I lost a 200-page project in college because I wasn’t properly backing up my work and have been a “saving nut” ever since. I’ll save to anything, be it the desktop, a disk, e-mail or on Apple's iDisk. If you’re not already using a USB flash drive for data storage, I suggest checking it out to see if it’s for you. Better safe than sorry.

The SanDisk 1GB Cruzer Micro USB Flash Drive, which is on sale for $35.99, is great because it's tiny, easy to use and PC and Macintosh compatible.

For more about USB flash drives, just read more

USB flash drives are essentially the floppy disks of the 21st Century. They fit right into your USB port and you save to them just like you do your desktop. They’re great if you need to transport files or programs from one computer to another or back them up just in case and can be re-written as many times as you want. They are also ideal for back-up and storage of large amounts of data - usually up to several hundred GBs – and offer an alternative if you, gasp, don’t have internet access or are unable to connect your computer to a printer.