Introduction:
In this blog, I will be talking about browser cache and how to clear it. If you already know what browser cache is, feel free to skip the explanation and just look at the tutorial.
What is Browser Cache?
The literal definition of a cache is “a collection of items of the same type stored in a hidden or inaccessible place”. So browser cache is simply just a temporary storage in your computer’s memory.
Why is browser cache important?
Well, what happens when you visit a website is that its information is downloaded and stored in your browser cache. This usually isn’t anything bad, just the website’s “static assets”. Static assets are things that usually stay the same. Like for example, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (coding). The background coding wouldn’t normally be changed all that much on a regular basis.
Since your recently visited websites are downloaded, that means that when you visit them, they won’t take as long to load! So browser cache just makes your experience on the internet easier.
Why clear browser cache?
When you have lots of things downloaded on your computer, this may make it run slower. That doesn’t mean that browser cache is bad necessarily, it just means it can be as much an inconvenience as a convenience.
Another reason is that maybe a site is running slow or just incorrectly. If you clear your browser cache and go back to the site, the issue will likely be fixed.
How:
I will be demonstrating how to clear the browser cache on Chrome. It should be fairly similar on other browsers, but if not, feel free to look up “how to clear browser cache for {insert browser}”. The same should also go for different devices. In the future, I may add to this blog for phones and tablets. For now, I’m just doing the computer version. Please follow step by step as I show you in my screenshots.
First off, open Chrome (chances are if you’re reading this blog, it’s already opened). To do this, click on the minimize button at the top of your tab. Make sure to come back to this tab to read, as you can’t see my blog when this tab is closed.
Then hopefully, you should see the chrome logo. If you’re using a mouse, right-click on the logo. If you’re on a laptop without a mouse, use your touchpad to slowly guide your cursor over to the logo and click/tap softly.
Your Chrome may not have my name on it or my pink initial, but that’s alright. Our computers may not be exactly the same.
Once your new tab/window is opened, you should see something like this.
Look at the three little dots in the corner.
Once you see them, make sure to click on them. As soon as you do, a little menu should appear.
As you can see, I went a little ahead. You should see the “More tools” option. Hover your cursor above it, and a submenu should appear. Move your cursor slightly to the right and click on “Clear browsing data…” or as the menu shows, simultaneously click the keys Ctrl, Shift, and Delete or Del. Ctrl and Shift are both on the bottom of both your right and left side of the keyboard. Delete should be at the top of your keyboard depending on what type of keyboard you have.
Once you’ve clicked on that, it should take you to your settings and show you the following screen.
What’s really cool is that it lets you choose the time range of what you want deleted. Let’s say you only want the browser cache and other data from within the last hour cleared. You just choose “Last hour” and click “Clear data”. If you want more than an hour cleared, simply click on the dropdown menu. When you clear your browser cache though, it also clears your cookies and it will sign you out of most websites. Don’t worry! If you don’t want that, you can still back out and close that tab and this blog.
When you’ve made your decision and done this, the dropdown menu will function as a dropdown menu. You should see the following options:
Lightly tap/click on the option you prefer (or leave it as the last hour) and then click the “clear data” button.
Once you’ve done this, 🥳congratulations🥳! Assuming you didn’t get lost somewhere along the way, you’ve officially cleared your browsing data! Thank you for using my tutorial and have fun on the internet!
