CQuirke's PC Stuff

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All issues are viewed from the perspective of stand-alone PCs, small server-less peer-to-peer LANs, and consumers on broadband or dial-up Internet access. New stuff * is rare here, I know!

Sub-Sites
Tales from the Blog * - i.e. from http://cquirke.blogspot.com
CQ's Win9x Site - lots of content here, not all of it Win9x-only

Theory
The Gallery of Contentious Assertions - watch this space, slowly
Things that don't work - knee-jerks that fail to connect
"Just re-install Windows" - yeah, right; what was the other idea?
Passwords - don't use them if you can avoid it
See also Tales from the Blog

Wish List
Interactive settings management - from GUI to .REG
Safer disk and file management * - reduce the need for mOS
Telephone voice messaging * - take voice messages as well as faxes

Bugs
Explorer.exe stops responding, then recovers - Win98+IE 6
Show full path in title bar setting is lost after Safe Mode - all Windows

Maintenance
Managing PC crises - how to get out of PC minefields alive
What maintenance OS? - particularly tricky if NTFS
XP as its own maintenance OS - but seriously, folks...
NTFS - nice file system, shame maintenance is near-impossible

Installation
Multi-boot planning your strategy for multiple OSs
Multi-boot layers - choose which point to branch to your OSs
Multi-boot different Microsoft OSs - how to make them get along

Hardware
Construction Time Again - things to check inside the case
Bad capacitors - a common motherboard malady
XP SP2 vs. Intel Prescott - as written at the time (not updated)

Case Stories
Odd "bad capacitors" presentation - no reason to suspect this, but...
The "OK" hard drive - would you trust this hard drive?
RAM test anomalies - it's not just what it reports as wrong...
Eudora vs. bad .RCV files - many users, but only one case of this

If you find my language confusing, try the conceptuary!