Hello Angus,
I disagree on the statement that FAT32 will mess up everything! I have yet
to have FAT32 destroy any file on my system! It changes the cluster size to
4k, as you mentioned, but how does it destroy anything? If your drive is
2gb, and you have FAT16, and your autoexec.bat file is 3k in size, then it
will take a 32k chunk of hd space to store that 3k file; but when you
convert to FAT32, it takes only 4k of hd space to store that 3k file--but it
doesn't change that particular file's contents just by converting it's
storage size allotment. You also get past the 2gb limit on hd partitions
you have with FAT16--with FAT32, you keep the 4k cluster size up to 8gb
partitions, and I believe above that, it will move to 8k cluster size.
The only destroying you have to watch for is when using hd/file utilities
that were written for non-FAT32 systems, such as older versions of Norton
Disk Doctor, PC Tools, or anything else that is specifically designed to
work with file storage issues. But just saving a file to disk is no problem
between FAT16 and FAT32.
There has been some debate before on the access time increase, some
believing that with a 20k file, instead of reading a single 32k cluster to
get the entire file, it has to read several clusters to get the same file.
This argument has grown cold with the speed of the systems ever increasing,
and the fact that Windows 9x has the "read ahead" capability and efficient
disk caching.
With features like smaller cluster sizes that save hd space, and the ability
to go past the 2gb partition size limit, I'd say go for FAT32 every time!
It even has no adverse effects on my old DOS applications, as long as that
application doesn't try to optimize my disk space!
Thanks,
Dennis Brown, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Visit the Blind Programming site at http://www.mindspring.com/~brown99/
c
----- Original Message -----
From: Angus D.F. MacKinnon <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Saturday, July 10, 1999 6:37 PM
Subject: Re: Windows 98 and JFW
> FAT32 will mess up everything. Files are stored in 10 kilobyte size
> blocks by DOS to Windows'95. FAT32 stores files in 4 kilobyte blocks. So
> some information could be reported missing while still resideing on the
> Har Drive. If you plan to move to FAT32, then reformat the Hard Drive
> with Windows'98 and reinstall all the software.
>
> The Super Duper Guide Dog Dabney and
> Angus D.F. MacKinnon, (Vancouver Chapter President)
> RP Research Foundation of Canada
> E-Mail: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Web Page: http://members.home.net/dabneyadfm
> Check it out: http:://www.countdown9199.com
> -
> Visit the jfw ml web page: http://jfw.cjb.net
-
Visit the jfw ml web page: http://jfw.cjb.net
