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Upgrading Your Hard Disk
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Choosing a Disk Type
There are many parts to a hard disk that a real "gear
head" might argue are important in selecting a new
drive. Most people really only use one criterion when
considering which HD to choose: cost. You can get into
a lot of trouble if that is your sole consideration, and
I speak from experience. Here are the basic things to
consider when comparing, in order of importance:
· Interface type,
such as EIDE (Enhanced Integrated Drive Electronics).
The interface type goes without saying. You wouldn't buy
a SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) HD if all you
have is an IDE controller, unless you want to add the
benefits of a fast SCSI drive without eliminating the
existing IDE drive.
· Also, make sure to match the controller with
the drive. An Ultra Fast SCSI drive will not be "Ultra
Fast" if you only use a SCSI 2 controller. The same
can be said for an EIDE (Enhanced Integrated Drive Electronics)
HD and an IDE controller.
· Maximum formatted storage
capacity.
HD manufacture's and vendors usually quote you the maximum
storage capacity, which is always more than the formatted
capacity due to many factors including file system (FAT16,
FAT32, NTFS), cluster size or allocation unit, type of
files being stored, and so on.
· Transfer rate.
The transfer rate is the rate at which the drive and controller
can send data to the system. The greater the value, the
better. Ultra Fast Wide SCSI subsystems hold the current
record at 40M/sec.
· Rotational speed (RPM).
Rotational speed and transfer rates are closely related.
The faster the RPM, the more data passes under the read/write
head in a set period of time, allowing for higher total
transfer. Faster is not always better, however. The faster
the RPM, the more chance you have to drop some data. Not
a problem for digital video, as in AV drives, but not
so good for your spreadsheet.
· Average seek time
(also known as access time).
The access time is the amount of time that lapses between
a request for information and its delivery. The lower
the value, the better. Most modern HDs have an access
time of 10ms or less.
· Cost per megabyte.
This is a good way to compare two drives of different
storage capacity. For example, the IBM 12G drive cost
$349 (349/12,000M), which translates to about 3 cents
per 1M. A 1G drive costing $99 ran me 10 cents per 1M;
therefore, I'm getting a better deal with the larger drive
even though it might cost me more.
· Onboard cache (or just cache). Onboard cache
acts as a buffer for data being transferred to and from
the HD. The larger, the better.
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