Emptying caches

[rye9]

What does emptying browser caches do? As for that matter, what does cleaning caches do? (I'm thinking of doing this bc my iBook is slightly laggy. It was very laggy last night so I repaired my HD, but it doesnt need to be repaired now, I just checked. I wont repair permissions again bc those are fine. The only two maintenance things left I think are the scripts [which I was told run on wake up] and the caches.) BTW, would emptying my browser caches help speed up my ibook maybe? i dont want to clean user and system caches bc I beleive that would require a reboot.

 

[grapes911]

The cache for your browser is downloaded webpages. When you browse the net, your browser checks the time-stamps to see if the page online is newer than the one on your computer. If it is, it downloads the new one. If it is the same, it displays the one from the computer and saves time by not re-downloading the page. I'd say that emptying that cache should slow down your internet browsing.

 

[randas]

What does emptying browser caches do? As for that matter, what does cleaning caches do? (I'm thinking of doing this bc my iBook is slightly laggy. It was very laggy last night so I repaired my HD, but it doesnt need to be repaired now, I just checked. I wont repair permissions again bc those are fine. The only two maintenance things left I think are the scripts [which I was told run on wake up] and the caches.) BTW, would emptying my browser caches help speed up my ibook maybe? i dont want to clean user and system caches bc I beleive that would require a reboot.

browser cache is just copies of websites you've visited; emptying them prolly wont speed up your computer.

 

[rye9]

Actually, I am pretty sure I figured out the problem, my iBook wasnt plugged in. It might sound stupid, but it's totally true. I just plugged it in and it is extremely fast. This is because on battery, the processor performance is reduced and plugged in it is on auto. But why is a reduced processor make everything so laggy? What would happen if I set it to auto for battery as well? It would make it faster but I would lose battery life and my iBook would get hotter, right? Do you recommend I pt it on auto for battery? I just don't think a reduced processor should make my iBook so horribly slow, it is ridiculous.

 

[grapes911]

I always keep my PB on auto on both battery and AC. The processor clock is kept reduced. Whenever the computer needs a little extra power, the clock speed increases until it is no longer needed.

 

[MacAficionado]

However,

if you have broadband, after some time, if the cache is TOO FULL, it is probably better to re-download instead of having the browser look for a cached file to display.

I empty the caches and notice a difference. Especially the Safari Icon folder in ~/Library/safari/Icons

But that is just me.

 

[rye9]

I always keep my PB on auto on both battery and AC. The processor clock is kept reduced. Whenever the computer needs a little extra power, the clock speed increases until it is no longer needed.

OK, thanks. I think I'll set my iBook to auto for the battery since it really is still reduced at sometimes.

 

[rye9]

I was just wondering, should I ever clean user and system caches? I believe I should repair disk permissions occasionally but how about cleaning caches? If no, I think I'll put MainMenu in the trash bc I'll have no use for it.

 

[rye9]

Can I please get a response on whether or not I should clean caches as maintenance like repairing permissions, I would like to put my iBook to sleep so I can.

 

[dr427]

I have Cocktail and I thought it cleaned all my caches, but as pointed out Safari Icons are all there.

Being a recent PC convert what maintence is needed to keep me running as smooth and fast as possible? Is Cocktail doing it for me?