URGENT: Erase Free Space

I filled up my computer's memory completely. Then I deleted a few GBs of files to make space for new files I need...but of course the computer doesn't recognize that files have been deleted. So I ran the Disk Utility "Erase Free Space"...but it immediately went into error: "Unable to create temp file".
So I don't even have the space to create the temp file to erase the free space. What do I do now?
Thank you for your help
iBook G4   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

When you deleted those files, did you use "secure empty trash"? There
may be other trashes in the system that also hold stuff you could remove.
By using a utility such as What Size, you can hunt down where items are
located in the hard drive, and carefully consider removing them. This can
do it. Of course, important OSX system files and application support
stuff should be left alone; and if you move/remove iTunes music files,
they need to be handled carefully. Plus duplicates may remain.
If you can't save your data to a DVD or CD-R media, you may have to get
and use an externally enclosed hard disk drive (preferrably a FireWire unit)
so you can move or copy/clone files from your computer's hard drive. There
are a few good disk clone utilities, super dooper is popular and carbon copy
cloner is good. An external FW HDD of larger capacity than your 'Book's
hard drive could be partitioned to hold several entire computer drive clones.
In order to erase free space, you may have to use a third party disk utility; and
some of these could result in loss of data, so to backup your stuff first is
the best advice and course of action before doing much else. If you make
and use a clone utility, be sure the copy/clone's files you want to keep are
accessible. If you seek to make your entire 'Book's HDD 'clone' over to a
second and external FW drive, be sure to run "repair disk permissions" on
the original drive & read the instructions thoroughly before using a clone utility.
By making a complete computer drive clone to an external FW hard drive
you can then plan on a total erase (zero-data using disk utility options)
and reformat the computer's drive; this will get rid of everything and leave
the drive unpartitioned and without fragmentation. Free space without any
fragmentation or artifacts, then either re-clone your 'Book's system and
all your stuff back over, or only move the important things back to it.
The hard drive's capacity is sometimes mistakenly called "memory" and
it is confused with RAM; but I know what you mean in the context given.
Sometimes, you can restart your computer after deleting stuff
and it may see the stuff as "gone" then. Also, you can see if using
"repair disk" from the booted disk utility and also repair disk
permissions, will help. Working on the root or base level of the
hard drive can damage important files, so hopefully you can get
that free space to show and work for you.

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    CarolF5 wrote:
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    <EDIT>I don't know if I made this clear enough in my original post: The computer works fine after the restart, and I am even posting from the computer in question right now. The problems with input lasted only between the time the free space wipe finished, and the time when I had to hard reset.</EDIT>
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    That animated image of a bug in your signature is amusing, by the way.
    Message was edited by: Your New Favorite

  • Erase free space  can't be selected or "erase" is not available

    Hi
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