[MPA] DigiDesign, install

[John]

> - The system does not change very often so the disk does not have to be
> re-organize.
> - Same for the Application part.
> - You do not need to boot on CD to re-organize the Applications 
> partition
> and the "Logic" partition
> - It's more easy to backup one partition at a time

When I partition a hard drive, does the hard drive partition by 
platter/space, or just as an icon in the finder? Please read below to 
understand what I am asking.

A quick explanation:

A hard drive is composed of one or more platters, on which data is 
stored in clusters. When data is written, erased, and moved around, the 
drive becomes fragmented - ever so slightly.

Now, if I have three partitions, is each partition given a specific 
slot on the platter, and that's it, or does each partition write to 
anywhere it wants to on any of the platters?

Also, I am not too sure how much space to give Panther & Classic, and 
how much to give Applications. Just to give you an idea, my 
Applications and Applications (Mac OS 9) folders are 4.1 GB together. 
My current System folders (Classic, OS X, and misc system related 
files) are only 1.05 GB. My Users folder is 11.39 GB.

Will the partitioning cause any issues with Application preferences?

Also, what is the best naming scheme? I remember the fiasco with an 
iTunes installer, and would like to avoid that scenario.

I am very excited about installing this HD, but . . must wait for 
panther . .

Thanks!