Tips on Using Windows 95/98 Applications Disk Space All Staff
Detecting Doubled Diskettes
Compressed hard disks and diskettes must be mounted before they can be accessed. Hard disks mount automatically when Windows 95 boots, and compressed diskettes are mounted as soon as Windows 95 detects them. But if you aren't running Windows, compressed diskettes aren't automatically mounted. To mount a compressed diskette, use the ScanDisk utility with the parameter /MOUNT followed by the diskette's drive letter. The DOS command looks like this:
SCANDISK /MOUNT A:
Shrink to Fit
Windows 95's DriveSpace feature compresses data to save disk space, but compressing and decompressing data takes time, slowing disk reads and writes. Compressing large files you seldom use is a great idea, but it's not such a great idea to compress small files or files that must be accessed quickly. DriveSpace 3 lets you make compression decisions on individual files. Each of DriveSpace 3's four compression choices can be applied to an entire drive, a directory or a single file:
No Compression: Your data is read and written at full speed, but you don't save any disk space. Standard Compression: This default provides reasonable disk space savings with minimal effect on access speed. HiPack Compression: This saves more disk space than Standard, but slows disk access. UltraPack Compression: This method squeezes files as much as possible and can yield dramatic space savings--with an equally profound effect on access speed. Microsoft suggests using UltraPack only on files that aren't read or written often and on PCs with fast--Pentium or better--CPUs.
To set compression, click on the Start button and select Programs/Accessories/System Tools/DriveSpace. Select a drive and choose the Advance/Settings menu item.
