At 09:51 AM 5/23/00 -0700, you wrote: >>Ah and the fun begins. Is the computer functioning at present, > >yes This lets you do either, a complete new reinstall, a partial reinstall or an upgrade. Since you are using W95 w/USB according to the ver. # you might do best to upgrade to W98 if you can afford it. The problem, is if you have a really messed up registry, several of the problems will stay with you. >>and if so what version and flavor of Windows are you using at "Present"? >4.00.950.B >Is there a half way - i.e. wiping out the Windows bit, but not >re-formatting drive C: and wiping it all? This option exists, as you can make a new startup disk, and check it for CDRom files by placing it in the A drive, and starting up the computer. If your computer is set to check A drive first and start from that disk if it is there, it will start dos, and ask if you want CDRom available. Tell it yes, and see what happens. It should complete the start up, and if you check for the CD in the drive, it should give you a directory. Once you have verified that your startup disk works, you can use dos to wipe out the Windows folder on the hard disk. This gets rid of all the files to run windows, and also get rid of bad files in the folder. With this option you still have to reinstall your applications, but the data should still be there. As always you must make multiple backups, and check the backups to make sure they are good and use able. Plain copy files to either Zip disks or to a spare hard disk is the best backup, as the files do not get compressed. They remain the way they were. Here is a good place to talk about two other options. A blank, reformatted large hard disk, and a CDRom writer. A blank formatted hard disk of a large enough size allows you to completely copy your hard disk, and have all your data on the second disk. This you would not make two copies of, due to cost. For those of us who do a lot of this, we keep a couple of 10 to 20 gig drives around to do this with. A CDRom writer drive will allow you to copy to blank cd disks, for a permanent backup, an as disk are about 50 cents each in 50 packs, it is a very low cost way. Any good software for the drive allows copy work with lots of various methods to do anything you want. >> If the system is still working, you can make a new startup disk using >> the Add/Remove Programs program. >>It will or should have the necessary files on it to run the CDrom drive. > >SHOULD is a word I hate. See above. >>Do not be scared, be cautious. This is the time you could really use the >>young neighborhood geek. Many of them are always bombing their computers >>trying to do the impossible, that they are experts at reinstalling. Now you must make a decision as to how you wish to proceed. I will make it easier or harder just how you look at it, by telling you about the newest copy of MAXIMUM PC magazine that I got in the mail today. (June 2000). I do not always agree with what they say, and they have not sold out to their advertisers yet, however they are power hungry and so not every thing they advocate is good for the general public. Their lead article is "How to freshen up Windows 98 for a Clean Start", which is fairly well written. Answers some of the questions as to why a person would want to start over. Their Web Site: http://www.maximumpc.com/index.html has a starting point to the article on the home page, and has the article on the site. Jack

This is really first class help - Thank you so much. It needs quiet - and so will now have to wait at least two weeks as we are off to Poland tomorrow. I am most grateful David At 19:47 23/05/00 -0700, you wrote: >At 09:51 AM 5/23/00 -0700, you wrote: >>>Ah and the fun begins. Is the computer functioning at present, >> >>yes > >This lets you do either, a complete new reinstall, a partial reinstall or >an upgrade. Since you are using W95 w/USB according to the ver. # you >might do best to upgrade to W98 if you can afford it. The problem, is if >you have a really messed up registry, several of the problems will stay >with you. > >>>and if so what version and flavor of Windows are you using at "Present"? >>4.00.950.B > > >>Is there a half way - i.e. wiping out the Windows bit, but not >>re-formatting drive C: and wiping it all? >This option exists, as you can make a new startup disk, and check it for >CDRom files by placing it in the A drive, and starting up the >computer. If your computer is set to check A drive first and start from >that disk if it is there, it will start dos, and ask if you want CDRom >available. Tell it yes, and see what happens. It should complete the >start up, and if you check for the CD in the drive, it should give you a >directory. > >Once you have verified that your startup disk works, you can use dos to >wipe out the Windows folder on the hard disk. This gets rid of all the >files to run windows, and also get rid of bad files in the folder. With >this option you still have to reinstall your applications, but the data >should still be there. As always you must make multiple backups, and >check the backups to make sure they are good and use able. Plain copy >files to either Zip disks or to a spare hard disk is the best backup, as >the files do not get compressed. They remain the way they were. Here is >a good place to talk about two other options. A blank, reformatted large >hard disk, and a CDRom writer. > >A blank formatted hard disk of a large enough size allows you to >completely copy your hard disk, and have all your data on the second >disk. This you would not make two copies of, due to cost. For those of >us who do a lot of this, we keep a couple of 10 to 20 gig drives around to >do this with. > >A CDRom writer drive will allow you to copy to blank cd disks, for a >permanent backup, an as disk are about 50 cents each in 50 packs, it is a >very low cost way. Any good software for the drive allows copy work with >lots of various methods to do anything you want. > > >>> If the system is still working, you can make a new startup disk using >>> the Add/Remove Programs program. >>>It will or should have the necessary files on it to run the CDrom drive. >> >>SHOULD is a word I hate. > >See above. > > > >>>Do not be scared, be cautious. This is the time you could really use >>>the young neighborhood geek. Many of them are always bombing their >>>computers trying to do the impossible, that they are experts at reinstalling. > > >Now you must make a decision as to how you wish to proceed. I will make >it easier or harder just how you look at it, by telling you about the >newest copy of MAXIMUM PC magazine that I got in the mail today. (June >2000). I do not always agree with what they say, and they have not sold >out to their advertisers yet, however they are power hungry and so not >every thing they advocate is good for the general public. > >Their lead article is "How to freshen up Windows 98 for a Clean Start", >which is fairly well written. Answers some of the questions as to why a >person would want to start over. > >Their Web Site: > >http://www.maximumpc.com/index.html > >has a starting point to the article on the home page, and has the article >on the site. > >Jack > > > > >============================== >Free Web space. ANY amount. ANY subject. >RootsWeb's Freepages put you in touch with millions. >http://cgi.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/acctform.cgi