> Here are my basic requirements:
>
> - Periodic backup of selected files and folders, preferably to DVD
>
> - Version control, so that each backup doesn't overwrite earlier backups
>
> - Preferably invisible operation (i.e., I don't want to have to take part in
> the process. basically just leave my computer on and let it back itself up
> once in a while)
>
> - Free! (I'm just a hobbyist/home user - no need for anything fancy or
> enterprise level!)

You need to add at least the OS to the list of requirements :)

With Win2k/XP, the backup utility that comes with it works ok. I keep an
almost automated up-to-date backup of the whole system on a separate drive.

Whether to use classic backup media like tape or DVD or a separate drive
depends on what you want from your backup. My objective is to have a
safeguard against data loss. For that, I don't need to keep backups from
last year around -- it's more important to have them fresh from the last
day. And this is better done with a hard disk -- a lot faster, no media to
shuffle etc. (And besides, with the prices of 80GB and up disks, HDs are
not much more expensive as _media_ than many other options.)

I recycle this once a week, so that I always have two weeks of backup.
Never had a case where I had to go back further. But of course, I keep old
projects and the like in a separate storage, but wouldn't refer to this as
"backup" -- that's more an "archive".

ge

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