Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. Are you starting the new year with a new PC? What are you going to do with the computer it's replacing? You might be planning to hand down the old ...

Reformatting a computer wipes the data stored on its hard drive, allowing for a clean installation of the system and programs. (In fact, you are technically reformatting the hard drive, so ...

For businesses, reformatting a computer's hard drive is often a necessary evil; viruses and spyware, for example, can devastate the operating system and the only option left is to start over fresh.