Quote:

As most PC harddrives are still mechanical, the safely remove option should always be taken as it ensures the disc reading heads are in the 'parked' position



Modern "voice coil" drives effectively auto-park - the way they operate, when they aren't actively seeking they are always in the parked position. In addition, they all use a "slipper" support for the heads now, which means that the heads are no longer supported aerodynamically the way early drives were. This means that a physical head crash just isn't possible - the head support is already in pernament contact with the disk surface so it can't creash into it.

That said, it is always wise to to be patient. WAIT until all drive activity has definitely ceased before pulling the plug. "Safely remove hardware" can ensure this, though like Peter, I almost never bother and have never had a problem. Can't say the same for one of my staff members though - he's as careful as can be and still regularly kills "thumb" drives... Be funny if it didn't cost money.

--=-- My credo: If it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing - just ask my missus, she'll tell ya laugh --=--
You're only paranoid if you're wrong!