Let's say I want to buy a new external hard drive. I can pick a case with a particular interface (USB2/USB3/FW400/FW800/eSATA) and a mechanism with certain performance characteristics (RPM, latency, transfer rate, etc). Is there a straightforward heuristic that will tell me "if you're using interface X, don't bother buying a mechanism faster than Y."? [more inside]
posted by adamrice on Feb 3, 2011 - 3 answers

Mac, Leopard, La Cie external hard disk drive spins but does not mount. What's my best option for getting data off this drive? [more inside]
posted by gen on Nov 2, 2008 - 21 answers

Every night at 12:10AM, the brand new primary hard drive in my computer begins grinding away for a duration of 10-60 seconds. Why? [more inside]
posted by Danelope on Jan 14, 2008 - 12 answers

I want to put a new HDD in an old PC and would like to know how. (But please teach me to fish...) [more inside]
posted by Busy Old Fool on Jan 13, 2007 - 17 answers

What should I do with my new hard drive? [more inside]
posted by jewishbuddha on Apr 21, 2005 - 11 answers