Digital Housekeeping

A recent article in the New York Times by tech writer David Pogue outlined the steps users should take to keep their computers and mobile devices healthy. At least once a season I remind TR Times readers about the importance of making periodic back ups of all your computer data, and while Mr. Pogue advised making regular backups, he also recommended a “data cleanse.” The article addressed the idea that, just like in the real world, our virtual worlds accumulate a fair amount of junk, and now maybe the time to consider cleaning your virtual house.

A good place to start is by getting rid of all the files on your computer that are no longer needed — duplicate files, temporary files that were never deleted, downloads that have be save elsewhere and forgotten, bits of leftover files from deleted applications. All of this extra “junk” takes up memory and can slow down your computer and devices. Microsoft, Apple, and Google all offer built-in tools to help you clean out the junk.

• Windows 10 – Go to the Start menu and open Settings; System; then Storage. Click on “Free up space now,” and you will see a list of suggested categories to delete and how much space will be gained. Check the categories you want to delete and click Remove files. You can also turn on Storage Sense (the default value is set to off), and Windows will automatically delete superfluous and unnecessary files – temporary files, and files that accumulate in your recycle bin.

• Apple Macintosh – Included with its most recent version of Mac OS (computer operating system High Sierra or later) is a utility to manage the files on your Mac. To access the utility, click on the Apple menu at the top left of the screen and select About This Mac; click Storage; then Manage. If you choose Reduce Clutter you will be shown a list of files that are deemed expendable. You can also view different types of files from the list on the left of the window. Choosing Applications lets you see if you have more than one version of an application, and which is older. You can also see lists of other categories of files, which can help in spotting duplicate files

• Apple iOS – Go to Settings; General; iPhone Storage for a visual picture of what you have stored on your iPhone or iPad, followed by lists all of the apps on the device and how much space each is taking up. By viewing this list you can decide what applications need to be eliminated.

• Google Android – Beginning with the Oreo version of Android operating system, you can clean out junk files by going to Settings; Storage; Memory; then Free Up Space. You will see a list of  downloaded files, photos and videos and applications that can be deleted by category, or one at a time.

One task the built-in utilities do not accomplish is identifying duplicate files. To find and delete duplicated files, you will need a third party application. The most popular Windows 10 utility for finding duplicate files is CCleaner, free software file cleaning software that comes pre-installed on many Windows machines.  If it is not installed on your windows machine, it can be downloaded for free at cleaner.com. While the standard version of the software is free, a Pro version is available for $24.95, and also available for the Mac and Android operating systems.

As a Mac user, I am very satisfied with Duplicate Detective, an application that has only one purpose. The app searches for duplicate files, shows you the contents of both files and lets you choose which to delete.  The current version of the application, Duplicate Detective 2, is available for $4.95 from the App Store or fiplabs.com. On my iOS devices, I have installed BeetleCam Photo Cleaner that searches out similar photos, shows thumbnail images of the photos, and lets me choose which ones to delete.

Once you get your digital house efficiently organized, your computers and mobile devices will run faster, freeing space for all the new applications, files and photos you will be adding in the year to come.