Microsoft and T-Mobile Need Data Backup Advice

Microsoft? Microsoft needs advice about backing up mobile (cellphone and smartphone) user data? Yes! Especially when we're talking about Danger/T-Mobile's Sidekick devices which are designed to essentially store little except for whatever happens to be in the device's active memory while it's still turned on. On Thursday October 15, a catastrophic server upgrade (or change or modification or something) resulted in widespread data loss which, over the past five days, Microsoft has been battling hard to restore. Last week, most news items about this fiasco were stating flatly that user data (address books, logins and password, bookmarks/favorites, notes, etc., etc.) were likely lost forever. Good for Microsoft for not taking 'dead' for an answer. So far, according to Microsoft's Roz Ho no data has been restored. Word from the always-ready-to-snipe-at-Microsoft AppleInsider seems rather scary, especially the allusions to internecine internal warfare in the mobile development group at Microsoft. Forget the hype though because even a half-volume assessment of internal politics at Microsoft might help to explain why the Windows Mobile operating system has never worked well (or in some cases at all) for me. If you're using an affected T-Mobile Sidekick, do not turn off the device until such time as data restoration begins. What a mess. Some may feel it's all a whole lot o' nuthin' going on. Unfortunately, data storage in the so-called cloud (read: on a remote server somewhere as opposed to your own device or Mac/PC or laptop or external hard drives) must be faultless and essentially foolproof, with multiple security checks in place and made in order to ensure that no individual has the power to undertake a change or an upgrade which might endanger customer data, private information and so on. What a mess. Let the class-action suits begin!