Yes, I know that addressing a nibble (4 bits) to a byte is not possible unless you have a 4-bit computer like the Intel 4004, Toshiba TLCS-47 etc. That's the whole reason why you, to get that effect, have to read-modify-write the whole byte.

It is actually kind of the same as how you must read-modify-write a whole sector to change one byte on a disk.

Also, and perhaps more importantly; I was only joking/trolling and I have no idea why anyone would want to describe my post as Informative. Perhaps they found "Most modern drives are much larger than 4 bits." to be informative? :P

Cheers!

The problem with writing 1010 all over the disk is that it only covers an extremely tiny fraction of the disk. Most modern drives are much larger than 4 bits.

It is also highly inefficient since the OS would always have to read a whole sector (typically 512 bytes) and modify it in memory before writing it back again to avoid changing any bits outside of those 4 that are to be wiped!

So, why not just sell it on eBay and hope the buyer wipes the disk before using it?

I can only speak for myself, a Swede who recently turned 26, but to me this is probably the first time I've ever heard the word terrorism and the murder of Olof Palme in the same context. I'd think any awareness of terrorism on my part is totally unrelated to Olof Palme.

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But what about the awareness of state sponsored terrorism?