2Gb clip says it's full... but only 200mb loaded! HALP!

I don’t use a Mac and certainly drlucky’s explanation makes sense. I’ve never paid much attention to the trash folder on a pc. It looks as if devices like flash cards and I would assume floppies don’t have one, external usb hd does. I suppose the Mac approach is more logical. On a pc, it’s possible to have a drive not use the recoverable trash feature (right click on trash icon and select properties). Does the Mac offer similar flexibility?