New external hard drive - now how do I back up??

buyitall

I have just bought a Western Digital external HD, and want to start my new life where I am sensible and back up my files, but I am having the following problems:
When I go through the back up wizard in xp, my new K:drive is not one of the options to save to - am I using the right software? I would prefer not to spend any more if poss.
Secondly, I am not sure what to actually back up. If I back up 'my documents', presumably this will not include itunes, which is where all my music is stored. I am also not sure where all my photos are, as sometimes I seem to open them with Olympus Master, sometimes with Photoshop and sometimes in my pictures. Should I just back up the whole of the c:drive? I think I have enough space. I also want to schedule regular backups.
All help appreciated, my garage and utility room have been flooded all day and this is my way of finally relaxing!

shown73

I'm in much the same boat. Have new 80G external drive, plenty for me, and wondered if I can just back up the whole "c" drive, rather than fiddle with bits and pieces. The other crucial question, if this is practical, is whether there is a free utility somewhere to smooth the process. I know that there are plenty of commercial varieties, but this is a money saving forum after all, and besides I'm cheap, even cheaper than Maureen......

albertross_2

http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm

buyitall

Last question, hopefully! I had started backing up using Nero before runtime was suggested. I have now run into problems when doing incremental backups. Basically, I'd like to know the best/easiest way of creating a backup of c:drive and then updating it weekly(ish) without too much hassle. Nero is taking ages and creating a new folder each time. If I change to a different method, should I delete the 2 Nero backups first? Also, should folders be compressed? Thanks for any suggestions.