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Unencumbering Applications

Sooner or later, every application accumulates gunk--whether useless files, obsolete add-ons, or intrusive settings that clog the works or just get in the way. Scraping the barnacles off programs needn't be a chore, however.

Ax Word's Old Recovered Files

Microsoft Word behaves like a pack rat. Not only will cleaning house free disk space, but it will also help you avoid problems.

Whenever Word crashes, it leaves interim files with names like '~DFC15F8.TMP' on your hard drive. Running Windows' Disk Cleanup will sweep away most of these files (see "Whip Disks Into Shape"), but you can also delete them en masse. Begin by closing all running programs. Then click Start, Search, choose All files and folders (if necessary), enter ~*.tmp in the box labeled 'All or part of a file name', select Local Hard Drives (C:) under 'Look in', and click Search. When the search is complete, press <Ctrl>-A to select all the files, and then press <Delete>.

By default, Word saves AutoRecover copies of open files every 10 minutes. As Word recovers from a crash, it offers to retrieve the files that you had open at the fateful moment. Sometimes AutoRecover files remain on your hard drive long after they're needed--representing a potential security risk. To make sure all your old AutoRecover files bite the dust, open Word and click Tools, Options, File Locations. Double-click AutoRecover files, right-click the resulting folder (it's probably named '\Word\STARTUP'), and choose Explore. Click the up arrow to move to the parent directory, and delete all files with names that end in '.asd'.

Obsolete add-ins can slow Word to a crawl. To get rid of them, click Tools, Templates and Add-Ins, and look for the interlopers listed under 'Global templates and add-ins'. Select the ones you no longer need and click Remove. If the Remove button is grayed out, close Word and open your Word Startup folder (you'll probably find it at C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Microsoft\Word\Startup, where username is your log-on ID). Change the name of each unwanted file so that it doesn't end in '.dot' (rename 'oldmacros.dot', for example, as 'oldmacros.dot.save'); when you restart Word, all of the unneeded add-ons will be gone.

Clear Cobwebs From Outlook

One good thing about Microsoft's Outlook e-mail and contact manager is that the program stores everything in a single giant .pst file. The bad thing about Outlook is that this file is nearly impenetrable and tremendously difficult to clean out.

Outlook 2003's .pst files are more reliable than their counterparts in Outlook 97, 2000, and 2002 (visit Microsoft Help and Support for more on this subject). If you upgraded to Outlook 2003 from an earlier version, you may still be using the old .pst file. Updating to the Outlook 2003 format can save you loads of misery. Unfortunately, doing so takes time.

To determine which type of .pst file your copy of Outlook 2003 is using, right-click Personal Folders in the left pane under All Mail Folders, choose Properties for "Personal Folders", and click Advanced. If the Format box says 'Personal Folders File (97-2002)', you have the old version. To convert it, close Outlook and navigate to your outlook.pst or mailbox.pst file. It's probably at C:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook (or a variation of this file path), where username is your log-on name.

If it's not there, open Outlook and click File, Data File Management. A box lists your Archive and Personal Data Folders. Click Settings to see their location, or choose Open folder to display the contents in an Explorer window. (Be sure to close Outlook before proceeding.) Once you've found the file, right-click it and choose Rename. Call the file outlook.old.pst.

When you restart Outlook, the program will bellyache that it can't find its .pst file. Click OK. Outlook will offer to create a new Personal Folders file. Select Open and OK. When Outlook finally comes up for air, click File, Open, Outlook Data File, select your outlook.old.pst (or mailbox.old.pst) file, and click OK once more. Now click the plus sign next to the Personal Folders entry at the bottom of the left pane; you'll find all of your old Outlook data there. Click and drag the files you want to keep from these folders to their analogs in your new Inbox, Contacts, Calendar, Sent Items, and maybe even Deleted Items folders. You can leave the old Personal Folders open, or right-click it and choose Close. (If Outlook doesn't recognize your Contacts list, follow Microsoft's instructions for resetting your profile.)

Update: Some people have reported a problem when using the above tip in which the new Outlook 2003 file appears in the old Outlook 97-2002 format. If you encounter this glitch, there's a workaround to replace your old outlook.pst file with the improved Outlook 2003 version.

You can improve the performance of any version of Outlook by archiving old messages: Click File, Archive, choose a folder, pick a date in the 'Archive items older than' drop-down calendar, and click OK. See Microsoft's site for more on modifying Outlook's automatic backup settings.

Next, run Outlook's Inbox Repair Tool to make sure that your .pst file is working well. With Outlook closed, click Start, Search, choose All files and folders (if necessary), type scanpst.exe, and press <Enter>. Double-click the file in the search results window, click Browse, navigate to your .pst file as described above, select it, and click Open, Start. If the Inbox Repair Tool finds errors (it probably will), check Make backup of scanned file before repairing and click Repair. Click OK when the repairs are complete.

Now right-click Personal Folders, choose Properties for "Personal Folders", click the Advanced button under the General tab, and select Compact Now. If your .pst file is old or very scattered, the compression can take a while. When it's done, click OK twice.

Shake Out Internet Explorer

Clearing the history files, cookies, and cache in Internet Explorer is simple: Click Tools, Internet Options, and then choose Delete Cookies and Delete Files under Temporary Internet Files on the General tab, or Clear History under History. But don't expect your cleanup to last long.

If your computer has a 150GB hard drive, it may not matter to you that IE uses 3GB worth of temporary files. Conversely, you may gladly tolerate slightly slower browsing to save space on a 10GB drive.

To curb IE's voracious storage appetite, click Tools, Internet Options, choose the Settings button under the General tab, and run the slider down to 20MB or 30MB (or up to maybe as much as 100MB if you have a horrendously slow dial-up Internet connection). Click OK twice to finish the job.