Q. Let’s say I want to delete an e-mail using Windows XP.

I right-click and hit Delete and away it goes. Or does it?

I have unerase software on my desktop, and it looks like it keeps a list of what’s been deleted.

I tried to recover one e-mail file, but it simply appeared on the desktop and despite my best efforts was not able to open it up.

Plain and simple: Can I delete an e-mail I’ve received so that no one else can ever read it, or are we past that already?

Charlie Shap, Chicago

A. The various unerase or undelete utilities from Symantec and others essentially change the Windows Recycle Bin to archive stuff that one deletes.

They sometimes can even recover stuff that was deleted before the unerase utilities were installed.

When you drag an icon from a Recycle Bin altered to restore deletions it is supposed to restore all the data as well as the icon.

So I suspect that the icon you have dragged on to the desktop is pointed at the undelete folder instead of the e-mail software you are using. You can fix it by right-clicking on the icon and picking Open With and then pointing it to the e-mail software.

Even easier is to simply use Open With to open the e-mail message in the Windows Notepad text editor built into the operating system.

This trick simply displays all the characters in the message, including ones for formatting and other bookkeeping, as well as the actual text of the note.

To find Notepad click on Start and All Programs and then open the Accessories item at the top of the list that appears. The program is located there and is easier to find than the various e-mail programs that get buried far deeper into the computer’s innards.

Jim Coates write for the Chicago Tribune.

sound inputs. You can fix the problem by throwing money at it by acquiring a device that connects to the USB ports and offers line-in/line-out ports and other features.

The gold standard for this kind of gear is the SoundBlaster Audigy N2 from Creative Labs (www.us.creative.com) for $100.

There are many lesser-priced alternatives available at computer stores and online, but Creative Labs has been around from the dawn of the computer sound card and enjoys an excellent reputation.

However, let me assure you, Mr. S., that your needs are at the simple end of things.

Just about any USB line-in hardware you pick should work fine for pumping music into software, like Roxio Easy Creator 7.0 or Nero 6, which let users convert analog music into digital computer files.

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(Contact Jim Coates via e-mail at jcoatestribune.com or via snail mail at the Chicago Tribune, Room 400, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago IL 60611. Questions can be answered only through this column. Add your point of view at chicagotribune.com/askjim.)

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AP-NY-08-18-04 0619EDT