The problem is a corrupted area of the hard drive. The remedy is to run chkdsk /r If you can't run it within Windows, try Safe Mode. If that doesn't work, run it from the Recovery Console. Any more BSOD's while doing the above and you need to save as much as possible and do a clean install.

Laptop is a Dell Latitude (C-Series). I've always hooked up a mouse... could never work those little pad areas well enough. Has separate "floppy-disk module as external device"... cable to connect. Only has ONE USB port... before it went into extreme SSLLOOWW mode, usde a gizmo that turned one port into 4-5. Has a little cord (about 4" long) marked composite TV-out adapter cable. I have CD reinstall disks for MS Windows XP Professional (including service pack 1a and 2). Has a CD drive, but that doesn't show up when I go to "my computer", but I used it to initially install XP?? And a spare battery pack that has just been sitting in the carrying bag for... since purchased? This computer was loaned/given to me by someone who had purchased a new one... but I was told I could do whatever I wanted with it. When I go to "my computer" and click properties for C, shows 18.6 GB capacity, 7.18 GB used & 11.4 GB free. This is a little odd?? Last time it was hooked up to DSL, showed 80-90% or more used... would get frequent low memory warnings... would have to do a disk cleanup that would briefly and ever so slightly improve speed. Went to control panel and checked to see what programs are on C... 18 different items. Most say "rarely" used, 4 say "frequently" used, but 2 of those I KNOW I don't use?? Rough extimate is almost 800 MB... could list, if that would help. Under system properties: ...system: MS WIndows XP Professional v 2002, service pack 2. ...registered to: my name and 20 letters/numbers. ...computer: Intel Pentium, 1.00GHz, 256 MB Ram. Took it in to Staples with a coupon for a free check-up. Fully expected them to tell me it was gravely ill with some virus... they didn't. I KNEW it didn't have a virus. Said it was pretty much out of memory. Guy tried to find something but nothing matched where it would have to go. Said because computer was "older technology", additinal memory would be difficult to find and expensive... advised not to waste my money and plan for a new computer when possible. Had Spyware Doctor with Anti-virus v 8.0... recommended by former co-worker a few years ago. Over time, it would catch occasional minor infections and fix right away. WOuld be encouraged to BUY something... Registry Mechanic "Optimizer" to get rid of registry errors. Have NO idea what that means, but wasn't something that seemed to make much difference, and I wasn't willing to spend any more money. OK... getting long-winded, so I'll stop. If any of my gibberish makes sense, and anyone has any advise for thie "dummy"... I will be very grateful!

Walstreet Journal article: Trying Out Photo-Transfer Services Benefits of Saving Family Pictures Can Be Worth Risk By SUZANNE BARLYN March 1, 2007 (See Corrections & Amplifications item below.) Slides these days are about as useful as eight-track tapes. But that's changing now with the spread of digital-transfer services available through national retailers and on the Web. Such services convert slides, photos, videos, and negatives to DVDs and CDs. We worried, though, about sending our family treasures to unknown technicians. To find out if our fears were justified, we tested five digital-transfer services. We found the benefit of reliving our family history -- in funky hues that are characteristic of 1960s photography -- was usually worth the risk. A stained photo circa 1943 (left) was cropped and restored by a transfer service. We learned it is important to organize old photos in advance, since the ordering process is confusing. We also benefited from speaking with phone representatives at mail-in services, instead of store clerks who weren't as knowledgeable. They advised us on scanning resolutions (measured dots per square inch, or dpi). We found that increasing the resolution costs more. Scanning slides at a minimum of 2000 dpi and photos at 600 dpi is generally adequate. A telephone representative from Brite Pix in Miami answered our questions about scanning resolution. The company alerted us via email when our order arrived for processing and sent a price for our restoration ($30). We received CDs of our slides and old photos and contact sheets (75-cents per page) three weeks later. But we were surprised when the completed order, including original slides and old photos arrived from Costa Rica. A Brite Pix manager said labor costs are cheaper there, but we weren't aware that our pictures would be making a second journey out of the country. Our digital images from Digital Memories Photo & Video in Orient, Ohio, were worth the trouble of an eight-page order form. We received follow-up questions via email and an estimate for digital photo restoration (in our case, $45). Our images arrived on CDs in separately labeled cases. A custom DVD slide show proved worth the money as we relived the 1970s to our favorite classic tunes. DigMyPics! in Mesa, Ariz., delivered prompt service and email that alleviated concerns about our photos' whereabouts. But our own haste in reading the instructions meant ordering a JPEG DVD instead of a DVD video. (JPEG files don't play continuously. We had to click "play" to view each one). We would have understood the difference if we called customer service ahead of time. But the reasonable price and processing time were good reasons to order again several months later. At Wal-Mart, two clerks assisted customers while operating photo machinery. We wanted our slides scanned and burned onto CD. But after waiting 10 minutes, we learned the CD burner wasn't working. We ordered prints instead, which wouldn't be nearly as versatile as digital images. The pictures were fuzzy and some were printed backward. We returned to transfer a video to DVD and restore a family photo. Our DVD worked well. The restoration was lovely, but pictured another customer's family. Fortunately, a technician scanned our original photo and returned it when we placed the order. A manager was supposed to call about the mix-up, but never did. A Wal-Mart spokesperson offered free reprocessing. We tried YesVideo, a service available via drop-off points at pharmacies and discount stores. An Eckerd clerk didn't know the service existed. We eventually spoke to a manager who vaguely recalled the service. We felt uneasy about leaving our slides and video, and with good cause. They arrived at YesVideo a month later, but we don't know where they were during that time. We received our completed order six weeks after drop-off. Eckerd discounted our order by 25%. A spokesperson said the employees would be aware of YesVideo in the future. * * * COMPANY/WEB SITE PRICE PER SLIDE SCAN/ PRICE PER PHOTO SCAN* APPROX. TURNAROUND TIME COMMENT BritePix www.britepix.com Slides: 39 cents for 1500 dpi. Photos 19 cents for 150 dpi. Transfer to CD or DVD extra. 3 weeks Phone reps answered our technical questions, returned calls and emailed. We sent our order to Miami, but learned the company sent it to Costa Rica for processing. Our slides and photos were neatly organized upon return. Free online gallery. Digitial Memories Photos & Video www.digitalmemoriesonline.net Varies depending on level of color correction. Mid-level pricing for slides: 85 cents each for 2000 dpi (first 100); Photos 75 cents each for 300 or 600 dpi (first 100).** Transfer to CD or DVD extra. 4 weeks Owners answered our questions throughout the process. The work was performed in Ohio. We added extras to our DVD, which was worth the $61. Our completed order, including our originals, was well-organized. DigMyPics! www.digmypics.com First 500: Slides, 59 cents each for 2000 dpi (first 500); 49 cents each for 300 dpi (first 500, original photos up to 5X7) ** Includes transfer to CD or DVD. 3 weeks Prompt service and email communciation about order status. We ordered the wrong type of DVD because we read hastily. But the reasonable price and U.S.-based service were reasons to use the company a second time. Free online viewing. Wal-Mart 28 cents per slide (minimum 10) for 1300 dpi. Includes disk. Self-service photo scanning available at $2.47 per CD at 300 dpi (about 300 4X6 photos per disk). Slides were promised in about 1.5 hours but we went back the next day. Our video to DVD transfer was uneventful. But we couldn't get a CD of our slides because the CD burner was broken. We got mediocre prints and a restoration of another customer's family. YesVideo www.yesvideo.com Suggested retail: $49.99 for first 80 slide-to-DVD transfers. (1800 dpi). Or print-to-DVD transfers 300 dpi. Price varies by location. Transfer to CD not available. Usually 2 to 3 weeks, but more than 6 weeks for us. Same-day in-store service at some locations. Our drugstore clerk didn't know about YesVideo. Our slides and video disappeared for a month. YesVideo processed our order within two weeks following its arrival. U.S.-based processing. *Higher resolutions may be available for extra charge. ** Volume discounts available Write: Cranky@wsj.com  Corrections & Amplifications: Dpi means dots per inch as a measure of resolution in photography and refers to the number of printed dots per linear inch. This column incorrectly says dpi was dots per square inch.

Your current plan would work GREAT if you had a basement rec room or a above garage bonus room. If you don't, you will grow out of your house when your kids are school age/early teen years, IMHO. If you are planning to move to a bigger house when the kids are older, then this would not be a long term house for you so disregard what I say. liriodendron is also referring to the same issues that I am raising. I am writing it in a slightly different way... Since you do not have a basement, it is essential that you have a room where someone can go to be either noisy or quiet. It does not matter how it is used. Either way, you need a room which allows the person to be separated for noise, if needed. reasons: 1. One kid plays a musical instrument for school, where to practice? Where does the other kid do homework? where does the adult read the paper/book, watch the news? 2. Kids are playing on the Xbox (or the new thing yet to come).. where does the other kid/adult go? Are you and your wife willing to hear the endless noise while making dinner, doing the extra work that you brought home? I guess you can force your kid to wear the head phone or you go to your bedroom with the laptop... You can use the kids bedroom/adult bedroom for some of these functions. But it does not work that great if you make their bedrooms into communal rooms. For example, you can't really put the Xbox in a kid's bedroom. (many families do and you maybe one of those.) Since you do NOT have a basement, if this was my house, I would close off one of the rooms and get rid of one of the eating tables. The closed-off room with a door will be used as either a quite room or a noisy room, however way it works best for your family. At different phases of your life, it maybe used differently. Either way, you have the option of a room that has walls/door. Personally, I like enclosing the noise producing elements so that everyone else can have peace and quiet. Because of this, I would close off the media. In your current space, if someone is watching TV, then everyone else has to go to their bedrooms to be able to have a bit of quiet. Not everyone wants to watch the same show or play the same game. In your minds' eye, try to live in this house when your kids are 3(preschool), 10(school age), 15(teenager), 20(coming back and forth from college). You are designing your house first. Then the kitchen fits in that house.