Category Archives: NowYouKnow

Why You Can’t “Securely Delete” a File, and What to Do Instead

Some utilities have a “secure delete” option that promises to securely erase a file from your hard drive, removing all traces of it. Older versions of Mac OS X have a “Secure Empty Trash” option that tries to do something similar. Apple removed this feature recently because it just doesn’t work reliably on modern drives.

Source: Why You Can’t “Securely Delete” a File, and What to Do Instead

How the Practice of Pricing Fuel with 9/10th of a Penny Got Started

Julia G. asks: Why do gas stations get to set their prices ending at 9/10ths of a cent, but nothing else is priced that way? The practice of pricing fuel with a fraction of a penny is thought to have started around the 1930s.  While we can’t be sure who was the first to price fuel this way, it seems […]

Source: How the Practice of Pricing Fuel with 9/10th of a Penny Got Started