Backups To Disk: Four Tape Alternatives Put To The Test
 

The continuing trend towards higher capacity hard drives with lower prices is causing more and more decision-makers to ask themselves whether tape drives really make sense for backup. Streaming tape drives, also called "streamers," have some disadvantages. Handling is relatively fiddly, and in the case of a drive defect, a matching spare part must be obtained before the drive can be used again.

Even a cursory Internet search yields repeated horror stories that users have already suffered. DLT volumes, for example, can be pulled far out of the cartridge, placing a great strain on the tape material. With DAT tapes, reports have surfaced again and again of tapes which cannot be read by all drives. In short: you can't simply trust that your backup tapes will work when you need them. To make backups really safe, you need care, attention and detailed planning - right up to testing for an emergency

http://www.tomshardware.com/storage/20050225/index.html

Incredible testing. Very indepth. :)

... and a lot of pictures too, in stead of boring us with displaying loads of graphs and test-results !
... pictures are VERY important in an article about data storage :grin:

:^D

Backing up data today is as easy as 1,2,3.
Backup to a remote site is the key.

Pictures are for product selling ...... remember how I look.;)

Just about to toss out my 700 mb HP mini tape backup drive. It costed me over $500 back then.:(

WD Raptor Raid-1 data disks
Daily total backup at nighttime to PC in other building
Bi-daily database-backup
Monthly CD-backup of data AND server-image burned on CD
Surge protection on server
Surge protection of network
1 spare pc in network that can be configured easily as server in case of server-failure

And i'm still afraid something could happen