If you empty the Recycle Bin or Trash, the files can then be overwritten by new data. While still in that folder, the files can be recovered easily. But people often use other terms like delete and format interchangeably, while they’re actually quite different.ĭelete: Deleting data actually just moves it into a folder, out of sight, like the Recycle Bin in Windows or the Trash on Mac. First, hard disk and hard drive have the same meaning. Before jumping in, there’s a bit of terminology you should know.