Have you spent a lot of time creating Macros in Logger32 for use with MMTTY or the MVARI digital modes? If so, what happens if your computer dies? Do you lose all that work? Hopefully not! If you have Backed Up your User Files to some off-site location like a CD, a Thumb Drive, another computer hard drive, or even by sending the files in an email to your Gmail, Yahoo, HotMail or other WEB based email account - NOT to an email account which is downloaded to your computer email program like Thunderbird or Outlook Express. The email you send needs to be stored out in the "Cloud" so that if your computer dies, you can get a new computer and still access that email.
In Logger32, on the line directly below the Menu Bar, there is a string of icons for various features of Logger32. The 2nd Icon from the left is for Zipping your User files. See the image on the right. Click on any image to see it larger.
Click on this "Zip user files" Icon and a new window opens called "Backup user files." See the image on the left below.
Now just click on the "Start" button to save all the User Files to a Zip archive. In the example here, the file will be saved to the following directory:
You can click on the "Browse" button to save it in a different location if you wish.
The files that are backed up include your Logger32.ini, MMTTY.ini, UserPara.ini, and several other files that contain your "User" information. As far as your Macros are concerned, there are two files that contain them and they are called:
The MMTTY Macros are stored in the second file above and the MMVARI ones in the first one. You can open either of those files in a text editor like Notepad to view them or change them if you desire. You can also find these files in your basic Logger32 directory if you want to save them separately from the Zip archive.
If you click on the First Icon on the left in Logger32, it will backup all your databases and your logbook. That Zip archive may contain 20 to 30 separate files depending on how you actually use your Logger32. It contains the .ISD, .ISF, and .ISM files that are your logbook as well as your IOTA database files, Country database files, etc. Save this Zip file in a safe "off-site" location as well.
You can also export your full log as an ADIF file as a further backup. Keep that file in a safe place also.
Having all these files backed up in a SAFE location will save you HOURS of work and frustration WHEN (not IF) your computer dies! They can be used to restore your Logger32 to the new computer without the need for you to re-invent the wheel!
It is so quick to do that you have no excuse for not doing this on a regular basis.
1. Zip the files
2. Send yourself an email with those two Zip files as attachments.
Easy, peasy! Don't forget to also send yourself the LoTW P12 file to save yourself having to set up a new LoTW account. You WILL thank me one day if you do this!
