QuickSync
Now that you have a full backup (it seems a bit of overkill to do this everyday, doesn't it?), all you need to do is QuickSync. QuickSync installs a small patch that lets Backup Buddy know which files have been changed since the last time you performed a HotSync.

If you use a DOC application, every time you open a DOC file the time stamp changes. To avoid a longer backup than necessary, you can create Sets that include the files that don't need to be backed up regularly. Sets are automatically excluded from QuickSyncs. Warning: make sure that you are careful using this feature. Because sets are excluded from QuickSyncs, you'll need to remember to do a full backup eventually to make sure you don't lose anything.

Restoring your Palm device
Restoring your Palm device is just as easy. First, make a copy of your directory on your computer, then perform a full backup and all the items are returned to your Palm device.

Choosing your backup solution
I like the fact that the application is easy and ready to use as soon as it's installed. But those of us who have tons of obscure applications can also easily customize the backup on an as-needed basis. Kudos also to these guys for making both a Windows and Macintosh version for all the Palm device users out there at a very reasonable price ($15 shareware).

So how do you choose between Backup Buddy and Palm Buddy as your backup solution? Both are fine products. I'd recommend you choose Palm Buddy if you're a Macintosh user and you're looking for a Mac-specific, well-integrated solution with a Macintosh interface and drag and drop. But if you're a PC user, or if you're working across both platforms, you're definitely going to want Backup Buddy.

This one gets four and quarter aardvarks out of five on the Fredlet Aardvark-Meter. And as soon as they make the features exactly equal on both platforms, I'll let them have that next quarter aardavark (eewww, doesn't that sound gross?) They'll get five aardvarks if they can figure out how to save my information if I spill grape Kool-Aid all over my Palm organizer (my standing offer for fixing the grape Kool-Aid problem).

David Gewirtz is the author of How To Save Jobs and Where Have All The Emails Gone? For more than 20 years, he has analyzed current, historical, and emerging issues relating to technology, competitiveness, and policy. David is the Editor-in-Chief of the ZATZ magazines, is the Cyberterrorism Advisor for the International Association for Counterterrorism and Security Professionals, and is a member of the instructional faculty at the University of California, Berkeley extension. He can be reached at david@zatz.com and you can follow him at http://www.twitter.com/DavidGewirtz.