Freeper Help Please: How Do You Delete Search Requests That Windows Stores? (Vanity)

jigsaw vanity | Oct. 27, 2003 | jigsaw

[jigsaw]

(The following is an email I just received from my active-duty military son. Any Freeper assistance would be sincerely appreciated! Thanks.)



I am running Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional.   

When I click on the Start menu, select Search, and then click For Files or Folders, the Search Results window opens up.

I have searched for many words and numbers stored in files on my hard drive by typing them into the Containing Text field and have come to realize that Windows is storing these words and numbers somewhere.

For example, I've been searching for my social security number on my machine to get rid of it and am bothered that when I type just its first digit into the Containing Text field a window pops up below the field with my full SSN.

Where is Windows storing the words and numbers I previously searched for and how can I permanently delete them? Are they being stored in the "Find files history?" If so, how can I find the "Find files history" on my computer and remove the items in it?

I downloaded a piece of freeware called Free History Cleaner v2.51 which claims to clean a lot of history files like the "Find files history" and the "Index.dat" file. But after I ran the program several times, Windows is still remembering the numbers and words I'm searching for on my hard drive. Have you heard of this freeware... if so, is it any good or not so good?

[jigsaw]

Freepers ... many, many thanks. I live in the Mac world and my son's Windows questions are beyond me.

Any help would be appreciated.

In fact, I'll bet some of you have the same concerns about your machines as my son does with his.

[jigsaw]

Shameless bump. :-)

[jigsaw]

Is there a Windows doctor in the house? (Bump)

[snippy_about_it]

jigsaw, I don't have MS2000 but I have XP and it does the same thing. I found if you just highlight it with your mouse (his ssn) don't click just highlight and then hit your delete key it goes away. I had a search for cookies so I highlighted the word, hit delete and then to be sure typed in freep then searched, stopped the search (would have taken forever) and went back and the word cookies word was gone from the history but freep was there.

Hope that helps.

[snippy_about_it]

One more thing I just found. On the search page at the bottom is a selection "search preferences", I clicked on it and one of the choices is "turn auto complete off" I did and now freep isn't there. ;)

[snippy_about_it]

btw- thank your son for his service for me please.

[jigsaw]

Many thanks, Snippy. That sounds like a logical approach. I'll have it try it and let you know if it works for him.

[jigsaw]

btw- thank your son for his service for me please.

Thanks. I will.   :-)

[cdefreese]

Run "regedit". Then from edit/find, type the string that you want deleted from the search bar. It make take a few moments, but your search string should find something, plus everything else in your search history. Delete or clear out the value of the string in the right window... This should do the trick.

[jigsaw]

Thanks. He's working on this right now. I'll let you know what happens.

[jigsaw]

cdefreese, your suggestion in #9 worked!

snippy, he tried your suggestion first, but it didn't work, perhaps because it's a different version of Windows.

My son sends his heartfelt thanks to you both, as do I.   We are most grateful to you.

As he just wrote me in his email, Free Republic is an amazing brain trust!!!

Indeed it is!

[snippy_about_it]

Thanks. I figured it was worth a try. I'm glad it was answered for your son.