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| GoBack | |
| Have you ever pushed a button
and then uttered "I didn't mean that," or something a little more colorful?
Well, I've got the software for you. GoBack by Wild Fire Inc. is a remarkable tool that
integrates into your operating system to protect you from loss. GoBack keeps track of your
every computer move. You can use it to go back in time to that moment just before you
pushed the wrong key, or before you installed the new program, patch or beta version that
trashed your system. The amount of time travel is based on the amount of hard disk space you dedicate to GoBack. The default on installation is 10 percent of your hard disk. This is generally more than enough for several days of data. Another great feature is GoBack's ability to restore a trashed system. When you restart your computer, it tells you to press the space bar if you're having problems with your computer, and then offers you a list of safe points to travel back in time. Select the one nearest to the moment just before you committed the sin and the machine is restored to that time. If your first choice doesn't work, run the process again and select a point back a little further. GoBack is also an excellent file recovery tool. With GoBack, you tap the icon in the system tray and bring up a list of deleted files. Remember when you saved the new version of the file on top of the old version? We know you meant to rename it but just forgot to "save as" rather than "save." GoBack saved the prior versions for you. It will display each of the recent versions. Simply pick the one you wish to recover and rename it. The Professional version of GoBack has an auto-revert setting. When turned on, this feature will automatically return your system to a predetermined baseline configuration. It's a great tool if you have a machine that's used for training or testing, and you want to automatically restore it to the known working baseline at the end of each day. GoBack Professional also offers password protection. One caution that must be observed when using GoBack: You must deactivate it before running any defragment utility on your hard disk. This applies to Windows utilities or any after-market tools such as Norton System Works. If you leave GoBack active, it tries to write all the data into its own database while the defragment utility tries to put it elsewhere. GoBack has posted a patch on its Web site that allows it to peacefully co-exist with Norton, although I still urge you to turn it off before any defragmenting. Is there a doctor in the house?When I first installed GoBack on my WinBook XL2 portable, what followed was anything but fun. The program installed. However, when I rebooted, the BIOS activated, counted the RAM and shortly thereafter, displayed the Windows splash screen. Two seconds later, the machine rebooted. It kept happening. OK, I thought, occasionally programs get confused. I'll perform a hard shutdown and wait 30 seconds before restarting. I restarted, watched the RAM count, looked at the Windows splash screen, and watched the machine automatically reboot into the same loop. Hmm, next level. Let's see if we can boot into Windows safe mode. What a nightmare! I couldn't get the machine out of the loop. Time to admit that I'm in trouble. Let's call GoBack. With tech support guiding me, we commenced computer CPR. We pressed F-key after F-key. We rebooted and three-finger-saluted. We used the Windows Startup disk. With no change in the status of the patient (my beloved WinBook), I began to panic. Then, the coup de grace. The tech support person said, "Funny, we had the same problem with two other WinBooks today." Great! It's a hardware problem. I asked if I could get GoBack off the computer. We tried a number of routes, each of which ended in an electronic stonewall. Tech support assured me that the problem could be easily fixed, but they needed to have the computer to make the repair. They provided their FedEx account number and with great reluctance, I packed my portable and wished it bon voyage. Soon, the company sent me an e-mail that the prognosis was excellent for a full recovery. Later, I received a phone call confirming that the patient had been healed, but they wanted to figure out why the problem arose. They started checking everything in the boot process from the BIOS on up. I give them a lot of credit -- they wanted to find out (and prevent) this problem from happening again. Two days later, my portable made it back with GoBack installed. It ran like a charm. I checked the WinBook Web site and found that a BIOS update had been posted. I called WinBook to report my problem and ask if the BIOS update would fix it. I was on hold for a few minutes. The technician came back and told me that he thought the BIOS update would fix my problem. The bottom line: The support department at GoBack is great. They went beyond the call of duty. The last word -- computers are like cobras -- they're venomous creatures just waiting to strike! Even those of us who supposedly know what we're doing fall prey to the vapors given off by plastic and silicon chips. Happy computing! |
Wild File Inc. (612) 551-0881 www.GoBack.com Windows 95/98, NT and 2000 upcoming GoBack v.2.1 $69.95 Reviewed by Bruce Dorner, solo practitioner, Dorner Law Offices, Londonderry, N.H. PROS CONS VERDICT |
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