Oh my how time flies…we say it all the time and this summer, I’m really feeling it. Starting this week kids and young adults across the country will be heading back to the books. What’s particularly notable to me about this fall vs. years past is just how dramatically a student’s book bag or back-to-school shopping list today has changed from just 10 or 15 years ago. I can remember (without wanting to age myself) when I was getting ready to go back to school I would purchase a few paper notebooks, a binder, some dividers and a TI-81!!
Now it seems today’s student doesn’t feel equipped for class without a netbook, a portable hard drive (like the GoFlex), a mobile phone and either an iPad or a kindle…or both! Just check out some of the hi-tech tools highlighted as back-to-school essentials in this CBS Early Show report. It’s no wonder the National Retail Federation estimates Americans will spend a whopping $55 billion dollars on back-to-school supplies this year.
Now that students are so connected, having the right equipment at home or in their dorm room is also essential. For those with connected students at home where the family may be sharing the same computer or printer, having a reliable backup solution becomes far more essential. With the number of viruses that can be passed around in high-school or college IT environments, you don’t want to take a chance that your student’s system infects and crashes the family computer when they work on a file or connect to the home network. This is where a product like the GoFlex Upgrade Cable—Auto-Backup can be a true lifesaver. The GoFlex Upgrade cable – Auto Backup connects directly to a GoFlex ultra-portable or GoFlex Pro ultra-portable drive and transforms it into a continuous full-system backup device, while leaving the remaining capacity for basic drag-and-drop file transfer. If you dedicate a GoFlex external drive to backup using the Upgrade Cable—Auto-Backup, you’ll have the peace of mind that all files and system settings on your home computer can be recovered if you should experience a computer failure or crash due to a virus.
There are lots of tools and toys available today that can help get both students and households more organized and better protected. I already aged myself in telling you what I purchased for my book bag. Tell us what was in your book bag and how it does it differ from what you carry around with you today?
