Data Compression; Sporadic Disk Activity - Tascam PCI-822 User Manual

Data Compression

Don't use data compression on the drive that stores your digital
audio. Although Windows 95/98 supports data compression (for
example, the DriveSpace utility that comes with Microsoft's "Plus!"
add-ons), the compression algorithms generally don't work well with
digital audio. Furthermore, because the CPU spends time
compressing and uncompressing your files, fewer CPU cycles are
available for mixing tracks in your audio application.

Sporadic Disk Activity

Some applications think they're doing you a big favor by hanging
around in the background until the last crucial 10 seconds of your
mixdown, when they awaken and start pounding your disk.
Avoid applications and utilities that cause sporadic disk activity, such
as Screen Savers, System Agent, CD-ROM "Auto-Insert" Notification,
and Find Fast for Office. Here are some suggestions for thwarting
those applications.
— Screen Savers —
Few things are worse than having your audio interrupted by the
sudden appearance of a bunch of flying toasters (or some other
screen saver). A screen saver is particularly vexing because its delay
timer silently ticks away when you're not touching your mouse or
keyboard (when you're printing your final mix to DAT, for example).
To disable the screen saver, consult its documentation, or try this
procedure: open the Windows Control Panel, double-click the Display
icon, select the "Screen Saver" tab, and click the down arrow next to
the "Screen Saver" box. Select 'None' (the first entry) and then click
'OK' to confirm the selection.
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