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In article writes:

WIN XP will automagically load and install a USB device that is
supported natively in the OS (such as flash drives, common printers,
card readers, etc). Thus, when you start playing musical USB ports
with the device, Windows happily re-loads the device for you. The
downside? Each time you re-load these native devices, Windows keeps
the previous "install" as a "Nonpresent Device". You cannot see these
Nonpresent Devices in Device Manager; you need to reboot in Safe Mode
and go to ViewShow Hidden Devices in Device Manager. You can now
laboriously uninstall each redundant instance of these Nonpresent
Devices (they appear as transluscent icons).

That's interesting. I'm sure this adds to the "gook load" of the
computer, eventually slowing something down.

I avoid using safe mode as much as possible because it runs at a lower
resolution than what I nomrmally use (640 x 480?) and all the desktop
icons get re-arranged. When I go back to normal operation, I have to
arrange the desktop all over again so that I can aim the mouse to
where I'm used to aiming it. Is there any way to either make that not
happen? Maybe an option to run safe mode in my normal resolution, or
some way to save the desktop arrangement someplace where it will be
safe from re-arrangement (like maybe to a floppy)? I see desktop.ini
in many places, but given Windows' strange ways, it may have nothing
to do with the desktop.

I took a peek (in normal Windows mode) at the Device Manager and
saw the "Show hidden devices" option that I had never noticed before.
I didn't see anything change, even when expanding the USB and disk
drive devices. Will this be different in Safe mode?

Most vendor-driver USB devices (such as your fancy-shmancy USB and
Firewire audio interfaces/controllers) are not supported natively in
Windows. Thus, when you plug the device into a different USB port,
Windows queries you to install the drivers all over again. Don't do
it. Just plug the device back into its original USB port.

That's usually what I do, and it usually works.

The bottom line: when you install a vendor USB audio interface, select
a USB port on your computer that you will always dedicate to this
interface.

It's only on the laptop that I have this problem since I use it both
as a desktop and portable. With two USB ports and 4 USB devices, I
occasionally do swap things around without thinking about it. On the
studio computer, I regularly use only one USB device, a MIDI
interface, so that stays plugged in all the time. And on the regular
working under-the-desktop computer, I don't use the USB ports (though
I do have a hub that I've stuck to the top of the computer so that I
can bring in a visitor now and then.

An, by the way, for anyone remembering my frustrations over the past
couple of weeks trying to use Norton Ghost with my laptop computer.
The final disposition (which I was beginning to suspect but it took a
long time to get a difinitive answer from either Symantec or Adaptec)
is that Ghost doesn't work through a PCMCIA card, which is my Firewire
adapter on this computer. However, thorough the process I did learn
which Firewire drive cases work with the Adaptec PCMCIA-Firewire
adapter and which ones don't. Seems that the traditional Oxford 911
chipset is the key. Good to know should I find another need for an
external drive under Windows on this computer. But for the moment,
there's no need to keep the $65 case that's the only one I found that
works.

--
I'm really Mike Rivers )
However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
and reach me he double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo