To all those kind folks advising me on installing UFT on XP. This is not something I am likely to resolve quickly as I use my computer like I drive my car! Fine when all is well but I am useless when it is not. My computer crashed during an overhead storm despite being connected via an anti-surge cable which was turned off at the time. The computer crashed with a damaged hard drive, my printer was rendered permanently U/S, the ntl broadband modem was blown so it has been quite traumatic. My husband's computer in the same room etc but not connected to the internet was unaffected. We wonder if the strike on my computer was through the cable/usb modem? I do have a small laptop running on '98 and I am hoping I can install UFT on that, convert my backup to GEDCOM and transfer the data back to my main computer when I have decided on an alternative FH Prog. The only snag is the memory of the laptop. Does that sound logical or am I barking mad due to desperation. Many thanks to all who are patiently reading my burblings and offering ideas. Heather

Heather, > We wonder if the strike on my computer was through the cable/usb modem? Did your cable TV boxes also suffer? It would seem strange if they didn't. >I do have a small laptop running on '98 and I am hoping I can install UFT >on that, convert my backup to GEDCOM and transfer the data back to my main >computer when I have decided on an alternative FH Prog. The only snag is >the memory of the laptop. >Does that sound logical or am I barking mad due to desperation. Your plan sound fine. Do keep in mind that you may lose some data (or things maybe moved to different locations within the program) during the GEDCOM transfer, however, this maybe unavoidable. Do make sure that you print out the error report that will be created by your new program in order that you can fix the reported items. Art