On 9/6/2007 8:35 AM On a whim, frank1492 pounded out on the keyboard

> I have an old Dell Inspiron laptop with a 20GB hard drive. Since
> installing SP2, I only have about 700M left. I was thinking of
> compressing the files to save space which is a "check box"
> option in XP.
> (1) Does compression involve *any* data loss
> risk?
> (2) Overall, what are the advantages/disadvantages?
> (3) Any good free programs that can help me make the
> decision of what files I can safely delete?
> As usual. thanks very much for your advice!
> Frank

Hi Frank,

1. There is *always* a risk of data loss. That is why you need to
backup. But compression shouldn't make it a bigger risk.

2. You save space.

3. Free programs? No. Free information via the internet.

My suggestion is to buy a 2nd hard drive. You can get a small one at
Pricewatch for around $40 USD. Compression will never get you the
storage a 2nd drive can.


--
Terry R.

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