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Comments on Why often times data compression causes data loss?

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Why often times data compression causes data loss?

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I understand data compression as making data structures nearer (if they are mere machine code without any abstract representation) or representing them in less and less abstract computer languages (from the "complicated" to the "simple").

If so;
Why often times data compression causes data loss?
I don't understand why either "removing gaps" to re-organize data better (as in data defragmentation) or a simpler representation (simpler machine code in computer memory) would neccessate data loss.

I think that my question stands whether the data we work with is "archived" or "not archived".

Update_note: Given the answers and the downvotes I guess I misunderstood the little I have read about this topic, as well as confused it with defragmentation.

data-structures compression data-loss
posted over 3 years ago
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General comments (4 comments)
General comments
deleted user wrote over 3 years ago
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Given the down vote I would have tried to edit to improve the question based on any constructive comment (although it was already heavily quoted so perhaps I shouldn't try to do so).

Olin Lathrop‭ wrote over 3 years ago · edited over 3 years ago
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You claim to be asking about data compression, but then your examples don't have anything to do with compression, your description of what data compression means makes no sense, and certainly isn't about data compression. Compression is about reducing the size of data by eliminating redundancy.

Skipping 1 deleted comment.

EJP‭ wrote over 3 years ago
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You have confused compression in artefacts like JPEG and MPEG, which are both lossy, with data compression in general, which in general isn't lossy. Defragmentation has absoultely nothing to do with any of it.

deleted user wrote over 3 years ago
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@EJIP the claim that data compression in general, is generally not lossy --- is very interesting for me ; it is an elegant argument and intuitively correct. Maybe you'd have anything to elaborate more on that specific argument.