Windows Desktop Recycle Bin
On the Windows Desktop is an icon titled "Recycle Bin." When activated with a left mouse click or the Enter key, the "Recycle Bin" dialogue box will come up and be ready to use. If you have deleted files, folders, or other items from your main computer, they will be displayed here. You can arrow through these items and if you hear one that needs restored or undeleted, hit the Enter key one time and a box will come up. Hit the Enter key a second time and the item will be restored to its' original location. Different versions of Windows have slightly different set ups for the "Recycle Bin." One common setting for the view is that deleted items are displayed by icons in columns and rows. This can be made easier to navigate by setting the "View" to something like "List." The menus of the Recycle Bin may vary slightly depending on the version of Windows. Do the following activities to change the view to a list, and to explore the menus of the "Recycle Bin." There are headings on this page. Use the letter h to move forward through the headings, or Shift h to move backwards through the headings. When you hear a heading you want to read through, use the down arrow key or read all command. There is an audio demonstration link that you can listen to, or download to put on another device. When you are finished move to the link at the bottom of this page titled "BACK" to go to the "Simple Windows Lessons" web page.
NOTE: If you are going to delete an item from a USB memory stick or other attached item, and are not sure, it is a good idea to copy that item into one of the folders on your hard drive.
1. Press down and hold the Windows key and hit the letter d or m.
2. Release the keys.
3. Hit the letter r until you hear "Recycle Bin."
4. Hit the Enter key one time to open the "Recycle Bin."
5. Press and hold down the Alt key and hit the letter v to bring up the "View" menu.
6. Release the keys.
7. Down arrow to the "List" menu item.
8. Hit the Enter key one time and the icons will be changed to one single list that you can down and up arrow through.
9. Down arrow through the list of items in the "Recycle Bin."
10. Press and hold down the Alt key and hit the F4 key to close the "Recycle Bin."
1. Press and hold down the Windows key and hit the letter d or m to move to the Windows Desktop.
2. Hit the letter r until you hear "Recycle Bin."
3. Hit the Enter key one time to open the "Recycle Bin."
4. Down arrow through the list of deleted items.
5. Find one item on the list of deleted items that you want to restore.
6. Hit the Enter key one time of the item you want to restore and a box comes up.
7. Hit the Enter key one more time and the item is restored to its' original location on your computer.
8. Press and hold down the Alt key and hit the F4 key one time to close the "Recycle Bin."
1. Press and hold down the Windows key and hit the letter d or m to move to the Windows Desktop.
2. Hit the letter r until you hear "Recycle Bin."
3. Hit the Enter key one time to open the "Recycle Bin."
4. Down arrow through the list of items you have deleted, and find one that you want to delete completely.
5. Hit the Delete key one time and a box will pop up asking if you want to delete the file permanently.
6. Hit the Enter key one time and the file is deleted forever!
7. Press Alt F4 to close the "Recycle Bin."
1. Move to the Windows Desktop.
2. Move to the "Recycle Bin" icon.
3. Open the "Recycle Bin."
4. Hit the Alt key one time and a menu will open in some Windows Versions, and a ribbon will be activated in others.
5. If a menu opens, down arrow to "Empty Recycle Bin."
6. Hit the Enter key one time and a box will pop up asking if you want to delete the files forever. If you Enter all of the files in the Recycle Bin will be gone forever! You have emptied the Recycle Bin.
7. If a ribbon comes up when you hit the Alt key, right arrow over until you hear something like "Manage Recycle Bin."
8. Down arrow one time onto the ribbon.
9. Hit the Tab key again-and-again until you hear something like "Empty Recycle Bin."
10. Hit the Enter key one time and a box will pop up asking if you want to delete all of the files in the "Recycle Bin."
11. If you hit the Enter key one time all of the files are deleted forever! You have emptied the Recycle Bin.
NOTE: Emptying the Recycle Bin is not good practice because you may accidentally delete a file that you really need. It is better to delete files one-at-a-time so that you are sure what you are deleting.
1. Go to the Windows Desktop.
2. Go to the "Recycle Bin" icon, but do not hit Enter.
3. Hit the Applications key one time.
4. Down arrow to the menu item titled "Empty Recycle Bin."
5. Hit the Enter key one time and a box will come up asking if you really want to delete all of the items in the Recycle Bin.
6. Hit the Enter key one time and all of the items in the Recycle Bin will be permanently deleted.
NOTE: Emptying the Recycle Bin is not good practice because you may accidentally delete a file that you really need. It is better to delete files one-at-a-time so that you are sure what you are deleting.
Audio Demonstration of the Recycle Bin Link