does anyone know how to completely wipe out safari's cache? specifically the address bar's cache? i've tried deleting the cache folder in ~/Library/caches/safari but it doesn't seem to do the trick. any ideas??
The cache is only the files from pages you've visited. It has nothing to do with keeping a list of the pages themselves.
You can empty the cache by going to the Safari menu and selecting "Empty cache..." and you can clear your history by going to the History menu and selecting "Clear History" at the bottom.
if you need to "clean" your path so no one finds out you were "researching ladybugs" , the easiest method is to go to the safari menu and choosing reset safari.
this clears cache, history, passwords, google searches, and cookies. basically there's no way anybody can find out about your habits of looking at "ladybugs"