In my case, probably not. The great majority of the data I am backing up is already compressed: photos, audio, compiled program files and the like.

Compressing those files frequently results in files that are larger than the originals, although not by much. Well, sometimes maybe not, a quick test on four music files totaling 87MB(Beethoven Ninth) showed a compressed file that was about eight tenths of one percent smaller than the original, but it took about 15 seconds for the 7-Zip program to process the file.

Since I am not backing up to the Cloud, file size, storage required, and speed are not concerns. The backup program just ticks away quietly in the background with no noticeable impact on performance, and now I feel better knowing that even if something happens to one of my backup archives, I sill have another copy of it immediately accessible to me.

One reason Cloud backup is not realistic for me is that even in the unlikely event of optimal conditions, assuming I had already put in the several months of 24-hour a day uploading it would require to put my data into the Cloud, in the event of catastrophic failure it would take almost three weeks of continuous downloading to get it back. I wonder whether a lot of people who think they are perfectly safe with a Cloud backup have taken that into account? Although I guess that just getting the critical data back wouldn't take so long, and the pictures and music etc. could come later.

As for medical bills, my life is an open book. If someone wants to know that I had outpatient surgery on my arm to address a calcified tendon, well, you heard it here first I guess. The only people who might be interested in my medical records is my health insurance company, and they already have them.

tanstaafl.