On 6 Oct 2004 09:17:08 -0400, (Mike Rivers) wrote:

Trust, mainly. I know that it's supposed to be possible to "reinstall
Windows" without changing anything else, but I don't want to try it
unless it's the last resort. I don't want it to fail and to have to
re-install all of my software, and then re-configure it for the
familiar paths and user interface preferences. I don't even remember
everything I have installed, there have been successive updates that
I'd have to find and perform.

If you get problems, that isn't what you want. You want a fresh
install onto a cleanly-formatted partition.


Another thing is that while ever copy of Windows that I have here is a
legitimate, OEM-licensed version, all the copies all "restoration"
disks that, when you install from them, bring the computer back to the
original factory configuration. I'm not sure if you can do anything
but a complete installation. I haven't played with it. One of these
days I'm going to put together a fresh computer from parts, try
running one of those restoration disks on it, and see if it says "Go
to hell, this ain't a Dell!" Maybe if it doesn't, I'll have more
confidence in "reinstalling Windows" but until then, I don't want to
mess around with working computers. And you don't always learn the
right things by fixing a broken computer.


If you have one of these, it's a disk image of a Windows setup as
installed on that particular hardware. If you're lucky, it takes you
to a point in Windows installation just before "detecting hardware"
and although any necessary drivers for that machine are included, you
can provide others. This should work on other machines. I've seen
IBM machines that restore in this way.

More likely, it's an image of a finished installation, including
installed software. This MAY work on other hardware, but you can't
really complain if it doesn't.


It would be better if Windows didn't "degenerate" as time passes.
There's no reason for this to happen on its own, it's a function of
installing other software (or at least it SHOULD be, if it occurs at
all). I have three computers here, one with Win98SE, one with Win2000,
and one with WinXP Home. So far I've not encountered any problems that
have tempted me to do a re-installation.

Excellent! Either you're very lucky, or your computers aren't music
production tools. If they were, you'd probably have taken much more
interest in specifying and maintaining them :-)


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