Are you tired of cluttered QuickTime Player history? Do you find yourself searching through endless lists of recently played videos, desperately trying to locate a specific one? If so, you’re not alone. Many Mac users experience the same frustration when attempting to manage their QuickTime Player viewing history. Fortunately, there is a solution to this common problem. This comprehensive guide will reveal practical methods for efficiently clearing QuickTime Player’s history, ensuring a streamlined and clutter-free viewing experience.
The first step in eliminating QuickTime Player’s history is to identify the location where the data is stored. By default, QuickTime Player stores its history in a file named “com.apple.QuickTimePlayer.History.plist.” This file is typically located in the following directory: ~/Library/Preferences/. Once you’ve located the history file, you can proceed to clear its contents.
There are several methods for deleting QuickTime Player’s history. One simple method is to manually delete the history file. To do this, open the Finder window and navigate to the directory where the history file is located. Once you’ve found the file, select it and press the “Delete” key on your keyboard. You can also clear QuickTime Player’s history from within the application itself. To do this, open QuickTime Player and select the “History” menu. From the menu, select the “Clear History” option. QuickTime Player will then prompt you to confirm the deletion. Click the “Clear History” button to complete the process.
Accessing Recently Played in QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player, a versatile media player developed by Apple, offers a convenient feature called “Recently Played,” which allows users to quickly access a list of recently opened video and audio files. Whether you need to revisit a recently watched movie or resume listening to a favorite song, accessing “Recently Played” is a breeze.
To access “Recently Played,” follow these steps:
- Launch QuickTime Player on your Mac or PC.
- Click on the “File” menu located in the top-left corner of the screen.
- Select “Open Recent” to view a list of recently opened files.
The “Open Recent” submenu displays a list of recently played media files, along with their file names, locations, and timestamps. To open a file from the list, simply click on its name.
Additionally, you can customize the number of recently played items displayed in the “Open Recent” submenu. To do so:
- Open QuickTime Player’s preferences by clicking on “QuickTime Player” in the menu bar and selecting “Preferences.”
- Navigate to the “General” tab.
- Under the “Recently Played” section, adjust the “Show Recent Items” slider to set the desired number of items to display.
By following these steps, you can easily access the “Recently Played” feature in QuickTime Player and conveniently revisit your recently opened media files.
Clearing Recently Played in QuickTime Player
Clearing Recently Played
To clear recently played items in QuickTime Player, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- In the menu bar, click “File” > “Clear Recent Items”.
- In the confirmation dialog box, click “Clear”.
Removing Recently Played Items Individually
To remove individual recently played items from the list, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- In the History menu, hover over “Recently Played”.
- Click the “x” button next to the item you want to remove.
Hiding the Recently Played List
To hide the recently played list in QuickTime Player, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- In the menu bar, click “View” > “Hide Recently Played”.
To show the recently played list again, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- In the menu bar, click “View” > “Show Recently Played”.
Using the QuickTime Player Preferences
The QuickTime Player Preferences menu allows you to customize various settings, including the behavior of the “Recently Played” list.
Clearing the “Recently Played” List Manually
If you want to remove individual items from the “Recently Played” list, you can do so manually.
- Open the QuickTime Player application.
- Click on the “File” menu and select “Preferences.”
- In the Preferences window, navigate to the “Recently Played” tab.
- Select the items you want to remove and click on the “Remove” button.
- Click on the “OK” button to save your changes.
- Open the Task Scheduler application.
- Create a new task by clicking on the “Create Task” button.
- In the “General” tab, give the task a name and description.
- In the “Triggers” tab, select “On a schedule” as the trigger type and set the schedule to occur at your desired interval (e.g., daily, weekly, or monthly).
- In the “Actions” tab, click on the “New” button and select “Start a program” as the action type.
- In the “Program/script” field, enter the following command:
"C:\Program Files\QuickTime Player\QuickTimePlayer.exe" -clearecentlyplayedNote: Replace "C:\Program Files\QuickTime Player" with the actual installation directory of QuickTime Player on your computer.
- Click on the "OK" button to save the task.
Clearance Method Steps Manual Removal Open Preferences>Recently Played Tab> Select Items> Click "Remove" Automatic Removal Schedule a task in Task Scheduler using specific command Deleting Recently Played Items via the Finder
Another method to remove recently played items is through the Finder. Here are the detailed steps:
1. Open Finder
Locate and click on the Finder icon in your Dock or use the keyboard shortcut Finder (Command + Space) to open the Finder.
2. Navigate to the Movies or Applications Folder
In the left sidebar of Finder, click on the Movies folder to delete recently played videos or Applications to delete recently played apps.
3. Open the Recents Folder
In the Finder window, click on the Go menu in the menu bar and select the option Go to Folder.
4. Clear the Recently Played List
In the Go to Folder box, type the following command to navigate to the Recent Items folder:
```
~/Library/Application Support/com.apple.QuickTimePlayer/Recent Items
```
Press Enter or Return. The Recent Items folder will appear.
Select all items in the folder by pressing Command (⌘) + A, and then drag and drop them into the Trash to permanently delete them. Alternatively, you can right-click on a specific item and select Move to Trash to delete it individually.Utilizing a Terminal Command
This method involves using the Terminal application on your Mac to access hidden files and folders. Here's a step-by-step guide:
- Open the Terminal application, located in the "Applications/Utilities" folder.
- Enter the following command: "defaults write com.apple.QuickTimePlayer DeleteRecentDocumentsList -bool true"
- Press "Return" to execute the command.
- Enter the following command: "killall Dock"
- Press "Return" again to restart the Dock and apply the changes.
Note: Restarting the Dock is necessary for the changes to take effect. You can now check QuickTime Player to confirm that the "Recently Played" list has been cleared.
It's worth mentioning that this method will only delete the "Recently Played" list from QuickTime Player and not from other applications that may have access to recently opened files.
To permanently disable the "Recently Played" feature, consider exploring the "System Preferences" under "General" and specifying what information and documents should appear in the Dock's Recent Items menu.
Alternatively, you can use a third-party utility like CleanMyMac X to manage and remove unwanted files, including QuickTime Player's "Recently Played" list, in a more user-friendly manner.
Editing the QuickTime Player Config File
Step 6: Modifying the Config File
To edit the config file, follow these detailed instructions:- Open Terminal: In your Applications folder, navigate to Utilities and launch the Terminal application.
- Locate the Config File: In Terminal, enter the following command to locate the config file:
```
defaults read com.apple.QuickTimePlayer RecentDocuments
```
This will display the path to the config file.- Open the Config File: Use the following command to open the config file in the TextEdit application:
```
open -e path/to/config.plist
```
where path/to/config.plist is the path to the config file displayed in the previous command.- Find the "NSRecentDocuments" Key: Within the config file, locate the "NSRecentDocuments" key, which contains an array of recently played files.
- Remove Unwanted Entries: Manually remove any unwanted entries from the "NSRecentDocuments" array by deleting the corresponding lines.
- Save the Changes: Once you have removed the desired entries, save the changes to the config file by clicking on "File" > "Save" in TextEdit.
- Kill and Relaunch QuickTime Player: To apply the changes, kill the QuickTime Player process using the command
```
killall QuickTime Player
```
in Terminal and relaunch the application.Employing Third-Party Utilities
In cases where the aforementioned methods fall short, employing third-party utilities can provide a robust solution for managing your Recently Played list in QuickTime Player. Here are some of the most effective options available:
CleanMyMac X
CleanMyMac X is a comprehensive Mac cleaning and optimization tool that includes a dedicated module for managing Recently Played lists in various applications, including QuickTime Player. With its user-friendly interface and powerful cleaning capabilities, you can easily scan and remove unwanted items from your Recently Played list with just a few clicks.
App Cleaner & Uninstaller
App Cleaner & Uninstaller is another excellent option for managing Recently Played lists. It offers robust features for cleaning up application-related files, including caches, logs, and preferences. This tool allows you to selectively remove items from your Recently Played list while preserving essential data.
Onyx
Onyx is a free and powerful utility designed to maintain and optimize macOS systems. Among its various features, Onyx includes a dedicated module for managing QuickTime Player's Recently Played list. By utilizing Onyx, you can quickly scan and delete unwanted items, ensuring a clean and organized Recently Played history.
Utility Key Features CleanMyMac X Dedicated Recently Played list module, user-friendly interface, powerful cleaning capabilities App Cleaner & Uninstaller Selective item removal, cleanup of application-related files, preferences management Onyx Free and powerful utility, dedicated module for QuickTime Player's Recently Played list, system maintenance and optimization features Hiding or Disabling Recently Played
If you don't want your recently played items to appear in the QuickTime Player's menu, you can hide or disable them. To do this, open QuickTime Player and go to the "Edit" menu. Then, select "Preferences." In the "Preferences" window, click on the "Playback" tab. Under the "Recently Played" section, you can choose to "Hide Recently Played" or "Disable Recently Played." If you select "Hide Recently Played," your recently played items will still be available in the QuickTime Player's menu, but they will not be visible. If you select "Disable Recently Played," your recently played items will no longer be available in the QuickTime Player's menu.
Hide Recently Played
To hide recently played items, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- Go to the "Edit" menu.
- Select "Preferences."
- In the "Preferences" window, click on the "Playback" tab.
- Under the "Recently Played" section, select "Hide Recently Played."
- Click "OK" to save your changes.
Disable Recently Played
To disable recently played items, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- Go to the "Edit" menu.
- Select "Preferences."
- In the "Preferences" window, click on the "Playback" tab.
- Under the "Recently Played" section, select "Disable Recently Played."
- Click "OK" to save your changes.
Restricting Access to Recently Played
There are several methods to restrict access to the Recently Played list in QuickTime Player:
1. Disable the Recently Played Menu
Navigate to "View" > "Recently Played" and uncheck the option to disable the menu.
2. Clear the Recently Played List
Select "Clear Recently Played" from the "View" > "Recently Played" menu.
3. Use a Third-Party Plugin
Install a plugin that restricts access to the Recently Played list, such as "ClearHistory" or "Hide History".
4. Set Parental Controls
Use parental control software to block access to the Recently Played list or the entire QuickTime Player application.
5. Modify System Preferences
Navigate to "System Preferences" > "Security & Privacy" > "Privacy" and under "Files and Folders", deny access to the Recently Played list for QuickTime Player.
6. Use a Command-Line Tool
Open Terminal and enter the following command: "defaults write com.apple.QuickTimePlayer RecentItemsDisabled -bool yes".
7. Edit the Preferences File
Locate the "com.apple.QuickTimePlayer.plist" file in ~/Library/Preferences, open it with a text editor, and add the following line: "
RecentItemsDisabled ". 8. Use a Keyboard Shortcut
Press "Command + Option + H" to toggle the visibility of the Recently Played list.
9. Selective Hiding
- Open a video in QuickTime Player.
- Right-click the video and select "Get Info".
- In the "Sharing & Permissions" section, uncheck the box next to "Remember this video in Recently Played".
- Repeat this process for any other videos you want to hide from the Recently Played list.
Troubleshooting Persistence of Recently Played Items
If you encounter issues with the Recently Played list persisting even after following the above steps, consider the following troubleshooting tips:
1. Manually Remove Items from the History List
Right-click on the file and select "Remove from History" or "Clear History." Alternatively, press Command + Shift + Delete (on Mac) or Ctrl + Shift + Delete (on Windows) to clear the entire history.
2. Restart QuickTime Player
Close and reopen QuickTime Player. This may force it to refresh its history data.
3. Check for Software Updates
Ensure that you have the latest version of QuickTime Player installed. Updates often include bug fixes and stability improvements that may address this issue.
4. Reset QuickTime Player Preferences
Go to QuickTime Player > Preferences and click on the "Reset All" button. This will restore QuickTime Player to its default settings, which may resolve the issue.
5. Delete the Recent Items List File
Locate the following file:
Mac: ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.QuickTimePlayerX.plist Windows: %UserProfile%\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\Preferences\com.apple.QuickTimePlayerX.plist Delete this file and restart QuickTime Player.
6. Check for Conflicting Software
Some third-party software may interfere with QuickTime Player's history. Try disabling or uninstalling any recently installed software that could be causing the issue.
7. Run a System Scan
Use an antivirus or anti-malware software to scan your system for potential malware or viruses that may be causing the issue.
8. Contact Apple Support
If all else fails, contact Apple Support for assistance. Provide them with detailed information about the issue and any troubleshooting steps you have taken.
9. Wait for a System Update
Apple may release a system update that addresses this issue in the future. Keep your system up to date and check for updates regularly.
10. Consider an Alternative Player
If the Recently Played items issue persists and becomes a major inconvenience, consider using an alternative media player that does not store or display a history of recently played files.
How To Get Rid Of Quicktime Player Recetly Played
To get rid of QuickTime Player's recently played list, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- Click on the "File" menu.
- Select "Open Recent".
- A list of recently played files will appear.
- To remove a file from the list, select it and click on the "Remove" button.
People Also Ask
How do I clear the history in QuickTime Player?
To clear the history in QuickTime Player, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- Click on the "File" menu.
- Select "Clear Recent Items".
How do I stop QuickTime Player from remembering what I watch?
To stop QuickTime Player from remembering what you watch, follow these steps:
- Open QuickTime Player.
- Click on the "QuickTime Player" menu.
- Select "Preferences".
- Click on the "General" tab.
- Uncheck the box next to "Remember recently opened files".
How do I delete QuickTime Player's cache?
To delete QuickTime Player's cache, follow these steps:
- Open Terminal.
- Type the following command and press Enter:
```
rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.QuickTimePlayer
```
Clearing the “Recently Played” List Automatically
If you prefer to have the “Recently Played” list cleared automatically, you can set up a scheduled task to do this.
