Lockergnomie Patrick Kingsley has a heap of help for those of us
who have ever faced a complete reinstallation of Windows 2000 or
XP: “Regarding the difference between a Quick and Full format…
the error check is only part of the overhead that occurs when you
perform a Full format; the other significant portion of the
overhead occurs as the block and sector structure is laid out and
written to the entire disk, which does not occur when you do a
Quick format. Basically, a Full format truly scrubs the disk from
scratch, rebuilds all of the file structures, and checks to make
sure that everything is copasetic. All a Quick format does is lay
down a blank FAT and directory table. This is why a brand-new
unformatted disk can't be Quick formatted and must receive a Full
format; it needs all of the file structures laid out first, so the
FAT actually has blocks and sectors to track, instead of a
nebulous mess (though, frankly, looking at my hard drive, it's not
all that different from a nebulous mess; it's just a properly
formatted and allocated nebulous mess).” I suppose that if you
have extra time on your hands, go for the Full option. It couldn't
hurt.