I often see friends and fellow home-improvers using screws in their DIY efforts, and it never ceases to amaze me how hard some of these people find it to make a simple screw do what it's designed for. lets take a look at why. Of the two basic types of screw (Phillips cross head and the older 'traditional' slot head) the Phillips is gaining ground rapidly, due mainly to the fact that the extra cross-slot means you can apply more force and thus drive it into denser materials. You need both types .