I want to know how to locate and delete all personal files on my
computer such as mpegs and jpegs which altho I deleted, may be still
left in hidden files or in hidden caches etc. I want to be able to
permanently remove traces of these files from my computer so they
cannot be traced by IT professionals. I am not computer proficient, so
need very specific instructions.

The best program would be Darik's Boot and Nuke ("DBAN") What it will
do is create a bootable floppy disk that will automaticly do a
multipass wipe on you hard drive. THIS WILL DELETE EVERYTHING AND YOU
WILL NEVER GET IT BACK!

To get it:
1) Download DBAN from
http://voxel.dl.sourceforge.net/sourceforge/dban/dban-1.0.4_i386.zip
2) Save it to your desktop
3) Create a new folder on your desktop and call it DBAN
4) Open the .zip file and extract the contance into your DBAN folder
5) Put a floppy disk in the drive
6) Double click the "install.bat" in the DBAN folder
7) Follow the instructions on the screan
8) LABEL THE FLOPPY. You will be very sorry if you don't. It is
extreamly dangerous to your data and you might forget about it and use
it when you didn't want to.

To use it:
1) Put the disk in the drive and shut down the computer, then turn it back on
2) DBAN should then boot up and you can follow the instruction from there
3) you probably want to use the DoD 5220-22.M Standard Wipe

Note: The wipe will take a very long time (hours, depending on the
size of the drive).

DBAN will delete EVERYTHING, the whole drive, all the data accross all
partitions. If you are looking to remove specific files then you
should go with AnalogX's superShreder
http://www.analogx.com/contents/download/system/shred.htm

Here's a link to DBAN that works:

Darik's Boot and Nuke
http://dban.sourceforge.net/
..."Darik's Boot and Nuke ("DBAN") is a self-contained boot floppy
that securely wipes the hard disks of most computers. DBAN will
automatically and completely delete the contents of any hard disk that
it can detect, which makes it an appropriate utility for bulk or
emergency data destruction..."

There are other, similar applications listed at the bottom of the page.

~~Cynthia

Sorry about the bad link. I wanted to send you directly to the file
that you want as there are several and you might get confused. When
you get to the DBAN homepage, click the "Darik's Boot and Nuke 1.0.4"
link under the Download section. On the next page, select the file
named "dban-1.0.4_i386.zip". Then select a location to download from
by clicking the icon in the download column.

fspam-ga ,

As you said you are not very computer proficient -- so i fell you can
simply go to the start menu (of windows) -- and select "Find or
Seearch" -- here you can search all files and folders .. now suppost
you want to delete video files then search for *.mpeg or *.avi as per
the formats you want to delete. and this shall show you all the files
with those extensions in the same window. You can then delete the
files you dont want. Now to permanently delete these files such that
they cannot be recovered go to www.iolo.com and download a trial
version of System Mechanic. here you can install the "incenerator" -
this overwrites the files numerous times so that they cannot be
recovered. This same procedure can also be used for jpgs and other
files .. (*._____) .. Regards .. sunny ...

It's too late to selectively locate deleted files and re-delete them
the right way.  As far as finding ALL the caches and temp files,
including text references to inappropriate files, ...without
reformatting?  ..good luck.  You'll need to reformat the hard drive
and overwrite all the data with a program such as DBAN, or Eraser:

Eraser
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Security/Secure-cleaning/Eraser.shtml

To really worry, read this:

Ready to toss that old PC? Read this first.
http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/4520-7297_16-4207831.html

The time to worry about deleting inappropriate material is before you
start viewing it, not on your way out the door.  What you are asking
for is way too complex for this forum (or your $$ offering), although
some brave soul may tackle it...

A better question next time might be:

What steps can I take before starting to view material that could get
me into trouble, to make said material easy to permanently and
completely remove?

~~Cynthia