computers [growl]

I got my machine back up and running thanks to my good friends at the shop who spent entirely too much time on it (but they gave me a huge break on their labor charge). They installed a new card for the monitor that allows a digital cable connection, added more than double the memory, and made a "clean install" of Windows XP. They thought it would be an easy fix but three of them worked on it for two days. They aren' t sure what happened. Their best guess is that my Windows 2000 installation was faulty, although it worked OK for nearly a year, and a recent Windows upgrade didn't fully install, leaving the system on shaky ground until the electonic version of a belch scambled some drivers and other key files.

The "clean install" of Windows XP meant they backed up the data files, reformatted the hard drive, installed Windows XP, and copied the data back to the hard drive. That means I have to reinstall every program I was using. This is not as bad as it sounds. After all these years, going back to Windows 95 with some old DOS and Windows 3.1 data files and other stuff still tucked away in nooks and crannies, my computer is so full of crap that a "clean install" is the best way to go. Now I'm going back to reorganize and delete the old crap, with a faster computer and a great looking monitor to enjoy.

My love-hate relationship with computers is swinging back in the direction of love, or at least admiration, for this stupid machine which, in reality, is no smarter than a light bulb.