This article first appeared on January 25, 2012.
You probably have more USB sticks than you know what to do with, but there may come a time when you need to format one.
To do so, plug it in to your Windows PC. Then, right-click on the drive after viewing it on the My Computer folder.
Down the options, you should see an option to “format”. There, make sure you keep the capacity and file formats as the default, and then press “start”.
While you can just delete individual files off the stick, formatting can make sure any problems on the stick are erased, including any files that are hidden.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
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