Browser Cache Switch (BCSw) for Internet Explorer (r)

This program provides a versatile information manager for the Temporary Internet Files folder of Internet Explorer®. It lets change the folder by creating up to 99 subfolders which are administated automatically by the program with the option to add descriptions of content and purpose for each folder by the user. Furthermore, it can display the detailed list of cache content, and it can print and search items.

As the program uses still file managers from Windows 95 it can open all those System paths that cannot be opened normally under Vista and Windows 7. The stupid restrictions built into these new file managers are inactive.

The problem is well known: Your browser cache is growing and growing larger. There is no way to organize information content in cache. After one hour of Internet surfing, the cache might grow by 3 MB (500 files). This is only a typical value that depends on the speed of browsing and on the type of web content. If you keep on surfing in this way every day, after one month your cache will grow to a size of 90 MB unless you limit the size automatically. This limiting, however, or even deleting will disable control which content is kept and which is lost. In most cases, you do not know at the moment of browsing which pages you will need later. Therefore, extracting pages selectively from cache is not useful. It is better to keep the complete cache and delete it after a long period when you are sure that you are no longer interested in the information. You might want to change to a new cache folder and keep the old as backup. How can you retrieve information from cache kept as backup?

Internet Explorer® does not provide the option to use more than one browser cache at all. Whenever the cache folder is changed, the old one as well as the new will be completely deleted and you will start from zero.

Advantages of multiple browser caches

Multiple caches are stored in the same way as singular browser caches by the operating system. A typical example is shown below.

For each sub-cache, an index.dat file and four randomly named folders are created. Thus the advantage of dividing the browser cache into four folders enabling faster information retrieval is kept still. The folders named 1, 2, etc., represent the sub-caches that are created by the Browser Cache Switch.

Creating sub-folders by BCS does not decrease the safety standards of IE 4 or 5 as all the basic cache folders still have random names.

Features

	lets you create up to 99 new sub-caches in a default browser cache
	does not decrease the safety standards of IE 4 or later
	lets you change the drive on which you want to install a browser cache
	lets you set the maximum size for each cache individually
	lets you switch between all caches for comfortable off-line browsing. This switching takes only some seconds, but for activating the change a system restart or at least a user log-off may be required.
	lets you set individual names for all caches according to the content you want to keep in them
	does not delete cache folders unless you really want to do so.
	improves on-line browsing by smaller cache folders that are actually in use
	may save your money for ISP and telephone by improved off-line browsing
	enables immediate access to any file in cache by giving the exact path and file name to Internet Explorer®. No more message: "Web page unavailable while offline" if the page is stored in cache but not found by the browser.

Screenshots (actual version may different slightly)

Main program window
Table of caches, screenshot

Cache content display (URLs of pages stored in sub-cache), partial view
Content of cache, example

Report of execution
Report after setting cache folder

General settings
General settings window

Brief operating instructions

When BCS is launched, it displays the path of the actually used browser cache. This is the default cache in case that BCS has not been used before. New sub-caches are created automatically by pressing the button "Create".

Important:

After this, Internet Explorer® must be launched again to make the change active.

The new folders are physically created only when the Internet Explorer is launched. Size and title of cache folders are displayed or edited in the table of caches. Detailed operating instructions are contained in the help file that is automatically installed (version 5.2.3 and higher). This help file has been compiled for program version 6.0.0.3. For changes in later version see below.

Operation in conjunction with other off-line browsers is possible. For example, the cache content of each selected cache can comfortably be displayed and analyzed with well known "MSIE Cache Explorer" or its new version CacheX for Internet Explorer (CXIE v4.51, shareware).

You may want to create a new sub-cache every day and after ten days to decide if you will delete or keep the first one.

Or you may put very important sites that you need always, into one sub-cache and never delete it, while you can periodically delete all other sub-caches. All the sites in one sub-cache make up a group of documents that can be treated and handled as an ensemble.

Deleting cache folders

It is impossible to delete an active Temporary Internet Files (TIF) folder. Active does not mean that this folder is set active at the moment, but that is has been set active when Windows has been launched. If you try to delete it in Explorer, after a safety confirmation window, a second message window will be shown that tells that this folder is required for Windows and cannot be deleted. However, any other TIF folder that was not active when launching Windows® 95 can be deleted after confirming the first question window. Example: Sub-cache 1 has the following path:

It can be deleted if it has not been set active when Windows® 95 has been started. Otherwise, set any other sub-cache active by BCS and restart Windows® 95. After this, sub-cache 1 can be deleted.

Note: This method of deleting will move the deleted folder into the Recycle Bin, differently from deleting in DOS mode and more safe!

When you select Tools|Internet options|Temporary Internet Files in Internet Explorer® and press button Delete files you might expect that all files will be deleted. In fact, none is deleted. The only change that takes place after a new start of Windows® 95 is that all URL entries in the index.dat file have been deleted, so that access to the files is impossible. Only the subscriptions (channels) will remain in the index. But all files and the disk space occupied by them are still unchanged as well as the size but not the content of the index.dat file. Maybe, this procedure has been designed by Microsoft in order to decrease the size of the index.dat file while preserving the web documents in the cache for further access by other off-line browsing utilities. But this method cannot be recommended if you want to delete files completely to free disk space.

When you select Tools|Internet options|Temporary Internet Files and press button Adjustments you can select button Move folder. You can select any existing folder as target. After this operation Windows® 95 must be restarted and then the old TIF folder and all its sub-folders will be deleted completely. In the new target folder, a sub-folder with the name 'temporary internet files' and there a sub-folder 'Content.IE5' with other empty sub-folders will be created that contain only the subscriptions. Take care to prevent creating a target that will have the same path as an existing TIF folder. Example:

If you have C:\Windows\Temporary internet files and you choose as target C:\Windows, your existing TIF folder might be replaced by an empty folder.

This method can be used to delete cache folders rather than the second method, but it must be operated with care as nothing can be restored after deletion.

I found this method described in a computer forum at this site containing very important tips: http://www.pcnineoneone.com/dcforum/computer/...

To create a my computer toolbar right click the taskbar, select toolbars, new toolbar, and select my computer. On this toolbar you can navigate to any folder, i. e., to your TIF folder and to folder Content.IE5. Not like in Windows Explorer, the 'true' content of the folders is shown and you can delete anything there, except an active cache folder. However, the folder Content.IE5 in the active cache folder can be deleted! All deleted folders are moved to the recycle bin.

System requirements

Internet Explorer® 4.0 (use only BCS 1.0x or 5.20 up), Windows® 95 / 98
Internet Explorer® 5.0 (use only BCS 5.xx), Windows® 95 / 98 or Millenium Edition
Internet Explorer® 6.0 (use only BCS 6.xx), Windows® 95 / 98, Millenium Edition, XP, Vista, or Windows® 7.

Program data

File size: 912 KB
Self extracting setup file, including the program BCS5_32.exe, the help file BCS532.hlp and uninstaller: 502 KB (Download less than 2 min. at 56 K).
Full installation and deinstallation support provided.
Date: see version history.
Trial period: 21 days free of charge.
Price: $ 10.- per license (reduced multiple licenses available). Online registration available.
Support: e-mail.

Trial version

The trial version is fully functional, but time limited for a period of 21 days of effective use. On-line registration is provided. Refer to the Download page. Alternatively, you may contact the author per e-mail.

Versions summary

Version 5.2.3 released 03/05/2000, first published as of 02/26/2000 (preliminary), Portable executable file size 599 KB approx., compressed setup executable 377 KB

Remarks on version history

BCS 5.00 for Internet Explorer® 5.0

Internet Explorer® 5.0 uses a different cache path designation system in order to keep the browser caches of IE4 and IE5 separated from each other. This designation system has been used for browser cache switch version 5.00. In the Browser Cache Switch there is no difference in the path names for the browser caches of IE4 and IE5, although these caches are stored in different folders and have different content. However the cache data for BCS are also stored in different files for IE4 and IE5 (BrowserCS.INI and BrowserCS5.INI) and can store different data.
In order to facilitate deleting old sub-caches it is recommended to use different default cache paths for IE4 and IE5. Otherwise, the IE5 cache will be included as a sub-folder in IE4 cache.
Deleting of old caches in Windows 95/98 is possible only if this cache is not set active. Refer to the detailed information above.
In BCS 5.00 the following additional changes have been made:
- button Data changed to Read data
- button Paths changed to Set data
- button List of Caches added: double clicking this button opens the BCS ini file which contains a list of all cache data. It can be printed out if required.

Version 5.01

A new menu item 'Open cache' has been added. It shows a list of URLs of all cache pages in the sub-cache selected. This enables a better and detailed management of cache folders as all existing sub-caches can be examined before setting the cache. Pages can be retrieved faster if any doubt exists about their location.

Version 5.10

Fully compatible with version 5.01.
Sub-cache numbers are composed of two digits: 00, 01, ... 99. This enables creation of up to 99 sub-caches (formerly only 9).
The date of creation is automatically added into the list of caches and displayed in the cache data window.
Table of caches shows cache data in a compact, comprehensive view. For editing and printing the list the Microsoft® Editor is used. When button Refresh is pressed, all creation dates and actual folder sizes are calculated and added to the table.

Version 5.20

This version has all features of version 5.10. Additionally it can be used with any version of Internet Explorer® 4 or 5. As many users still have only IE 4, the BCS program has been changed to detect the IE version automatically and make all necessary adjustments internally and invisibly for the user. The former version BCS 1.01 is no longer supported and no longer available for download. All requests for this version will be redirected to the new program. This combines all the features of versions 1.01 and 5.10.

Version 6.0.0.5

Setting the default cache is only possible if default cache is set as active cache. Designation '0' in table of caches is changed to blank.

Registry keys modified by the program

For setting size:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\5.0\Cache\Content]

changed to

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\5.0\Cache\Content]

Editing the INI file is provided directly with different locations of the file in normal and in protected mode. In normal mode it is stored in Windows directory, in protected mode in a VirtualStore. The correct mode must be selected in the Cache explorer menu.

Help file

For detailed instructions for the most recent version refer to the help file that is automatically installed with the program (version 5.2.3 and higher).

Windows® 95 and Internet Explorer® are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation, USA.

-	Use multiple caches for different web contents.
-	Use multiple caches for different periods of browsing.
-	Use multiple caches to decrease cache sizes for improved browsing.
-	Use empty browser cache for testing purpose.

Browser Cache Switch (BCS) for Internet Explorer®