Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!mips!daver!intersil!hamilton
From: hamilton@intersil.uucp
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Looking for memory defragmentation utility.
Message-ID: <189.274e52d4@intersil.uucp>
Date: 24 Nov 90 11:00:36 GMT
References: <1990Nov14.214230.1087@rodan.acs.syr.edu> <2381@moscom.UUCP> <187.274c09c6@intersil.uucp> <1990Nov23.192455.8811@rodan.acs.syr.edu>
Organization: Harris Semiconductor, Santa Clara CA
Lines: 43

In article <1990Nov23.192455.8811@rodan.acs.syr.edu>, bwdavies@rodan.acs.syr.edu writes:
> In article <187.274c09c6@intersil.uucp> hamilton@intersil.uucp writes:
>> 
>>You're confusing de-fragmenting and re-organizing.
>
> No, I'm not.
> 
> My machine at work is set up to alphabetize all files and sub-directories, too.
> 
> I regularly add and change files beginning with all sorts of letters.  It
> still only takes a few minutes.  
> 
> Using the'block clear' function on PC Tools _does_ add to the time it takes
> to optimize the disk.  Using this option, it does take thirty plus minutes
> to finish.  Is this the way you have your machine set up?

On PC Tools there are options for sorting (I think they are in a menu on the
left hand side), and there are options for organization (or something similar),
on the far-right-hand menu.  I believe you are using the _first_ choice in that
right-hand menu, which I think is called "standard" (forgive me for all these
guesses, the program's at work).  There are two menu items below the first
choice.  If you select the second item ("DOS?"), then PC Tools re-arranges your
hard disk in order according to the sorting parameters you picked on the left-
hand menu list.  This takes A LONG TIME.  If you select the top menu item,
PC Tools is very fast, but it does not sort ANYTHING, it only de-fragments.

If it takes a long time for you when you select the clear blocks option, then
my guess is your hard-disk is not that full.  This will obviously also speed up
re-organization.

I've spent a decent amount of time looking at/playing with QB Tools, BAD, and
PC Tools, and I have a good idea of what's going.  Play with the options on
that right-hand menu and I think you'll see what I'm talking about.

Oh, one other thing.  Before Quarterback will organize a disk, it reads every
sector of the disk to make sure there are no hard or soft errors on the disk.
This does take some time, but it allows you to fix problems _before_ you
start re-organizing.  Both PC tools and Norton's on the PC will spend 1/2 hour
re-organizing, then come across an error and just bail out.
-- 
Fred Hamilton                  Any views, comments, or ideas expressed here
Harris Semiconductor           are entirely my own.  Even good ones.
Santa Clara, CA