Data Safe Printer Port drive systems

DataSafe is an external case with a power supply to take almost any IDE hard drive. It comes with leads and software to connect to the printer port of any RISC OS computer with a bi-directional printer port, that is, most models except A310, A400, A540 or A3000.

So, what's so clever about that?

Hard disc prices are now so low that the cheapest form of backup device is another hard disc! The problem is that if you fit the backup drive to your machine and the computer is lost, stolen, or otherwise destroyed you also lose your backup. Plus there's no easy way to move data between computers.

DataSafe solves all these problems. As it's self-contained it can be disconnected when not in use and removed to a safe place so if anything does happen your data is safe. You can use it to backup several machines if required and/or transfer large amounts of data between them, even if they're at different locations.

The same advantages is claimed for a Zip drive, but transferring and backing up a gigabytes of data to a Zip drive with it's limited capacity is not practical. Backing up a 2Gb drive onto Zip discs will cost well over twice the price of a 2Gb hard drive in discs alone!

There's a through connector for your printer, and unlike some other systems if the DataSafe is not switched on there's still a connection to the printer, so you don't have to power up the DataSafe before you can print.

DataSafe supports partitioning, in fact, up to 8 partitions, so you can have large drives on an 'old' machine like an A4000, A5000, A3010, etc. Partitions can be password protected so confidential data can be put onto a drive used by several people but only those who know the password(s) can access it. This makes it ideal for schools as a backup and software installation device because the same drive can have 'public' and 'private' areas.

The DataSafe unit with power supply, leads, instructions for fitting a 3.5" IDE drive, and software costs just £99 including VAT.

If you order a DataSafe with a drive we will fit the drive.

This is functionally identical to the standard DataSafe but it has been produced in response to requests from our users for a smaller, lighter, unit which they could use to transport data to and from the office, school, etc.

Instead of a heavy 3.5" IDE drive the 'Mini' is fitted with a 2.5" 'notebook' drive. The power supply is an external unit so the main box can be very small and light, around 5" square and less than 2" high, and weighing around 14 ounces.

The price is the same at just £99 plus the cost of the drive. At present we are offering a Mini DataSafe ready fitted with a 1.8 Gb drive for just £149 or with a 4.2 Gb drive for just £179.

To save carrying the power supply with you (it's the heaviest part) we can supply additional power units for £12, and data leads for just £5 (to save reaching around behind the computer to unplug them from the printer port) when ordered with the main unit.