Two of my friends with Mac computers lost precious files within the past week because their hard drives failed and they didn't have their files completely backed up.

Do you have backups? Do you know how easy, simple, and cheap it is to back up your computer? What would you do if you lost all your files because your computer's hard drive failed?

Nobody wants to think about their computer breaking down! Nobody wants to spend money they don't have to on an already-expensive computer system. But it probably will happen to you. Yes, you.

On the other hand, you can buy a portable USB hard drive for less than US$100. When you get your drive, plug it in to your OS X machine running Leopard or Snow Leopard, and you'll see this prompt:

Click on the "Use as backup disk" button, and that's all there is to it!

If you want to make things even easier, you can buy a Time Capsule from Apple, or plug your USB hard drive into one of Apple's Airport Extremes and then your backups will happen wirelessly, so you don't even have to remember to plug the drive into your computer! These options are a little more expensive, but especially for laptop users they can be very handy.

The first backup will take quite a while so I suggest you set it up before you go to bed and let it run overnight. After that try to leave your drive plugged in as much as possible - at least plug it in to back up once a day. You can tell when it's done backing up several different ways, but the easiest is to look at your Finder's sidebar - when your Time Machine backup is happening, the two arrows beside the Time Machine drive will circle endlessly. Here's a snap taken while my backup is active:

Remember to click that "eject" symbol (or turn off your computer) before you unplug your USB drive each time!

For Time Machine, that's all there is to it. There's no complicated geek knowledge needed to do this! Apple designed Time Machine to be backups "for the rest of us". There are other ways to back up Mac computers, and some of them may suit some people better, but for simplicity and ease of getting started Time Machine beats everything else hands down!

So, are you getting yourself backups for Christmas this year? Can you really, truly, honestly tell yourself that spending $100 on USB backup drive now is worse than dealing with losing all your files and your assistive technology set up and your applications and your work or school files when your hard drive fails? Because odds are, you'll probably have a hard drive fail at least every 5 years - you really should take out the insurance of getting this drive for yourself. Go out now - or use the links in this article - and order yourself a hard drive or a Time Capsule. You really do deserve it.

- Ricky Buchanan

[amazondisclaim]

This is Juergen Manthey:

In October 2004 I suffered a brain stem infarct causing locked-in syndrome. We were at a land-rover meet up. I had a bit of a headache in the evening, which got progressively worse. Shortly after that, my body suddenly became paralysed (kind of like suddenly going from 100 to 0). I experienced all the symptoms of locked-in syndrome: complete paralysis of all muscles except my eyes.

After four years, I am able to sit, talk quietly, and move my head, and that's it.

(Note: the quotes in this article are all Juergen's own words, translated from the German text on his website by a friend of mine and used with his approval.)

Although he can talk quietly, Juergen still needs assistive communication software to communicate. So without accessible computing devices and software his activities would probably be limited to sitting in his wheelchair and watching TV or listening to the radio. Luckily, assistive technology exists. Juergen uses assistive technology to communicate, to control devices that let him have some physical independence, and to use his computer. He has his own website, he uses chat programs and Twitter and writes email, and he spends time with his family and friends.

Juergen does all his computing on Mac devices - he owns an iMac, a Modbook (a commercially adapted MacBook with the keyboard removed), and an AppleTV! But he wasn't always an Apple guy:

About two years ago I had my first experiences with a Macintosh computer. I was so thrilled with the easy handling and speed that I switched from using PCs to Apple. So far, I haven't regretted it - all the problems I had using Windows are gone now.

When you're using your computer to communicate, having it crash or lock up means losing your voice. Additionally, when you can't press the power button without help, whenever the computer needs physical rebooting you need to ask for help and wait for somebody to come and help you. For many people with a disability - including myself - the reliability of a Mac computer is a significant part of the appeal.

My configuration includes:

• Origin Headmouse Extreme.
• Logitech bluetooth mouse for clicking
• KeyStrokes on-screen keyboard from AssistiveWare.
• Proloquo communication software from AssistiveWare.

For those unfamiliar with assistive technology, this means he can move the mouse pointer with small head movements and click the mouse button with a small movement of his hand. KeyStrokes puts a picture of the keyboard on screen so Juergen can type by moving the mouse pointer over the letters and predicted words and clicking the mouse to select them. These two together allow the use of any Mac OS X program and - with the word and phrase prediction of KeyStrokes - to type surprisingly fast. In addition, Proloquo assists by having the computer speak the words Juergen types when he wants to communicate - it has many other features such as pre-programmed words and phrases that can be quickly selected.

And because he has a ModBook mounted on his power wheelchair, Juergen can do all of these things from wherever he happens to be - not only when he's at his desk. Here's a photo clearly showing the modbook:

Juergen continues:

In my bedroom I have a TV with AppleTV, which I can synchronise with my iMac. Through that I have access to all my pictures, videos, audio books and music in my bedroom. The simple AppleTV interface is controlled with a Keo remote control.

This means when Juergen is in bed - away from his computer access - he still has plenty to keep himself busy.

I discovered Juergen also has one assistive device I've never seen before - a robot arm! The robot arm from Assistive Innovations is attached to his wheelchair and controlled by a joystick Juergen moves with his chin. Here's the robot arm arranged to hold a drink for him:

The arm can also be delicately controlled to press keys on his computer keyboard, on the rare occasions that something locks up and the on-screen keyboard and head mouse won't do the trick:

This is truly somebody for whom accessible technology has changed his life. Usually, somebody with locked-in syndrome would be expected to exist in a nursing home and watch daytime television which they couldn't even turn on or off without somebody's help. Instead, Juergen is really living. With his robot arm and other technology, he's pushing the limits of what assistive technology can accomplish - and that's truly fantastic.

- Ricky Buchanan, with thanks to Juergen Manthey

Allison Greene is quadriplegic due to multiple sclerosis (MS) and must spend much of her day in bed. Her husband Bill has ingeniously adapted her Mac-based computer system to allow her to use it either from her wheelchair or while in bed.

The computer system includes a large size monitor, keyboard and mouse replacement functions, and the ability to watch TV and make and receive telephone calls.

Bill clarified for me in email that because of the cabinet the whole system is easily portable and could be moved to a different room, although his wife usually uses hers in the same room whether she's in bed or in her wheelchair.

The system is also very very flexible because it's based on a Mac Pro; additional pieces of equipment can be added or removed as needed. It's actually quite similar in theory to my own computer system which I use from bed, although mine isn't portable like Allison's is. This site is well worth a look.

Website: Accessible computer workstation for an unassisted quadriplegic user

- Ricky Buchanan

Vocalia is an iPhone dialler which provides speech recognition running directly on your iPhone.

Vocalia helps you find quickly and easily the person or company you want to call or send an email to. No network connection required. No private information sent to some unknown and far away servers. No additional work required from you to record your contacts' names.

All other iPhone speech recognising diallers, to my knowledge, work in one of two ways:

1. You pre-record the name of each contact, and the dialler compares what you say to the pre-recorded samples.
2. The dialler uploads your encoded speech and all your contacts' names to a server and the the speech recognition is done on the server, the answer is sent back to your phone. Google's iPhone dialler works like this.

Vocalia is different because it does the speech recognition right on your iPhone without needing you to pre-record samples of your contact's names. For people with speech impediments the type of dialler that pre-records samples will be the best, but for others this type of speech recognition is more flexible and easier to use.

Vocalia currently recognises speech in English and French and is available at the App store for US$7.99 or €5.99

Website: Vocalia

- Ricky Buchanan

Power's what assistive technology gives us, really. The power to communicate, to read, to type, to plan, to play, to control things. The power to achieve things that we couldn't otherwise achieve.

There are some obvious Apple related gifts - an iPod Nano with talking menus, an iPhone or iPod Touch, or a new laptop. I'm thinking that if you were going to buy something that large you've already got your gifts lined up though. Here are some ideas for things you might not have thought of buying for an AT user:

The Gift Of Audio and Video

iTunes can be used to buy music or audiobooks or movies as a gift - there's a specific button used to buy something as a gift. Remember that you can search iTunes to find movies with Closed Captions. If you're not sure what your recipient would like, iTunes gift cards are also available in some countries.

Audiobooks compatible with iTunes and the iPod/iPhone range can also be purchased from Audible.com, and a subscription to Audible will keep the audio books coming all year.

If you want to buy a physical DVD or CD for an assistive technology user who would prefer to watch it on their computer, check out our instructions for Keeping a Digital Library to transfer your purchases to their computer.

The Gift Of Protection

(No, not that type of protection - you'll definitely have to find a different website for that!)

All of this wonderful power isn't any good if one's assistive technology stops working. Keyboard covers such as those from zCover or KB Covers can stop crumbs, dirt, and drool or spills from getting into your keyboard, and the covers themselves can be washed in warm soapy water.

For those who use an external mouse, the Belkin Washable Mouse may be a good solution. I'm not aware of specific covers for other peripherals.

The Gift of Games

Games are always good for Christmas gifts! I know next to nothing about games, but luckily the AssistiveGaming site has plenty of reviews of Mac games which discuss their accessibility for users various disabilities, and hints and tips for making them more accessible.

The Gift Of Environmental Control

For those who have trouble using a radio, TV, or telephone separate from the computer, getting one which works through your accessible computer can be a great way to make things accessible. Three devices which I consider especially good - and use myself - are these:

PhoneValet Home Edition - answering machine and caller ID display for telephone.

Elgato EyeTV - Digital and analog TV receiver and Tivo-type software.

radio SHARK - Analog radio receiver with Tivo-type software.

The Gift of Caring

Anybody who's reading this article is somebody who cares about assistive technology and AT users, so thank you. If you're still looking for more ideas you could take a look at Did you know your Mac could do that?

So, what Apple gifts are you hoping to give or get this holiday season?

- Ricky Buchanan
The photo of the gift bows is adapted from a photo by nvaine on Flickr. Thank you.