On 12/4/03 6:20 AM, "Luis Sequeira" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> I always partition my drives because this allows for > My 60GB TiBook drive has 4 partitions, roughly one for the System, > one for Applications and stuff, and two for video work (which can > then be kept defragmented, since I can erase them whenever I need) - > for some people, this might be used for a large iTunes library, for > example. > For OS X users there are two good reasons to partition and you mentioned one of them. Anyone who moves large amounts of data onto the hard drive for a short time and then removes it is likely to develop fragmentation. Therefore, people who do video or audio work should dedicate a separate hard drive or partition for that work. People who download large amounts of stuff and delete most of it should do the same. The other good reason is to have two operating systems. If one system goes south you have a backup. If an update or upgrade goes bad, you have a second chance. > > Keeping most of my applications in a separate partition has saved me > huge amounts of time when I recently installed Panther; moreover, I > had cloned my Jaguar system to one the video partitions, which > allowed me a safety net in case something wrong happened (which it > didn't). With this setup I was able too clean install panther with > minimum hassle. It would have been a lot more painful if I had a > nonpartitioned drive. What you mention above is the benefit of CLONING a backup to another partition as a safety net. That is indeed a good idea but rather than cloning to a partition, I'd strongly recommend buying an inexpensive external drive for this purpose. The major disadvantage of using a partition for backups is that some of the problems that can lead to data failure don't affect just one partition but both. If the partition table is damaged, there goes everything. If your drive dies, there goes all the data. A firewire or USB external case can be had for about $50 and 80gig drives can be had for about $100 - and even far less. I built a 120 gig external firewire this weekend for $110 thanks to some super Thanksgiving sales. Cloning your drive and then syncing your data folder to it every couple days is a good and easy backup plan and wastes no space on your Book's hard drive. Finally, there are at least two major disadvantages of partitioning - wasted space and inefficiency. Typically one partition fills up too fast while another has plenty of space. This means that the partition intended for the system might not be big enough - DISASTER! Or the applications partition might have too much space and the data partition not enough so some data winds up in the applications partition. After playing with partitions on my desktop at home and my old iBook, I found no speed or safety benefits. When I bought my new 15" alBook I left it unpartitioned. However, should disaster strike, I have the drive cloned to an external drive I keep at home and that drive has been cloned to a DVD that I carry in my briefcase. Having said that, I've come to the decision that being prepared provides two benefits - first, should disaster strike I'll be ready and second, keeps the computer gods from sending disaster in the first place. Going back four PowerBooks, I haven't experienced a single drive failure or data loss. david -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them. [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> --> 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/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
