On 3/1/2011 7:47 PM, Bob R wrote:

Does anyone in the group have a safety deposit box at a local bank? Or
had one in the past?

I checked at a local bank here (Upstate N.Y.) if it matters. The one
thing I don't like about it, is you don't get any kind of receipt for
what you put in it. Also, the bank says only the person who has the box
has a key to it. The only way the bank could get into it is if the
rental fee is not kept current.

So, good or bad idea to get one? Any opinions and or comments will be
greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Bob


Well...how secure is home and how valuable are the stored material? I
had a safety deposit box for several years, until the cost went to about
$100/year. I had documents that represented criminal acts by certain
others who were violent family members and my only proof of certain
events. It occurred to me that folks feel a lot safer by storing deeds
and other irreplaceable items in SDB's that were not as safe as one
would believe...living in coastal area of Florida, I asked at the bank
if there was a h'cane and flood, would the boxes be water-tight. They
said no. So adding ziplock bags or other suitable waterproof container
would be needed. If my homeowners policy and photos of all belongings
are in the SDB and a h'cane hits, all is lost? Some folks add a second
"owner" in case of their demise...I helped a family friend with
Alzheimer's gather all of her financial records when her condition
became too severe for her to live alone. She was highly intelligent and
adapted to Alzheimer's in remarkable ways...she always kept the day's
newspaper on the dining room table so that she would know the date.
Missing for a long time were about $40K in savings bonds and her family
feared that she had given away large sums of money...we checked two or
three banks over several days and one evening she had a sudden flash of
memory...she went to her closet, grabbed a shoe box out of a pile of
"stuff"...voila, there were her bonds.

One should let their family know of the SDB and what (appropriately)
they need to know of it's contents. It makes one analize how
trustworthy their family members are )

After retiring to Florida, my mom would give each of us kids the "death
tour" whenever we visited...always kept her papers and valuables in
order and gave each of us a copy of her will as well. My brother was
added as owner of her relatively small savings account. When she passed
away, the attorney for her estate charged, I think, $6K. When her
estate was settled, there was about $1,300 left to pay him. I asked him
whether, since her affairs were in good order and required little
attorney time, would he forgive the remainder of his tab. He did so.

wrote

One should let their family know of the SDB and what (appropriately) they
need to know of it's contents. It makes one analize how trustworthy their
family members are )

One of my wives was a paralegal for a family law lawyer. Very old large
estates in Louisiana. In the five years she worked for him, we got to see
many family scenarios play out. When they say, "It's not about the money,
it's about the principle," it's about the money. Heirs, relatives, family
members, loved ones, friends, all seem to change when enough zeros come into
play. Fistfights in the waiting room. Scheduling so antagonistic groups
wouldn't show up within 4 hours of each other.

BTW, we were also privy to the longest murder trial in Louisiana history,
which was very interesting.

Steve

I worked in a bank and I read the obits every day, hoping to see my
boss's name there.

If you have important info on your computer, backing it up onto CD or
DVD and storing the disks off-site in a safety deposit box is a good
idea in case of fire, flood, tornado, burglary, etc. Or you could just
leave the disks at your office, in your gym locker, at a friend's
house...

If the banks do read the obits, how do they know it's their customer?
Don't people named John Smith die every day?

wrote

When she passed away, the attorney for her estate charged, I think, $6K.
When her estate was settled, there was about $1,300 left to pay him. I
asked him whether, since her affairs were in good order and required
little attorney time, would he forgive the remainder of his tab. He did
so.

I cannot imagine needing $6000 in lawyer costs unless it was a huge or
complicated estate. Or a shady lawyer taking advantage of a situation.

Maybe we've just been lucky, but neither my wife no my family has never
argued over what little estate there was amongst parents. I guess modest
means has some advantages.

On 3/3/2011 8:26 AM, wrote:
On 3/2/2011 3:21 PM, SteveB wrote:
wrote

One should let their family know of the SDB and what (appropriately)
they
need to know of it's contents. It makes one analize how trustworthy
their
family members are )

One of my wives was a paralegal for a family law lawyer. Very old large
estates in Louisiana. In the five years she worked for him, we got to see
many family scenarios play out. When they say, "It's not about the money,
it's about the principle," it's about the money. Heirs, relatives, family
members, loved ones, friends, all seem to change when enough zeros
come into
play. Fistfights in the waiting room. Scheduling so antagonistic groups
wouldn't show up within 4 hours of each other.

BTW, we were also privy to the longest murder trial in Louisiana history,
which was very interesting.

Steve



I have seen family members raid their parents home before the funerals
to glom onto every little thing they wanted for themselves. I have also
seen my own family be entirely open, selfless and generous in taking
care of our parents' estates. Another person, at his death, had a list
in his wallet of all the financial assistance given to his children
forever....I made a decision that day that if my kids ever needed money,
and I was able and willing to help them, there would be no loans. If I
could afford to lose it, a chance with a loan, I could afford to give it
and there would be no more to the issue to poison our relationship like
"owing" money. If a kid asked for money and I could not or would not
help, there would also be a fair and reasoned discussion...might be the
reason all of my kids can have differences, tension, and then discuss
them and get it settled and still love each other.

I'll second that. I don't have kids, but I do have underemployed
siblings, and a kid sister that hit college age at a time when our
parents happened to be broke. A year after she graduated, she asked
about when I expected her to repay me, and I told her that I hadn't kept
track, but it was now her turn when the next generation hit college age.
That is what money is for, isn't it? Taking care of your own?

--
aem sends...

On Thu, 03 Mar 2011 08:26:03 -0500, "
wrote:

On 3/2/2011 3:21 PM, SteveB wrote:
wrote

One should let their family know of the SDB and what (appropriately) they
need to know of it's contents. It makes one analize how trustworthy their
family members are )

One of my wives was a paralegal for a family law lawyer. Very old large
estates in Louisiana. In the five years she worked for him, we got to see
many family scenarios play out. When they say, "It's not about the money,
it's about the principle," it's about the money. Heirs, relatives, family
members, loved ones, friends, all seem to change when enough zeros come into
play. Fistfights in the waiting room. Scheduling so antagonistic groups
wouldn't show up within 4 hours of each other.

BTW, we were also privy to the longest murder trial in Louisiana history,
which was very interesting.

Steve



I have seen family members raid their parents home before the funerals
to glom onto every little thing they wanted for themselves. I have also
seen my own family be entirely open, selfless and generous in taking
care of our parents' estates.

My mother asked each one of us what furniture and "stuff" we wanted of hers
and burned in our names and the date it was "given" on the back. There were
no arguments when she died.

When my MIL died, her step kids made asses of themselves. One stole a rocking
char that my wife had explicitly said she wanted. We told them to take
anything they wanted of their father's, and we sold the most of the rest. They
were ****ed that they got no money. There wasn't any (maybe $5K at the end).
They blew it all.

Another person, at his death, had a list
in his wallet of all the financial assistance given to his children
forever....I made a decision that day that if my kids ever needed money,
and I was able and willing to help them, there would be no loans. If I
could afford to lose it, a chance with a loan, I could afford to give it
and there would be no more to the issue to poison our relationship like
"owing" money. If a kid asked for money and I could not or would not
help, there would also be a fair and reasoned discussion...might be the
reason all of my kids can have differences, tension, and then discuss
them and get it settled and still love each other.

I have no problems with loans. If it's not paid back, fine. If it is, there
is that much more than can be put to other good uses. Dependence isn't a good
thing, IMO.

On-line backup is only as secure as the company's financial situation
allows them to be- although admittedly unless they go broke right
around the time you need your data you have time to replace them. From
what I read in the NY Times, though, it takes a long time for an
initial backup if you have, say, 1 tb of video files. Time as in
months and months with a DSL connection.

But if your house burns down and thus your internet connection's also
gone, let's say you move to a new apt and buy a computer. How long
will it take to get a new internet connection and then download all of
your data? I'd prefer to have it all on DVDs. Worst case I pay a HS
kid to spend a day swapping disks to recover my data, assuming I left
the disks elsewhere (as I do).

On Thu, 3 Mar 2011 19:12:44 -0800 (PST), Shaun Eli
wrote:

On-line backup is only as secure as the company's financial situation
allows them to be- although admittedly unless they go broke right
around the time you need your data you have time to replace them. From
what I read in the NY Times, though, it takes a long time for an
initial backup if you have, say, 1 tb of video files. Time as in
months and months with a DSL connection.

But if your house burns down and thus your internet connection's also
gone, let's say you move to a new apt and buy a computer. How long
will it take to get a new internet connection and then download all of
your data? I'd prefer to have it all on DVDs. Worst case I pay a HS
kid to spend a day swapping disks to recover my data, assuming I left
the disks elsewhere (as I do).

USB hard drives are *cheap*. Don't bother with CDs or DVDs.

CDs and DVDs are almost free. You'd need two USB hard drives to have a
continuous backup off-site.

I mostly work on the same files so incremental backup on a weekly
basis is quick and easy. Though I have thought of getting a second
external hard drive and just swapping them back and forth as backups.

"Shaun Eli" wrote in message
...
CDs and DVDs are almost free. You'd need two USB hard drives to have a
continuous backup off-site.

I mostly work on the same files so incremental backup on a weekly
basis is quick and easy. Though I have thought of getting a second
external hard drive and just swapping them back and forth as backups.

CDs and DVDs have lifespans, sometimes a lot shorter than one would expect.
With the larger hd's now at very reasonable prices, that's a good way to go.
sheesh, we can get flash drives these days bigger than the hard drives on
our old computers in the nineties.

SteveB

Heart surgery pending?
Read up and prepare.
Download the book $10
http://cabgbypasssurgery.com

Reminds me, it's been a while since I brought mine in from
the car to synch it up to date.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


wrote in message
...

USB hard drives are *cheap*. Don't bother with CDs or DVDs.

Steve B wrote:
"Shaun Eli" wrote in message
...
CDs and DVDs are almost free. You'd need two USB hard drives to have
a continuous backup off-site.

I mostly work on the same files so incremental backup on a weekly
basis is quick and easy. Though I have thought of getting a second
external hard drive and just swapping them back and forth as backups.

CDs and DVDs have lifespans, sometimes a lot shorter than one would
expect. With the larger hd's now at very reasonable prices, that's a
good way to go. sheesh, we can get flash drives these days bigger
than the hard drives on our old computers in the nineties.


Flash drives have lifetimes, too. Their lifetimes are based on usage, not
bit rot. Depending on the dye and the CD-drive, a CD can last decades or
more (or only a few weeks). A Flash Drive is good for at least a few
thousand read-write cycles.

On Thu, 3 Mar 2011 21:13:21 -0800 (PST), Shaun Eli
wrote:

CDs and DVDs are almost free. You'd need two USB hard drives to have a
continuous backup off-site.

I mostly work on the same files so incremental backup on a weekly
basis is quick and easy. Though I have thought of getting a second
external hard drive and just swapping them back and forth as backups.

So they're twice nothing. So what? CDs are too unreliable.

On Fri, 4 Mar 2011 09:59:09 -0600, "HeyBub" wrote:

Steve B wrote:
"Shaun Eli" wrote in message
...
CDs and DVDs are almost free. You'd need two USB hard drives to have
a continuous backup off-site.

I mostly work on the same files so incremental backup on a weekly
basis is quick and easy. Though I have thought of getting a second
external hard drive and just swapping them back and forth as backups.

CDs and DVDs have lifespans, sometimes a lot shorter than one would
expect. With the larger hd's now at very reasonable prices, that's a
good way to go. sheesh, we can get flash drives these days bigger
than the hard drives on our old computers in the nineties.


Flash drives have lifetimes, too. Their lifetimes are based on usage, not
bit rot. Depending on the dye and the CD-drive, a CD can last decades or
more (or only a few weeks). A Flash Drive is good for at least a few
thousand read-write cycles.

More than hundreds of thousands of *write* cycles (unlimited reads). If you
use the drive for backup you'll never exceed its lifetime.

"HeyBub" wrote in message

stuff snipped

Flash drives have lifetimes, too. Their lifetimes are based on usage, not
bit rot. Depending on the dye and the CD-drive, a CD can last decades or
more (or only a few weeks). A Flash Drive is good for at least a few
thousand read-write cycles.

Plus, you can get 16GB micro-mini-SDHC/DX cards

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_Digital#SDXC

for $32 or less now and a form factor much smaller than a postage stamp and
thinner than a dime. $2 a GB for something that takes essentially no space
in a safety deposit box and is random access and direct-readable, to boot.

According to wikiP they are 11.0mm by 15.0mm by 1.0mm thick with a volume
of 165sq mm and a mass of 0.27 grams. The standard supports 2TB - we'll
see. Right now, 16GB is enough. First started seeing them in cellphones
and video pen recorders, now they're everywhere. Not sure if they're all
the same - the ones I get are labeled Transflash or TF. For a guy who used
to work with 5MB Bernoulli carts, the idea that I can fit 3 million
Bernoulli disk's (about 8 x 12 x 1") worth of data on something you could
hide between two quarters is pretty amazing. In a year or two I might even
deem them reliable, but it's too early to tell. So far, no bit errors when
copying.

The real problem with typical offsite backups is that you've got a bootable
image for a burned up machine. That sometimes turns into a royal panic
hunting for a machine to restore to when you've got to recover data quickly.
Data and programs are horribly intermingled in typical systems and then the
OS ties that all to the particular hardware it is running on. So a backup
Ghost type image made on one machine usually won't boot on machine with even
a modest configuration change. Things get even dicier when the client is
two or three versions behind the latest software version. Ebay has been a
godsend for many, allowing them to scarf up exactly the same machine they
used to have for a decent discount. Of course, that's all most policies
will give them for the dead machines, so it's still a hassle.

--
Bobby G.

"Robert Green" wrote:

For a guy who used
to work with 5MB Bernoulli carts, the idea that I can fit 3 million
Bernoulli disk's (about 8 x 12 x 1") worth of data on something you could
hide between two quarters is pretty amazing.

VERY amazing!!!

wrote in message
...
"Robert Green" wrote:

For a guy who used
to work with 5MB Bernoulli carts, the idea that I can fit 3 million
Bernoulli disk's (about 8 x 12 x 1") worth of data on something you could
hide between two quarters is pretty amazing.

VERY amazing!!!

If only gas mileage, 401K income or solar panel efficiency matched the gains
in memory capacity in the last few decades. A 2 TB hard disk costs $100
these days. I remember paying $600 for one of the early 20MB drives. It
would take 1000 of them to equal 2TB (I think!) - that would be $600,000 in
20MB drives.

--
Bobby G.

"Robert Green" wrote:

If only gas mileage, 401K income or solar panel efficiency matched the gains
in memory capacity in the last few decades

agree!

computing power has become cheap

and good thing too!

On 3/10/2011 9:58 PM, wrote:
"Robert wrote:

If only gas mileage, 401K income or solar panel efficiency matched the gains
in memory capacity in the last few decades

agree!

computing power has become cheap

and good thing too!

Now if decent connections at home would get cheap, I could work from
home a couple days a week, and save some gas money.... (Trying to run a
VPN client through a 384 pipe just Does Not Cut It.)

--
aem sends...

aemeijers wrote:
On 3/10/2011 9:58 PM, wrote:
"Robert wrote:

If only gas mileage, 401K income or solar panel efficiency matched
the gains in memory capacity in the last few decades

agree!

computing power has become cheap

and good thing too!

Now if decent connections at home would get cheap, I could work from
home a couple days a week, and save some gas money.... (Trying to run
a VPN client through a 384 pipe just Does Not Cut It.)

As an aside, have you tried Mikogo (mikogo.com)? It's a remote-control or
demonstration tool that does not require installation on the remote computer
and is free, even for commercial use.

On 3/10/2011 11:38 PM, HeyBub wrote:
aemeijers wrote:
On 3/10/2011 9:58 PM, wrote:
"Robert wrote:

If only gas mileage, 401K income or solar panel efficiency matched
the gains in memory capacity in the last few decades

agree!

computing power has become cheap

and good thing too!

Now if decent connections at home would get cheap, I could work from
home a couple days a week, and save some gas money.... (Trying to run
a VPN client through a 384 pipe just Does Not Cut It.)

As an aside, have you tried Mikogo (mikogo.com)? It's a remote-control or
demonstration tool that does not require installation on the remote computer
and is free, even for commercial use.



Not An Option, sadly. Company (the Feds) machine. I only still have
admin rights on it because they forgot about me, but when I get issued a
replacement sometime this year, it will be locked down hard.

--
aem sends...