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I use Windows XP and I have a DVD writer and Nero dvd software. I cannot affort a pen-drive. They are out of my budget.

An external hard drive is the best option, I'm not sure what your budget is but you can get a decent size one for well under $100. Otherwise burn any data you think is important onto a DVD or CD, however, DVD and Cd's do not last for ever, they degrade over time. With an external harddrive you can plug it in USB copy your important files over, then un-plug it that way it is not susceptible to power surges.

Just set up a new data disk on Nero and add your data files to the burn list. Use dvd - rw for maximum storage and re-use.

It depends on what you want to backup.

If you are using windows xp then you already have the ability to create restore points on your computer. Right-clik My Computer icon >> properties >> system restore tab

If you are interested in backing up your important files .. such as documents, favorites, music files, etc.. Then your DVD writer is a great way to go.. The typical DVD will hold 3.2Gigs of data... you can probably save some money and back your data up to a regular CD-r which holds (depending on type you get) 650 - 800mb which is far more space than the average persons My Documents folder holds and they are much cheaper than DVDs so you could burn a few copies.

I suggest you keep a binder of all of your installation discs for programs. If you purchase programs on the internet then you might want to burn the installation program to a CD and put it in your binder incase you ever need to reinstall everything.

These are the cheapest and easiest solutions. A spool of 25 CDs probably will only run you a few bucks... if you buy a spool of 50 or 100 they get even cheaper... pennies per CD.
DVD writers are backwards compatible so you will be able to use CD-Rs in it.

Good Luck.

Try to use a DVD .. it's much more efficient if you have lots of data .. to backup your data , just use nero .. and use DVD data burning, then start adding the files that you need ... then just burn the DVD

Nero and DVD should solve your problem.
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