Temp files not always temporary

Q. When I open an Excel file in an e-mail attachment, then try to save it or change the format with File... Save As, I get an error about “not enough memory” and files “missing from the list.”

A. “May be missing from the list” would be another good TV movie. This weird error, according to Microsoft, means a full or faulty Temp folder where Internet attachments are stored. Here’s one real easy way around it — use File... Save Attachments to save the file in a place other than the Temp directory.

But to confront that Temp directory problem — there are some big files, PDF files especially, that get into this directory and never leave. You have to go in and get rid of them yourself at some point, which, yes, is a terrible way to run a temp directory. It ought to flush itself regularly.

Here’s a nice guide from mousetrax.com on how to do some cleaning: mousetrax.com/maintain.html

And if all else fails Microsoft suggests you go through a whole big rigamarole to delete the Temp directory and create a new one. Instructions here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/839366

Q. I am mystified! My computer will not turn off. When I click Start... Turn Off Computer, an hourglass appears, but soon disappears and the cursor arrow returns. I have been pushing and holding the power button until the computer turns off.

A. That usually means that some program or other is refusing to shut down, and the computer is waiting indefinitely for that to happen. The Elder Geek has a guide to troubleshooting the problem here: theeldergeek.com/shutdownissuesinxp.htm

Q. My wife and I are photo nuts, and we’ve created a big problem on our Dell laptop. Over time we’ve created many duplicate folders and files of photos and video clips. Do you have any advice on organizing these and getting rid of duplicates?

A. This is a real problem with digital photography — by default you accumulate thousands of files with nothing but numbers and letters to identify them, and it’s up to you to make sense of it all. You probably don’t want to name every single photo, but you can at least put them into folders with descriptive names.

Try to think of an organizing scheme that makes sense to you — maybe broad categories like “Travel” or “Relatives,” and beneath those categories you could have folders by year and month. Create that structure, put your new files into it, and pull the old ones into it as time allows. Before you know it, you’ll feel in control again.

You might try Picasa, a download from picasa.google.com, as a start to pull together all your photos folders and get an idea of how many are unnecessary. Once they’re organized, it’s be easy to put older ones, or whole outdated categories, onto long-term storage devices.

XTim Henderson is database editor for the Miami Herald’s computer-assisted reporting team. Send questions to thendersonmiamiherald.com.

© 2007 McClatchy Tribune