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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Laptop crash on Assignment
Margaret Bowles, Photographer
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Houston | TX | | Posted: 3:18 PM on 04.27.09 |
| ->> I had a bad situation on an assignment last week when my laptop hard drive crashed prior to uploading and transmitting. My question is whether anyone carries a back-up laptop with them? What options do you have in the field in this situation? I was very fortunate to be shooting close to home, and was able to get home in time to process, upload and meet the deadline, but it could happen anywhere, anytime. I hate the thought of carrying two laptops, but I hate the thought of missing a deadline even more. I'm very interested to know what others do. |
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Rich Cruse, Photographer
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Laguna Niguel | CA | USA | Posted: 3:28 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Hi Margaret:
I know if you use a Mac, you can carry an external drive loaded up with system software and you can get up and running from the external. I don't know about PCs in that regard. With either, you should be able to fix a system problem by starting from the system disk that came with the computer. From there, you can run disk utilities and even re-install the system. There are system repair utilities you can buy that will boot up your system from a CD/DVD and repair your drive. It the hard drive physically dies, you need to have an external drive to boot from.
I always carry an external to boot from and a copy of the system disk.
Hope this helps!
Rich |
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Margaret Bowles, Photographer
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Houston | TX | | Posted: 3:34 PM on 04.27.09 |
| ->> Unfortunately, the hard drive was completely corrupted and not bootable. I had to have it replaced. However, you have a very good idea to carry an external drive loaded with the software. Mine's an HP, so I will check to see if I can do that. |
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Alan Look, Photographer
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Bloomington | IL | United States | Posted: 3:53 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Depending on the BIOS, you may be able to boot a PC from an external. The problem would then become the editing software that resides on the internal hard drive. You could load that on the external as well.
Might be just as easy to have a second hard drive that would fit in the laptop and just swap them on location.
Of course, then you run into the possibilities of something other than the hard drive failing on the unit. What do you do if the screen drops out or coke gets spilled on the keyboard. Do you carry an external monitor and an extra keyboard with you? I think you can see where I'm headed.
Spare laptop would be my best suggestion. |
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Delane B. Rouse, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Washington | DC | US | Posted: 4:05 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Ultimately it all depends on how much the assignment is "worth" to you. If it's a few hundred dollars for an assignment it's not worth me purchasing and carrying (2) machines "just in case". But if I was creating images for commercial clients then it probably is worth having some complete back-up strategy.
Since I uae Macintosh, I have a 250GB Western Digital passport hard drive that would allow me to boot on another machine (laptop or desktop) and not really miss a beat.
It's a situation that I think about before any major assignments that would leave me or my client in a really bad situation should something bad occur.
Delane |
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AJ Mast, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Indianapolis | IN | USA | Posted: 4:53 PM on 04.27.09 |
| ->> You can always stop in Kinkos and rent some computer time to get something out. They have Photoshop loaded. |
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Rich Cruse, Photographer
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Laguna Niguel | CA | USA | Posted: 5:21 PM on 04.27.09 |
| ->> The last thought might be to have a Netbook loaded with Photo Mechanic. Those things are getting so inexpensive! |
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Michael Fischer, Photographer
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Spencer | Ia | USA | Posted: 5:41 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Not sure that will work, Rich. Those things limited memory and operating capacity. The external drive would certainly work.
Michael |
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George Bridges, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Washington | DC | USA | Posted: 5:45 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> A netbook will work for getting a few images out on deadline. You don't want to do your whole editing of a big event on one, but if you just want to edit your tags and send a few then they work well.
I have an Apple MB Pro that I use nearly all the time but for an occasional assignment where I know I only need a few images, say 7-10 from an NHL game, I carry a netbook. The savings in size and pounds is wonderful for my back. |
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Brian Blanco, Photographer
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Tampa / Sarasota | FL | USA | Posted: 5:53 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Margaret,
I carry backups for any, and every, piece of ESSENTIAL equipment. Redundancy is not a dirty word for cave divers or photojournalists. When I know clients are counting on my images I have a spare for just about anything I don't think I can beg or borrow from another shooter. Heck, I even carry a back up battery charger when I'm covering out-of-town assignments, but yes, I carry a spare laptop when shooting deadline-sensitive assignments.
Right now I just throw an old iBook, that I picked up for a $200.00 dollars off Craigslist, in my trunk when shooting games. I loaded it with an older version of Photoshop and an older version of Photo Mechanic because it's no speed demon but it's there if I need it. It sits along side my backup card readers, monopods, duct-taped-up cell phone, a Quantaray 20mm lens that only shoots wide open that I picked up at a yard sale, a fistful of 256 CF cards and a junk, really beatup, absolute last-resort digital Rebel (I usually have three 'real' bodies with me).
Note to thieves: The junk I keep in my car while shooting games wouldn't fetch a thief $40.00 at even the most generous pawn shop but it could save me a client, and possible save me thousands.
Oh, and on an Off Topic, personal note, I hope you're doing well... we miss you around here. |
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Margaret Bowles, Photographer
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Houston | TX | | Posted: 6:33 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Thanks, Brian. I'm familiar and grateful for your back-up obsession since you lent me your back-up monopod for the Bucs game after I left mine in the overhead bin of US Airways.
Thanks, everyone, for the valuable input. I will check into all the options mentioned. Scary lesson learned for me. |
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Ron Scheffler, Photographer
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Hamilton (Toronto area) | Ontario | Canada | Posted: 6:41 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Not sure how it works with Windows systems, but being on a Mac, I carry at least one recent clone of my laptop's OS on an external hard drive whenever I go anywhere. If it's a longer trip out of the country, etc., then I will usually take two external drives, each with a partition with a clone of the OS. The clone is an exact copy, so when the laptop boots from it, it behaves exactly like the original system. I also leave at least one clone of the OS at home in case everything is lost while traveling in order to make restoring the system from at least the last time I was home a relatively simple task.
Some laptops allow relatively easy exchange of the internal hard drive, so it could even be possible to remove the defective internal drive and replace it with a drive removed from an external housing. The benefit to this is the system will operate faster from the internal connection than from an external USB or firewire port, and it frees up at least one external port. |
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Steve Ueckert, Photographer
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Houston | TX | | Posted: 7:44 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> Margaret--
It sounds like you work in the PC world so the Mac advice, while good for some, is not for you.
I never work without a spare camera body, even if it is just a quick shot suggesting one body and one lens, I also have a spare on my shoulder. I believe in being prepared.
I have had for some time an older PowerBook G4 that has been my personal laptop for years. Even when I had a company issued laptop, I kept my own with me. Usually it would be locked in my car when actually on assignment, but I would carry it into my office for emailing or other personal use.
This is a compact 12" laptop and it's size never was a burden for me. It also is the computer that goes with me when I'm on vacation, if it gets lost or trashed it is much less of a hit than my primary MacBook Pro. I have splurged somewhat and loaded the older laptop with the same software in my primary laptop, that way I don't have conflicting workflows running around in my head.
For you I would suggest investing in one of the newer 10" netbooks (PC) for a few hundred dollars and putting some basic software in it so that you could work with it. I wouldn't be too concerned about an internal hard drive in the netbook being too small, get an outboard portable USB 2.0 HD (250 GB's are quite affordable) and use it for redundant backup regardless of what computer you are using. It may not be that you have to carry a backup computer with you everywhere, but it shouldn't be too much to keep it in your car so that it is available if need be.
Hopefully you will never again have another HD failure, but as you already know, it can happen.
--Steve |
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Gavin Werbeloff, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Atlanta | GA | USA | Posted: 9:14 PM on 04.27.09 |
->> I Just picked up a 32GB Delkin ExpressCard SSD for my MacBook Pro. It's bootable, connects via PCI-Express (rather than USB 2.0), so its fast, and has enough space to be usable in a pinch (Mac OS and applications only take up 24GB, leaving 6-7 for other data). It also has no moving parts. I got mine off of Amazon for $90 plus shipping.
http://www.amazon.com/Delkin-ExpressCard-Solid-State-Computers/dp/B0023XYEU... |
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Clark Brooks, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Urbana | IL | USA | Posted: 10:44 AM on 04.28.09 |
->> On assignments that I need to transmit right after the game and more than 40 minutes from my home, I take two lap tops. Like Brian, and the good submariner that I think I am, I rely heavily on redundancy - I might be a little more crazy about it than most. I have to have a back up for my back up on some assignments. Yeah, it means carrying extra gear (I've taken taken three laptops to gigs with me), but if something goes wrong, I don't have to panic. The number of times this practice has saved my tailend makes it all worth it.
Plus, if I was on an assignment and someone else's machine crashed, I figure I could let them use my back up to get their assignment in and I could rack some serious good karma :-)
Rather than throw the old beater laptops away, I save them for back up units when I'm on the road and they work as file or print servers while they are back in the office. If you don't have one, pick up something reasonable and fast that you can use in a pinch. While there are a lot of deals on craigslist you can pick up a new duo core laptop for under $400 at the big box stores. It might be worth it to pick up one of these for your second/backup machine. |
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Jim Colburn, Photo Editor, Photographer
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McAllen | TX | USA | Posted: 11:38 AM on 04.28.09 |
->> " My question is whether anyone carries a back-up laptop with them?"
I carry an compact external Firewire hard drive (currently a 320Gb one from MacSales that you can get for $110) with OSX and a minimal software load (Photoshop, Photo Mechanic, Transmit, etc.) that I can boot off of in the event of a hard drive crash in my MacBook Pro. |
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Jeff Stanton, Photographer
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Princeton | IN | USA | Posted: 11:47 AM on 04.28.09 |
->> I skimmed through some of the responses so this may have already been suggested. Instead of carrying another laptop, I used to carry another hard drive for my laptop.
The Dell model I have has a hard drive that is very easy and simple to swap out. A small screw holds it in a slot, and once removed, four small screws hold the hard drive in place. Once they are removed, I was able to put a new hard drive in already preloaded with software. Very easy, very simple. Anybody can do it. |
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Rich Cruse, Photographer
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Laguna Niguel | CA | USA | Posted: 12:11 PM on 04.28.09 |
->> Margaret's hard drive crash is a reminder to back-up your hard drives and if the drive is more than two years old, consider replacing it before it fails. Most drives have a 3 year warranty and we photographers give our laptops a workout. All hard drives will fail- that is certain. New drives are well under $100 and are faster and larger than ever.
I purchased an USB external and cloned the internal to it, then installed the new drive inside my computer. The old drive was placed in the external case and will serve as a back-up boot drive.
This process is fairly straight forward on a MacBook. Download SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner for Mac. I don't know the process for PC - sorry.
Older computers use ATA drives while newer computers use SATA drives. |
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PJ Heller, Photographer
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Santa Barbara | CA | USA | Posted: 6:58 PM on 04.28.09 |
| ->> Rather than a second laptop or backup HD, is anyone using a PDA with Phojo? |
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