Hi Keith .... Doris ..... Barry.... Thank you all for the good advice. I pulled a usb thumb drive out of the viao and I was so happy it came back to life. THen I closed it and it died again. I bought air and took the side off but besides getting a lovely dust bath I dont even know if I got it clean I live in New York which is the best place to get ripped off in the world. The bigger the company the bigger the thieves so I really need to be armed with the exact info when I am buying something. If anybody ever visited New York and bought any electronics you will know what I am talking about. Otherwise it just sounds like I am being paranoid which I am without even trying. Someone wrote me off line and told me to try Cosco. I had 98 windows and loved it but I really killed it off. I hate the keyboard on the lap top plus I like the monitor 6 inches higher on the table and I hate the keyboard. If I am let loose in a store without having a model no etc written down I will wind up with the most expensive thing which I dont really need. I am happy to hear the emachine is good. Thanks again for the help If you have anymore I would love to know Ema I had an E machine and used it for 12 years. Wished some times I would have kept using it it never did give me any problems. Keith Ema, I've had a Gateway Desktop 98SE for many years..........needs work now, but I love it. I believe the e-machines are made by Gateway, but I could be wrong about that, and I'm sure somebody will correct that for me if I am. I now have an HP Laptop which I also love. My neice has an HP desktop and Laptop and loves them both. I've heard lots of negative stuff about the Dell, and especially their help desk techies. But, I guess it's really just anybody's guess about which one is best. And as you probably already know, we can get good and bad no matter what we buy.......in computers or anything else. Good Luck Hugs, Doris ------------------------------ Hello Ema, Vacuum cleaner on 'blow' perhaps <lol> Eac> I dont know what an e machine is ... They are a PC manufacturer like Dell or HP and as has been said they make some pretty good hardware. Eac> I would like the best PC for the cheapest price. Don't we all <lol> With the Vaio you pay a premium for the Sony name but have to say that their build quality is pretty good on both desktops and laptops. Shame that your old system appears to have reached the end of its life but no electronic device lasts forever, they all die eventually :-( Have you considered a laptop ? They are just as powerful as desktops these days and a lot of folks are switching over to them for the small size and convenience - not easy to balance a desktop monitor and keyboard on your lap !! They also use less electricity and in these days of rising energy costs that has to be a plus :-) -- Best regards, Barry