Shrink Dat File:

Every time you visit a Web site, Internet Explorer stores history and cache
information in files that have .dat extensions. The more data these files have
to store, the bigger they get. Though Microsoft won't cop to it, clearing the
Cache and/or History folders in IE 3.x and 4.x doesn't always return these
files to their original default size of 8KB, 16KB, or 32KB. You can see for
yourself by opening a DOS prompt (select Start.Programs.MS-DOS Prompt),
navigating to the directory where your cache or history resides (cd c:\
windows\tempor~ or cd c:\windows\history), and then looking for the .dat
files. If you open them, you'll see all of your "deleted" URLs.

The problem? Aside from the fact that these .dat files let snoops track
where you've been surfing, IE begins to slow down when the files reach
approximately 200KB. And once they reach 500KB the program starts
crashing. One solution is to delete both files, but you'll have to do it in
DOS, not Windows. Click Start.Shut Down.Restart in MS-DOS mode.
At the C:\> prompt, type deltree c:\windows\history, and then press
<Enter>. (In IE 4.x,this path could be c:\windows\profiles\yourname\
history.) Then type deltree c:\windows\tempor~1 and press <Enter>.
(This process can take up to 15 minutes if the .dat files are extremely
large.) The next time you fire up your browser, both files will be rebuilt
as empty .dat files.

There's a better solution, but it will cost you. You can manage file size
and permanently kill all the private data in cache, history and .dat files
by using the $15 shareware program TweakIE 2.0 (www.wizsys.com/
tweakie.html). Its IESweep feature clears your cache and history folders
and resets the .dat files to their empty size. This utility also alerts you
when files have grown big enough to affect your browsers performance.

Rewrite History:

Navigator also maintains a history of recently visited sites, though this
doesn't slow down your system. To prevent others from seeing where
you've been, you need to clear it. Navigator 3.x clears the history each
time you shut down the program. In Navigator 4.x select Edit.Preferences,
choose Navigator and click Clear History. Trouble is, Netscape's
history file, like IE's .dat files, retains information. To cover your tracks
completely, you need to delete this file. Exit Navigator, open Windows
Explorer, and press <F3>: when the 'Find: All Files' window appears,
search for netscape.hst. It's usually found in C:\ProgramFiles\Netscape\
Communicator\Users\yourname. Right-click it and select Delete.

ScanDisk & Defrag:

You have a couple of wonderful tools at your disposal that will, if used on a
regular basis, help to keep your computer running at its peak peformance!
Use them on a weekly basis, regardless of whether defrag tell you 'you don't
need to defrag at this time'.
 

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