Question: I recently purchased
CleanSweep
and I thought before I load it and use it, maybe I should check with you and see if you have any particular comments or warnings.
--T.P.
Answer: One of the coolest new features of CleanSweep 4.0 is the way it handles Internet flotsam and jetsam. You know, all those Web graphics and files that eat up all kinds of hard-drive space.
It cleans cookie files, ActiveX controls, Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer cache files.
It also wipes out browser plug-ins. Of course, only if you tell it to. But it's a great way to reclaim a nice chunk of hard-drive space in a hurry, especially if you haven't been cleaning it as you go.
CleanSweep also tosses out duplicate, unused, underused and orphaned files as well as redundant DLLs. A DLL or Dynamically Linked Library is like a toolbox for a Windows program. And since many programs use the same tools, they are shared toolboxes. When a program is removed, often the DLL is left behind because it's assumed that other programs might need access to it.
I particularly like the Windows registry editor in CleanSweep.
Windows 95 and 98 place entries into this digital filing cabinet when you install new applications.
If you deleted the installed files manually, the registry entries don't get clean. This bogs it down and can hinder performance.
There is one heads-up worth mentioning. A patch is required to make CleanSweep compatible with Windows 98. It can be downloaded at their FTP site or http://www.qdeck.com.
But CleanSweep contains a utility that can go get the update for you. It's located under the "Options" tab. The patch updates the product to version 4.02.
One final tip. Keep SafetySweep on until you're familiar with CleanSweep. That's a function found under
"Configure CleanSweep" also under the "Options" tab. It prevents CleanSweep from deleting anything that is necessary for the smooth running of your computer. When it is off, some items can be flagged for possible deletion.
An "Extra Strength" 4.0 version of Cleansweep is also available. It includes Quarterdeck's Zip-It 4.0, a file compression utility.
More information is available at Quarterdeck's site at http://www.qdeck.com.
Expander helps
Question: Is there a program that will allow PC users to unstuff a SIT file from a Mac? Your help would be appreciated as I have friends and co-workers who often send me files that I cannot open. I have WinZip and Conversions Plus installed and neither work for SIT files.
--D.K.
Answer: It turns out there is. It's called Expander 2.0 and it's by Aladdin Systems. They're the same company that teamed up with StuffIt (or SIT file) inventor Raymond Lau and helped him develop the compression standard for the Mac in 1988. He was 15 at the time and Aladdin was a brand new company.
I pointed D.K. at Aladdin's Expander download page and said: "This is what you want. Try it out and let me know if you like it or not."
D.K. came back with this report: "I installed Aladdin Expander 2.0, and once operating, it worked like a charm. The files that had been sent as SIT files were easily expanded.
"AE 2.0 works in the background -- just click on the file you want to open and it automatically unpacks and appears as an opened file, ready to be launched by the appropriate program."
There was a minor glitch, though: "I did experience a little difficulty installing AE 2.0, but that may have been my computer," D.K. said.
"I left my browser on when I clicked on the installer.
"Everything slowed down for a while. The installer either quit or went into hibernation.
"I closed everything down and installed again. This time it worked fine.
"It's probably good enough to pay for," he added. No need to, though.
Expander 2.0 is free to download and use.
Aladdin simply asks that users fill out an on-line registration in return.
E-mail: queries@cyberwalker.com
Books about this topic:
-- How Anyone Can Fix and Rev Up PCs
-- A Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC
-- The Complete PC Upgrade and Maintenance Guide
-- The Data Compression Book
-- Data Compression : The Complete Reference
Adding RAM is easy, 
