Erasing files in Ubuntu: other devices still see the files

[debiani386]

Dotan Cohen wrote:
> I have a 1GB USB memory stick. It had photos and text files stored on
> it, which I deleted on my Ubuntu (KDE) desktop machine. I then copied
> four video files to the stick and put it in my DVD player (which reads
> USB sticks as well). The photos and text files were still visible. I
> then removed the stick and placed in another Ubuntu (also KDE)
> machine, and all I could see were the video files.
>
> What gives? Why are these erased files still visible to other
> computers? And why can other Ubuntu machines not see the files? How
> can I be sure that sensitive documents that I've erased are in fact
> gone?
because, if you just do a regular delete (ex, right click then delete, 
move it to the trash can, or press the delete key on your keyboard), 
ubuntu will create a .Trash file which is used to recover any deleted 
files.

If you press Shift + Delete, it will bypass the trash can and will not 
create a .Trash folder. I recommend you do the Shift + Delete action 
only if you know that you will never use the file again.


Also, other ubuntu computers, by default, hide any files/folders with a
"." as their first character. thats probably why ubuntu, by default, 
doesnt show the .Trash folder like other machines do
--cj