Windows Cleaner

Creating one click buttons for Windows 95, 98 & ME that will Shutdown, delete your Recent Documents List, and Empty temporary directories (including the Recycle Bin)

  
I have developed a simple three-part program for Windows 95, 98 & ME, using DOS and links. They will perform the following functions:

• vmj Shut down
  Saves a couple of steps when shutting down a computer
• vmj Recent
  Clears the Recent Document list
• vmj CleanUp
  Gets rid of temporary files in various folders, empties the Recycle Bin, removes cookies, and clears the Recent Document List

To access these features, click on this link and select open: vmj_programs.exe When prompted for the target directory (UnZip to Folder), make sure C:\ is entered. Then click UnZip.  The UnZip program may display a message saying it's an unlicensed version; ignore it.

This program will create three shortcuts in the Start menu and one on the Desktop to access the features. These are simple .bat files and shortcuts. To remove them from your system, simply delete the directory C:\Program Files\VMJ_Programs\ and the shortcuts in the Start menu and on the desktop.

These tools have been tested and work fully on Windows 95, 98, and ME.  For Windows XP users, see my article entitled Shut Down Windows XP.

Although these functions will delete items in the Recycle Bin, they will not immediately clear the state of the Recycle Bin, so it may not appear empty.  Eventually, after rebooting, the Recycle Bin icon will adjust.  If not, you can always right-hand click on the icon and select Empty Recycle Bin to clear its state.
  
vmj Cleanup will delete files in the following folders, so before running it, make sure they do not contain necessary information (if you have all other programs closed, they shouldn't contain anything worth keeping):

• c:\temp\
• c:\tmp\
• c:\windows\cookies\
• c:\windows\temp\
• c:\windows\tmp\
• c:\windows\temporary internet files\
• c:\recycled\

If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer and you want to save your cookies, edit the .bat file C:\Program Files\VMJ_Programs\vmjCleanUp.bat and remove the line c:\windows\cookies\
  
If you have more than one hard drive and want to empty the recycle bin for each, edit the .bat file:

C:\Program Files\VMJ_Programs\vmjCleanUp.bat

and add the following for each drive:

deltree /y drive letter:\RECYCLED\

For example:

deltree /y D:\RECYCLED\