Clippings, the extension for Firefox and Thunderbird that saves frequently-entered text for pasting later, is an indispensable tool for daily use, and the clippings that are saved with it are just as valuable, if not more so. It's worth taking a few moments to back up your clippings on a regular basis for safekeeping.
While Clippings itself is stable and robust, there are potentially many other things outside of it that can go wrong:
- your computer might suddenly not turn on anymore;
- your computer's storage may get corrupted due to a hardware issue;
- an operating system update may fail and render your system unusable;
- a virus or malware may wreak havoc on your system or even lock you out unless you pay a ransom to the hacker;
- your Firefox profile might be left in a bad state for any number of reasons;
Backing up your clippings regularly is the best thing you can do to protect them. It's easy and quick -- just open Clippings Manager, and then select Tools → Backup from the toolbar. Save the backup file to a folder or an external drive set aside for backing up your data.
| Back up your clippings from Clippings Manager. |
Clippings also has a handy backup reminder feature that will show a notification on a regular basis, reminding you to back up your clippings; you can even control how frequently it appears (daily, every few days, once a week, etc.) from Clippings preferences.
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| Backup reminder notification. |
If you haven't backed up your clippings in a while, or don't remember when it was the last time you did, then it's time to do it. Take a moment now to back up your clippings for safekeeping, and make it a habit! They'll be there when you need it the most, and your future self will thank you.
