What are Cache Files?

BIGDOGquake3

BIGDOGquake3

Get It, BIG MAC! ::ha::
So, what are they?

--Are they good to get rid of?
--What would happen if i did?

I just got a program called Cocktail and It enables me/lets me delete these files. So I would like to know what they are.
 
Cache files are similar to Windows temp or Internet temp files. They can normally be safely deleted, and the result can be an improvement in system performance; or removing cache files can fix some types of software problems. In some cases, after a restart, some software will take a little longer to startup the first time because the cache files are being rebuilt because they keep certain system defaults. An example would be the Bookmark Icons that display in Safari; those will be on the default icons until each bookmark is viewed. why remove the Cache files? It can be a part of periodic maintenance for your system :)
 
oversimplified, but...when your system caches something you use regularly, it helps speed up the process. as things are added to the cache that you don't do regularly, it slows it back down as it must search thru those things as well when looking for the info. so periodically cleaning your cache helps general performance although as DeltaMac said, it might slow it down a bit for a brief moment. it's a tradeoff, otherwise there would be no real need to cache in the first place.
 
I had an issue with Chimera half a year ago or so.. if it crashed, I had to remove its cache to make it start at all. So I disabled it's cache, and it's been nicer since. (and is still faster than Safari). (It is Chimera, as my build is from February, so not Camino yet.) - If you remove an apps cache, it creates a new one while you are working with it (unless you disable it from the package.). Nothing to worry.
 
Remove the languages that you don't use? Monolingual does that .. if you leave 2-3 languages left, the difference is about 300 MB of space - and you still can see e.g. Japanese and Korean webpages .. ... Also, sometime update prebinding .. ;)
 
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