How to clear the DISK CACHE
for Netscape Communicator 4.x (PC & MAC)

Do you use Netscape Communicator 4.5 to get on the Internet?
If so, here's how to remove those cache files created by Netscape...

Click here to learn about     DISK CACHE IN ACTION...       how it works

  1. Start Netscape Communicator.

  2. From the Edit menu select Preferences...

  3. Double-click on the category Advanced to display sub-category Cache (see pic, for PC)

  4. Select Cache (highlighted in red).

  5. Now click on the button Clear Disk Cache.

  6. Say "OK" to the message "This will remove all files currently in your disk cache. Continue?"

  7. Close the Preferences... window.

  8. Enjoy the Internet!

DISK CACHE IN ACTION            ... from Netscape web site

Communicator uses two types of cache: a memory cache and a hard disk cache. The memory cache is volatile; it holds text and graphics as long as Communicator is running. Restarting Communicator clears out this cache. The hard disk cache is persistent; information remains in this cache until the cache is full. When the cache is filled up, the least recently accessed item is discarded to make space for new items. The files are stored in the directory called "Cache", normally located under Netscape directory.

Because the cache holds the contents of all the pages that you have visited during the session, it can get full quickly. You need to clear the cache regularly to increase Navigator performance.

More info...
The Memory Cache field (on Windows and Unix) specifies the size in kilobytes of the memory cache. The default is 600K on Windows, 3000K on Unix. On Macintosh, specify memory in the application's Get Info box. Press the Clear Memory Cache Now button to empty the cache immediately.

The Disk Cache field (Cache Size on Macintosh) specifies the size in kilobytes of the disk cache. On Windows and Unix, the default is 5000K. On Macintosh, the default is 1M (1000K), the size of available disk space is displayed, and you can use buttons to adjust the cache size. Press the Clear Disk Cache Now button to empty the cache immediately. The Disk Cache Directory field (Cache Directory on Macintosh) specifies the disk cache location. On Macintosh, click Browse to select a new location.

To set the frequency that the document in the cache is compared to the document on the network, select one of three buttons to specify how Netscape checks the network for document revisions (so that you're brought an updated page from a network server rather than a potentially stale page stored in the cache).

Once Per Session (the default choice): Checks for page revisions only once during the time you start and quit Communicator.
Every Time: Checks for changes each time you request a web page rather than relying on data stored in cache. Since Communicator is constantly checking the cached items against the web page, you encounter some performance degradation.
Never (meaning ... No verifications): You will receive no updates. All pages will be loaded from cache and the cache is never updated.

 

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