Want to clean a hard drive so I can sell my old old computer. How?

Yes... DBAN will clean everything off, but you'd be required to include your original Windows 95 CD and documentation with the computer (legally, ownership of that is tied to the hardware) or if you've lost the CDs, tell buyers that it has no operating system installed.

There are also other programs...

You could manually erase all of your documents, photos etc, delete all passwords, temporary Internet files and cookies from your browser, then empty the recycle bin. At that point, use Zilla's Data Nuker to scrub the empty space on your hard drive, making recovery impossible.

http://download.cnet.com/Zilla-Data-Nuker/3000-209...

That way you could leave the operating system installed. Just make sure you've deleted ALL of your personal files first.

you could`t - what ever technique you attempt and use from solutions it gained`t artwork. as quickly as information is on the "frustrating tension" its there for ever. Thats how the police etc: get each and all of the innovations that they like out of your laptop. do away with and wreck the HD - different smart a desperate individual can get your information. If that does`nt worry then you sell it as that's. Passwords can get replaced so thats not an issue. a million/2 those "anti this and that - sparkling and delete - don`t even do the interest the makers declare. Its a load of rubbish. What ever is going on the HD its there in some type for ever.

Yes, its called DBAN:

http://www.dban.org/

This will nuke the hard disk and wipe it completely clean so nothing can be retrieved. You want to do an NSA wipe.

Read the documentation first, then download it and nuke the hard disk. Make sure you tell whomever buys the computer, there is NO OPERATING SYSTEM on the hard disk.

Try to use harin's boot CD just boot from it then you will find many options including format hard disk as for it you can search for it in the web.