What is my browsers cache and how do I clear it?

What is my browsers cache?

Many web pages contain the same elements and a lot of those pages on a website contain the same elements such as a logo. When browsers were being created the thought was:

'Why download the same logo for every page? Why not just download it once and then keep it so we can use it again at a later stage?'

So the cache is the place on your hard disk where the browser keeps things that it downloaded in case they’re needed again.

Sometimes the cache can get confused or it will load an element that is now outdated. This seems to happen to most browsers and at random times. What you’ll see are partially loaded or badly formatted web pages, incomplete pictures, or in some cases, the wrong picture/element in the wrong place.

This is when we need to 'clear the cache' so that when you reload the website/page the browser re-downloads the elements in their most recent form.

How do I clear my browsers cache?

Firefox

1. Click the Firefox menu button  on the browser toolbar.
2. Select Preferences or Options (depending on your version).
3. Select the Advanced panel.
4. Click on the Network tab.
5. In the Cached Web Content section, click Clear Now.
6. Once you have cleared your cache, close your browser and re-open it.

Chrome

1. Click the Chrome menu button  on the browser toolbar.
2. Select Settings.
3. Select Show advanced settings...
4. Under Privacy - Select Clear browsing data.
5. In the dialog that appears, ONLY have selected Cached images and files.
6. Use the menu at the top to select the amount of data that you want to delete, select beginning of time.
7. Click Clear browsing data.
8. Once this box has closed, close your browser and re-open it.