FIRST LOOKS ACRONIS TRUE IMAGE ONE-UPS NORTON GHOST ACRONIS TRUE IMAGE 8, US$49.99; MACROVENTION SDN BHD (03-2169 6202); ADVANCE TECHNICAL CONSULTING SDN BHD (04-646 3526); WEB COMMERCE COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED (03-8996 6788); NETWORK FUSION SDN BHD (03-7728 2778); WWW.ACRONIS.COM.SG; ●●●● he easiest way to back up a out for its Linux-based emergency high-capacity drive is to image CD; it booted quickly and instantly it by creating a copy from which detected other machines in you can restore the entire drive our network. Ghost, by or extract individual files. The contrast, uses Microsoft’s Tleading imaging programs right now are Preboot Environment, Acronis True Image 8.0 and Symantec’s which boots slowly. On our Norton Ghost 9.0. two-network-card system, Both can make full or incremental backups, Ghost took ages to find either on schedule or on demand, while you remote machines and continue working in Windows. Both can sometimes didn’t find them at create and restore backups saved to your all. True Image’s advanced features include an option to set up a “secure zone” in a hidden disk partition for storing backup main drive, to USB or FireWire drives, writable True Image lets you assign a images safely. CDs or DVDs, or any other local or network drive letter to a backup image so drives. Both let you extract one or more you can browse the image’s files lacks these, but its networking worked backed-up files while working in Windows in Explorer or open documents from the File without further configuration on our tests. and let you restore a drive after booting from | Open menu choice in your applications. If you use Ghost with no trouble, there’s no an emergency disc. We like Norton Ghost a (The image is read-only, so you’ll need to reason to switch. But if you happen to be lot, but we like the new True Image even more, save modified files elsewhere on your drive.) in search of a drive-imaging program, start thanks to its greater convenience, simpler Since Ghost uses the Image Browser for with True Image. interface, and faster performance. viewing the contents of images, an extra step – Edward Mendelson For performing basic backups, the is required to extract a file before opening it programs are well matched: True Image in an application. took 8 minutes to turn 6GB of data into a Ghost includes the virus scanner from 4GB image, and Ghost needed 9 minutes Norton AntiVirus and network configuration to create a 4.3GB image. True Image stands tools on its emergency disc. True Image 1 REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM PC MAGAZINE MALAYSIA MAY 2005 ISSUE.