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Remedies for Overcrowded Hard Drives
Since hard disk space can be at a premium on many personal (and even office) systems, here are some suggestions for ways to recover space on your own machine and avoid the expense of a new, larger disk a little longer.
1. Delete unnecessary duplicate files. For example, if you write multiple drafts of documents like reports, newsletters or proposals, delete all older versions from your hard drive once the document is printed. Save them to your network or to floppy disks if you are required to save them for a period of time.
2. Delete .BMP files. Bitmap graphic files are very large files. If you need to retain a lot of graphic files on your own hard drive, convert .BMP files to .GIF or .JPG files, which are much smaller, and then delete the .BMP files. Check with your printer or graphic designer first, though, on any critical images (like your logo). GIF and JPG are great for web publishing, but do not have print quality resolution.
3. Delete any .ZIP, .SIT, .UUE files you no longer need. Often files downloaded or attached in e-mail are in a compressed format, and it's easy to forget to delete the compressed version once opened.
4. Delete any sound or video files you are not currently using. They typically have file endings like .AVI , .WAV, .MID, .MPG, .AU or .RA
5. Delete temporary files and empty temporary directories. Use a Find function to search the drive for ``TMP" or ``TEMP" directories. Delete any files in temporary directories that you are sure you are not currently using. In Windows, you can delete .TMP files. Delete all the files in your Internet browser's ``cache" directory. Be sure to set the ``cache" size in your Internet browser options to a manageable size, since it automatically saves all the pages and images that you visit. A cache of about 4-5 megabytes is usually adequate.
6. Delete old backup files. Many word processors automatically create a .BAK version of files. You can usually delete these safely from your word processing directory. If you are uncertain, you should check with an IT or MIS person or read your software manual.
Finally, for anyone who plays games, game demo versions can take up a lot of system resources--as much as 50-60 megabytes per game for the newer ones. If you are not going to play the game, uninstall it and recover the real estate on your disk.
Copyright 1998 by Kaye Vivian (kvivian@cloud9.net). All rights reserved.
Permission to reprint is greanted as long as this copyright notice remains in tact and the article is not changed.
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