached or expose the wiring. Not an acceptable solution.

To get the files off.

NorskyGal · ‎03-10-2010

Hi Dglvr! This is what you do (I did the same thing when I got my new laptop):

Buy a USB Flash Drive (same thing as "thumb drive"). These are inexpensive. Check Amazon.

To actually copy your files, insert this Flash Drive into your USB port of your old laptop & copy your files onto it.

Then insert the Flash Drive into your NEW laptop & copy the files over to the new laptop.

I know you didn't ask about backups, but the topic did come up in this thread. Copying files to a USB Flash Drive is ok, but you need to be aware that this could become corrupt/damaged. After all, it is a physical piece of hardware.

Your best bet is to subscribe to something like Carbonite, which is an online service that will back up your files automatically for you. My hubby (a tech guy) & I have used this service for several years. I've had to restore some files a few time & it was super easy to do.

PamelaSue72 · ‎09-22-2011

I broke down and bought a small external drive for the computers. It holds 500 GB of stuff, which is large enough to back up both computers completely (our computers each have a 1 TB drive and they're not even close to being half-full).

But when I need to transfer even small files back and forth between the two, I even use the external drive for that. It has come in handy so many times....well worth the money. (You can use a USB memory stick for transferring small files back and forth, too, but yes, you need to realize that those sticks can get corrupted easily. They're good for small files, but that's it.)

You can buy smaller external drives, too, and they're not that expensive. Especially considering how often they'd be used. And it's more often than you think.