Deleting useless files for more space?

[bozo]

Under the Windows Explorer/Windows/.....What types of files can I safely delete? I have a habit of deleting Cookies,history files,temporary internet files,then empty recycle bin to create more space,Can I delete All the files in the "TEMP" folder,or just delete only the *.tmp files,and not the .log,.abi,.dll,htm,class,avi,ram,files,etc?
Also, under the Window directory, "WEB",is it ok to delete any of those,like all the .giff files? I would like to know what useless files I can delete. I was told that I can delete the history folder,and the Temp folder,altogether, then re-create a new folder under the Window directory. Thank you, Bozo :-0

[lynnm]

You can safely delete the following file types:

.tmp
.temp
.bak
.old
~.*

Use the find command and type those file types in the dialogue box separated by commas

ie. *.tmp,*.temp,*.bak,*.old,~.*

Select Edit>Select All and go to the file menu and select Delete

Empty your Recycle Bin and do a defragmentation.

Other file types are a bit dodgier and you risk fouling yourself up badly.

[Theoran]

To go along with what lynnm has already said.

Freeing up space

Step 1: Deleting Folders and Files
A. Folders on the C drive from which all files can safely be deleted:
+ Windows \ Temporary Internet Files
+ Windows \ Downloaded Program Files
+ Windows \ History
+ Windows \ Temp
+ Windows \ Cookies
+ Windows \ Favorites (all can be deleted if you do not use Internet Explorer as your browser)
The simplest way to delete all files in a folder is to highlight the folder in Windows Explorer, click the menu item EDIT>SELECT ALL, then hit the DELETE key.
B. Files (but NOT personal files) that can be deleted are selected on the basis of their extension i.e. the three letters that appear after the 'dot' and file name.
Files which can be safely deleted are found in three places:
+ in Windows Explorer
+ in email mailboxes
+ in your browser (e.g Netscape or Internet Explorer)
Windows Explorer
In Windows Explorer, any file can be found by going to the menu item TOOLS>FIND>FILES OR FOLDERS. In the dialog box, type *.xxx, where xxx is the file type (listed below).
The file types can be entered one at a time, or several at once, separated by semi-colons, for example *.gid; *.cnt.
Specify the drive to look in (usually C), make sure the INCLUDE SUBFOLDERS box is checked, then FIND NOW.
Note (1): The * is a 'wild card' and will allow all files with that extension to be found, irrespective of file name.
Note (2): If you have any concerns about deleting a file, create a temporary folder (perhaps under 'My Documents') named DELyymmdd, where yymmdd is the current year, month and day. Move the files you are not sure about deleting to this folder, and if after experiencing no adverse effects for a week / month (depending on computer use) then delete the folder and its contents.
File types which can be deleted, and what they are:
*.gid, *.cnt, *.ftg, *.ann, *.bmk
These files are Help sections, and will regenerate when needed.
*.avi, *.fts, *.diz, *.tmp, *.old
These files include How-To animations, files created when you do a search in a Help file, lists of files on previously installed programs, and temporary or old version of files.
*.~??, *.??~, *.bk2, *.001, *.002 through to *.999
These are also temporary files
*.wav, *.mid
These are sound files, and you may want to keep them (say for PowerPoint). Most are junk
*.zip
Delete these files after extracting the program files from them. You can also delete the install.exe and setup.exe files for programs when you have them up and running. If you feel unsure doing this, save the files to clearly labelled floppy disk.
*.chk located directly on the C drive (C:\*.chk) but NOT those in any regular program folders
They are the result of running ScanDisk
Mscreate.dir and/or a folder called ~Mssetup.t
Under the Windows Explorer menu VIEW>OPTIONS>VIEW, make sure the SHOW ALL FILES option is checked. Search the entire C drive for these two files and delete them. They are empty files created by Microsoft installation programs.
Because each email program is different, I will not try to give instructions on how to clean these up, but I am sure if you check your IN and OUT boxes, you will see which files can either be deleted forever, or zipped up and stored on floppy or another backup utility.
NETSCAPE
This is the browser I use, so this is why I can provide instructions for it. If you use IE or any other browser, someone else can provide the relevant details.
If you use Netscape to browse the internet, there is a lot of junk retained after each visit. To clear it out, go to the Netscape menu item EDIT>PREFERENCES. In the dialog box that comes up, click on Category>Navigator. On the RHS of the dialog box, under the section 'History Box', click on the button 'Clear History'. In the section beneath 'Location Bar History', click on the button 'Clear Location Box'. Click on the Category>Advanced>Cache menu, and clear the Memory Cache and the Disk Cache.
The next step is absolutely vital!
EMPTY THE RECYCLE BIN
Step 2: ScanDisk
This program is built in to Windows and is designed to check for errors on the surface of your hard disk ('bad sectors') and errors in the files and folders, many of which ScanDisk can also fix. To make ScanDisk run at its best, no other programs should be running at the same time, and must be closed down. Many people do not realise that as well as the programs you choose to open yourself, a number of programs start automatically when you turn on your computer. These must also be closed down BEFORE you run ScanDisk.
How do you know what is open? Pressing the three keys Control, Alt and Delete at the same time (C/A/D) will bring up a list of the programs running in the background of your computer. Not all programs should be turned off, otherwise the computer will not run at all.
The two programs which MUST BE LEFT RUNNING are Explorer and Systray, all others can be closed down (one at a time) by pressing C/A/D, and choosing End Task. You may not recognise what some of these programs are, but invariably will include your virus checker - there may be several of these, checking incoming email, a random virus scan at startup, as well as continuous background scanning. There may also be an MS Office toolbar.
There is one other step to do before starting ScanDisk. You must turn off any screen savers. To do this, either go to Start>Settings>Control Panel, and open Display, OR right click on the desktop and choose Properties. You will get several tabs: click on Background, and set wallpaper to NONE, click on the Screen Saver tab and also set to NONE. To start the scan,
Go to Start>Programs>Accessories>System Tools>ScanDisk
You can choose Standard or Thorough, the latter of which you should choose if you have never run ScanDisk. Since it can take some time (up to a couple of hours), choose your time appropriately. If you need your computer before the scan finishes, it is OK to stop it, and start it again at a later time. It will take less time, as some of the scan has been done. However, because of the requirement to go through Step 1 - deleting unwanted files - should be done before running ScanDisk, it is obviously better to complete it in one sitting if possible.
Step 3: Defrag
When you create, move, copy, update, rewrite and delete files from your computer, they get fragmented. The computer can keep track of these fragments belonging to a single file, but it will take longer to display. To optimise computer performance, periodic defragmentation, or the process of reorganizing the contents of a disk so that all of a file's contents are written in a single contiguous block, is desirable. To run a defrag, which should be done immediately after running ScanDisk,
Go to Start>Programs>Accessories>System Tools>Defrag
If you do not use these and you check add/remove and they are not installed, are not favorites, etc.
I will use AOL as a example.
I click start, select run, [type in] AOL . click find now
It will list all AOL in C:\ where I have it look.
when I have deleted AOL and clear the recycle bin I have lost 5MB of garbage.
Compuserve and Prodigy get the same treatment.
AT&T I use.
I unistall the encyclopedia,and other garbae I do not need also. That includes backup.
Al together over 100MB I believe.


the above was written by jerryctx and then later revised by eggles

[smurfy]

:what he just said:

LOL
Great info there Theoran, even if it is copied from elsewhere.

[Junky]

One little comment that needs making:

If in doubt when deleting a file, ALWAYS delete it to the Recycle Bin. Leave it there for a few days (or weeks if need be) until you KNOW that it's not needed for anything important. Then when you are SURE it is not needed, delete it out of the Recycle Bin.

IF it IS NEEDED, just open Recycle Bin, highlight the file and RESTORE it back to where it came from. :)

OR...instead of deleting a file, it can be moved to a special folder. Then if it is needed it can be moved back. But this way you always need to remember where it came from. So the Recycle Bin is a much better system.

[Theoran]

Hey smurfy. I have to give credit from where it's due. :D I don't want any feelings hurt. :D