CALLING COMPUTER NERDS -- advice needed

[HoyaSaxa03]

I'm trying to think long-term about my storage needs, and I think I'll need about 300gb of HD space, and something to back all of that up with.
 
 I already have a ~150 GB HD in my dell, so I'm looking to buy a 200 GB internal HD to expand my storage ...
 
 Are DVD-+RWs the best/most cost-effective way to backup 200-300 GB?  I'm guessing I'd need about 40-60 DVDRWs to back all of that up, so I could just throw them all in a CD book or something and put it in my closet.
 
 Any other backup ideas?
 
 what i'm looking at buying right now:
 
 NEC Model ND-3520A
 
 Western Digital / Caviar SE / 200GB / 7200
 
 much thanks for any advice....

[markie]

It would be a lot more convenient to get an external HD to use as backup. HD's are pretty cheap, burning 60 DVDs is pretty boring.
 
 Why not get a 300gb hard drive and use the 150 for back ups of essential files only?
 
 Oh and stop wearing Virginia sweatshirts.

[sonickteam2]

I'll second Markie, the hard drive is the way to go.  i got a 120GB for about $120.
 
   plus, its a lot easier to scratch, lose or otherwise ruin DVDs than a hard drive.
   
   or course, the odds of scratching all 50 at once is not as great  
 
   if you wanna be real safe, do both. you cant put a price on losing all your files!

[ratioci nation]

what is this storage for? if you are looking longterm, why not get an external so you can move it with you easily as you upgrade your computer

[markie]

Originally posted by ratioci nation:
  what is this storage for?  

Gay porn.

[sonickteam2]

can you really get a 300gb hard drive? i have never seen one (maybe i have never looked)

[BookerT]

did it really take 18 minutes until the first gay porn joke? i'm a bit surprised, i must say.

[markie]

Originally posted by sonickteam2:
 maybe i need adult diapers)

Do not wet  yourself

[ratioci nation]

Originally posted by sonickteam2:
  can you really get a 300gb hard drive? i have never seen one (maybe i have never looked)

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1112201&CatId=530

[markie]

Originally posted by BookerT:
  did it really take 18 minutes until the first gay porn joke? i'm a bit surprised, i must say.

Archiving all that gay porn is no joke for me.

[ggw]

Are you feeling inadequate about the size of your hard drive?
 
 

Originally posted by sonickteam2:
  can you really get a 300gb hard drive? i have never seen one (maybe i have never looked)

[HoyaSaxa03]

although i have a very robust gay porn collection, the storage space i need is for music ... i have about 60gb right now, and i'm going to copy a couple of friends' collections who have about 75gb each
 
 so i wanted to back all of these files up, but i was concerned about using another HD for that ... i mean, the main reason i want to back it up in the first place is because it's on a HD, which can crash, etc
 
 do most people just use external HDs now as backup for their HDs?

[ratioci nation]

i dont really back my music up, but if it is for music, i would suggest external just because it is so convenient, you could move it to any computer easily, I keep my music on a 160gb external

[HoyaSaxa03]

thanks for the advice ... on second glance, it looks like there's some good deals in external HDs on newegg.com ... anyone know anything about SimpleTech?
  Simpletech 250GB 7200RPM USB2.0 External Hard Drive, Model STI-USB235/250
 
 $145 after rebate...

[bellenseb]

I would really recommend backing them up on rewritable DVD (as well as a hard drive). Hard drives fail all the time, but if you take some basic precautions DVDs will not just spontaneously fail (at least in the next 10-15 years).