Why exactly do they call it a recycle bin?

[AggieJohn]

i think it should be called a trash can, how can you actually recycle it

[Snyder_TigerFan]

Originally posted by AggieJohn

i think it should be called a trash can, how can you actually recycle it

Maybe cause your recycling (reusing) the disk space?

[Emerson1]

What they said^^^^. Everything you "delete" doesn't get deleted. Every picture, file, webpage or whatever is still on your computer after it leaves the recycle bin. You can download programs to recover stuff you deleted a year ago, or there are programs that delete what you already deleted.