When deleting cookies, can I delete the entire cookies folder? Can I delete Index.dat? What is this file for? When I try to access it, it says it's in use by another application. Thanks

This thread from VirtualDr has one of the best explanations of the 1000 ways to get rid of temporary internet files/cookies and what the index.dat file is used for that I have seen in a long time.

http://discussions.virtualdr.com/Forum2/HTML/042078.html

Have a look and enjoy the read. Mosaic earned her keep on that one... and there are lots of links to some neat utilities to help you rid yourself of your cached cookies.

Enjoy the read.

I forgot.

Keep in mind... that thread is from a Windows 98 board. In order to do any of the DOS cleanup you will need to reboot to a bootdisk in ME.

You can make one from add/remove programs in the control panel.

1. No, don't delete the entire folder.
2. If you go to C:\windows\temporary internet files and delete all that stuff, the cookies go too.
3. No, You can't delete index.dat from within windows.

This is from my previous post:

IMPORTANT: Before you delete Temporary Internet files or cookies, keep a record of your user IDs and passwords, which are stored in the cookies.

One reason to get rid of cookies is that some contain "spyware" that reports personal data and your surfing habits back to vendors and web sites. You don't have to delete cookies daily, but if you never delete them, you will wind up with thoudands of them. And even if they're only 20 bytes long, the minimum file size is 16KB. You do the math! One very good program that is free and will get rid of the spyware applets is AdAware. Download it at www.lavasoftusa.com. I don't run it at startup, or in the background. I just use it during and after web surfing.

This is also from an earlier post, and more specificaly addresses your question:

You HAVE TO use a startup disk to delete index.dat files. [Index.dat files contain ALL of the web sites you visit!] You can do this manually, which is a real pain in the ass or you can do it with a batch file.

I put this batch file on my startup disk:
(you can even change the autoexec.bat file on the startup disk to run this automatically!)

:: DELINDEX.BAT * Janaury/February 2001 * Written by Renaissance Man
::
:: DELETES Index.dat files which keep getting bigger and bigger.
:: Windows recreates these files when needed; a newly creaed index.dat
:: file is 16 or 32KB; I've seen some that are 20 times that size.
::
del c:\windows\cookies\index.dat
del c:\windows\tempor~1\content.ie5\index.dat
del c:\windows\history\history.ie5\index.dat
del c:\windows\history\history.ie5\mshist~1\index.dat

*****

You can copy and paste this into a batch file. And you can add lines to delete thumbs.db (which are in your "My Pictures" file[s] and keep getting bigger and bigger, even if you delete pictures. However, you can delete thumbs.db from within windows.

And while you're at it, get rid of .gid files, which are created everytime you click on help.

One of the best cookie removers (and it is completely free) can be downloaded from www.analogx.com When you go online activate it and it will run in the background. When a cookie wants to write it will give you the option to save it (in the case of cookies that save password information), to delete it every time it appears, or to save it temporarily in the case of sites that won't let you access without accepting a cookie. After you log off you can delete temporary cookies safely.

Thanks for he link to VirtualDr, newgrl. Fascinating discussion.

After seeing all the references to Spider, I didn't see a URL for it. I found it, downloaded Spider, and am delighted with how it works.

If anyone else is looking for Spider, get it here: www.fsm.nl/ward/

BTW, it was written in 1999 bythen 17 year-old Ward van Wanrooij from the Netherlands.

*****
When I posted my first response, there were no other responses. This is the second time this has happened. I guess there's a 15 minute delay is posting. Is that correct? Or is it just with my system and/or from my location?

Nope, it's not a 15 minute delay. It's just within your own mind! :) When I post it's almost instantaneous. I use a dial-up-connection. Sometimes when a lot of people post at the same time, the order gets jumbled and it's a lot of posts. What's your location? What state or country?

I'm in New York City, and use AOL.

When Newgrl posts at 15:57 and I don't yet see it, and mine gets posted at 16:12, what does that mean? Is Newgrl in Australia?

Well, New York is crowded and so is AOL!