Smashing computers

I have always fancied connecting and sledgehammer and a computer, they seem like much less work than a wall and that the ensuing sound effects would be both satisfying and loud. This week I have been reading articles about what happens with old computers when you dispose of it and especially what happens to the hard disk. One of the options was, yes you guessed it, smashing it up with a hammer- which perhaps does not have the dramatic element of smashing it up with a sledgehammer but I am sure satisfaction would be great but is it really the best way to destroy the data?
One of the best tools available for wiping the data off hard drives is called "Darik's Boot and Nuke" or DBAN for short. You can download DBAN for free from http://dban.sourceforge.net/. Run this tool properly and give it the time it needs to go through the hard drive and the data is gone forever. We use a similar tool in our workshops called EBAN- according to our expert it “overwrites the entire hard drive with a pseudo-random pattern of numbers that makes it impossible for data to be recovered”. I’m not entirely sure what this means but for those who do understand these kinds of things I’m sure it makes sense.
So my plans for a sledgehammer will have to be shelved, instead Ida suggests I take up line dancing, Lydia suggests crochet, Faith suggests to wait for another opportunity to smash things. You will have to wait and see what happens....