Someone asked me off-list what the "low level format" is that I mentioned one should never apply to one's laptop hard drive. I looked in the archive, because I'm pretty sure this has been brought up at least one other time this year, but I didn't find the right thread. So, to refresh everyone's memory, I'm posting the answer I would have given that lister right to the list.
As has been mentioned before, IDE hard drives are "dumb" drives. They don't have as much intelligence as SCSI drives. This helps keeps the cost of manufacturing down. But, consequently, they aren't as flexible as SCSI hard drives. IDE disks always come pre-formatted (in a manner of speaking) from the manufacturer. You can re-initialize them, and you can re-partition them, but you should not do what is called a "low level format." A low level format will essentially re-define which portions of a disk you can use and write on. That's a simplification, but it makes the right point. Because IDE drives are dumb, they come from the manufacturer with this information already set. If you delete or change this information, the drive will go completely dead - it doesn't have the capability to re-write or update this information. Normally, you shouldn't be able to low level format an internal IDE drive. Apple's Drive Setup won't normally allow you to do so - the option is greyed out in the options dialog when you try to re-initialize an IDE hard drive. However, SCSI drives are a lot more intelligent and can be low level formatted. Drive Setup allows you to low level format a SCSI hard drive. This presents a problem for PowerBooks that are hooked up in SCSI disk mode. In SCSI disk mode, the PowerBook emulates an external SCSI hard drive - the PowerBook's internal hard drive looks to the host Mac as a SCSI drive. Thus, Drive Setup will allow you to low level format the PowerBook's hard drive. This obviously presents a dangerous situation. IMO, Drive Setup ought to be more intelligent than this. I would regard this as a bug, or maybe just really bad engineering... If you don't realize what you are doing, you can permanently destroy the disk. Nothing will bring it back to life. Norton, DiskWarrior, and all the disk utilities will be completely impotent in fixing this problem. You'll have turned your hard drive into a high-tech paper weight or door stop. Please note that this also applies to IDE disks in external SCSI cases, SCSI<->IDE converters for internal hard drives (as applies to SCSI PowerBooks with large IDE disks), hard drives in the expansion bay of a PowerBook (expbay hard drives are all IDE/ATA), and hard drives hooked into the PCMCIA slots. Has anyone tried to low level format flash storage media like a compact flash card or smart media? I wonder what that would do... If I'm incorrect, obscure, or too vague anywhere above, I would appreciate clarification!!! Peace, Drew -- Author of ClassicStumbler email: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> web: <http://homepage.mac.com/alk/> Want to know if your neighbor has Wi-Fi? Find out with ClassicStumbler! <http://homepage.mac.com/alk/classicstumbler/> -- PowerBooks is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Enter To Win A | -- Canon PowerShot Digital Cameras start at $299 | Free iBook! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> PowerBooks list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/powerbooks.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/powerbooks%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Mac? Free email & more at Applelinks! http://www.applelinks.com
