As it happens, things have changed. The technician Dell sent came with the replacement hard drive (with pre-installed XP and drivers). He installed it - booted - and the same hard drive warning occurred. Turns out it was my second internal hard drive (that I use for data) that was going bad. It was a good thing I already had the 2TB replacement. So he put the 2TB drive in - returned my original hard drive - and all functioned well - no hard drive error messages. Now I do have work ahead of me - but this changes the nature of it. Much better scenario - but still requires thinking through. There are probably just a few video files on the second internal hard drive that I don't have copies of. I think they're still accessible - so I will either get a docking station - or better yet an enclosure (since I will need one anyway - as I'll describe later) to put it in - and see if I can transfer those video files to my new 2TB internal drive. I think it makes sense to test that drive to see what's wrong with it - if it's repairable by Windows XP (I think if I run chkdsk there are possibilities to repair some damage?). Should I do this? Or are there other methods to safely test out the health of my hard drive? It is also a Western Digital. The timing of the hard drive failure is now making more sense. I had spent the previous weekend backing up lots of data files onto this second internal 1.5 TB hard drive. I think some of those transferred Tivo files might be problematic. (I say that for 2 reasons - when I've tried to defrag the hard drive, I recall a few files that couldn't be defragged - and while it was hard to see the path, I think they were the Tivo videos. Also, there were a few Tivo videos that failed to work properly when I tried to run VideoRedo to remove commercials. Some just seemed to be bad files - of course, I don't recall which those ones were - but it makes me wonder if it's the sources of the problem on that second hard drive.) Next step is call Dell - I bought that second hard drive from them 1 1/2 yrs ago. It has a 3 yr warranty. I'm not sure if the warranty will be honored by Dell or Western Digital (the brand of drive). So I figure I'll be getting a replacement 1.5 TB hard drive - which I can either install internally - use it as program drive or data drive. I can use the original 500GB drive externally. Or maybe I should keep it the way it is now. Original 500GB internal hard drive, second 2 TB internal hard drive - and put the replacement 1.5 TB hard drive in an enclosure and use for back-ups. One reason I'd like to use the 2TB drive as a program/boot drive (or master drive - I'm not sure of the language) is bc. it's supposed to be a faster drive - Western Digital Black Caviar 2TB drive - 7200rpm and 64MB Cache that was a bit pricier, but I thought it was worth it for quality and speed. It's this one: http://www.amazon.co...ref=oss_product (although I paid less than the price listed online) I'm new enough at all this that I don't understand everything about hard drive speed. I think that a larger drive can potentially slow things down a bit as it has to work to see date over a larger area/amount of data - but that the 7200rpm and 64MB cache will offer more speed - and the reviews suggest this thing is fast. I'd love any guidance in weighing these factors as I decide which to make the primary drive. I also want to clarify what to do with this drive. I don't know how to partition. And if I did, how large a partition should I create on this 2TB drive - if it were to hold the operating systems and programs? I don't know how much room that takes - and how to be sure to take the appropriate sections of my original drive to place into this partition. I can figure out what size each portion of my original hard drive is? I just don't know which folders go into the partition for programs/software? I don't want to leave any out - and I'm concerned I will miss some folders bc. I do not recognize what they are. If I partition the drive, I gather I don't clone it - but do it in sections. I also don't know if I should format it first. Or partition first. Disk management is fairly new to me although I did format a couple of drives. I didn't get into partitions and copying from one drive to another. Does it make sense to use this 2TB drive (which I bought for it's speed and good functioning) as the main drive? If so, I don't know the order of operations? Clone my original drive to this drive? Format and partition first (in which case I'll need to know how to get the proper system files vs. data files into the right partitions). I think I know that if I make this 2TB the master, I have to either switch the cables - but since I think they won't stretch to the second hard drive bay, I'll probably have to swap them. I am so relieved not to have lost my original drive. Although it consumed the better part of last weekend, I did learn plenty - and feel more confident cutting my "recovery" teeth on recovering data from the bad second drive which only has some video at stake. Just as a reminder my original drive has about 350GB data. Thanks everyone. Lynn. PS - I did learn a couple of important things from this technician. First, he updated the bios in my computer (which was several versions old). And he told me where to go to update the bios on my daughter's computer. That was useful. It's a question I've had for a while when I see people on this forum ask whether someone has updated their bios.

I too purchased the Kenmore Oasis. I also had my dryer replaced within days of recieving it. Since May, I have had 3, yes 3 control panels replaced due to F43 and F45 codes. I also have the washer which I feel doesn't do an adequate job of cleaning, so I will be returning my set for something else. I'm afraid to keep a dryer that keeps glitching out. I'm afraid I'm not home to check the serial number on mine!

As a kitchen designer and the owner of my kitchen and bath store in Orlando I do not see how the store can call your complaint imagined. I am amazed that other people who have comented on your post as "KD's" have used the terminoligy of a filler when they should know you do not use a filler on the blind corner cabinet that has your drawer. It is supposed to be installed away from the wall the dishwasher backs to so the drawer is far enough away from the dishwasher to open. The fact that the countertop was cut before the problem was realized has nothing to do with the countertop. The blind corner cabinets are built to be flexible in how far you "pull" it from the wall of the dishwasher. The conversation should have been to the effect of the cabinet was not pulled away from the dishwasher wall for what ever reason. Now that this is recognized a decision has to be made as to what will be done to solve this problem. Your design would have been different before the order to allow the drawer to open. The countertop of the section the blind corner cabinet would have been appox 1.5-3" longer to allow the blind corner cabinet to be "pulled" from the wall or something to the left of the blind corner cabinet would need to be 1.5-3" smaller to allow the blind corner cabinet to be installed with proper clearance. At that moment a decision should have been made to decide what needed to be changed recognizing the entire length of the counter is not to change size. What should have occured is admiting a new cabinet to the left of the blind corner cabinet 3" smaller was needed and should have been ordered. Your kitchen put on hold and installed properly. In my opinion that would have been more expensive then your dishwasher based on the price you paid for you kitchen. I just priced a kitchen out that is larger then yours and gave the customers prices of american made cabinets of $2,800 to $3,500 for cabinets. (They asked for the least expensive cabinets possible) The blind corner cabinet would have to be made again to do the job right because the filler between it and the dishwasher has put holes in the wood stile it is attached to in the blind corner cabinet. When you slide that blind corner cabinet over to its left 1.5-3" you would be up set of the the holes needing to be filled from the screws attaching the filler to it on the left side of the dishwasher. If you have itemized prices for the cabinets find the cost of the blind corner and a cabinet to its left and you would see the retail cost to replace them is probably higher then the price of the dishwasher. The warranty for the cabinets is issued by the manufacturer normally. Paperwork from the dealer may be required to be submitted to "register the purchase" just like you have to do when you buy a new product that is computer related. You should be able to circumvent that with a complaint to the manufacturer. It seems to me the dealer for this cabinet brands feels they can strong arm you. I would not see it that way if I was in your shoes. The designer of the cabinet layout forgot to pull the cabinet away from the wall enough to work in your design. I have done that myself once in my carrer. Complain to the better business bureau (sp?) if they do not all ready have a F rating. If they do then your complaint will not change the perception of future customers that they do not stand behind their business when something goes wrong. The BBB does not side with every customer. The purpose of the rating is to show the the business will work to solve problems instead of leave you in the dark. If the rating is already F then you know they are not concerned about it and another complaint will not have the ability to pressure them. Call the number to the cabinet maker and talk to them and ask them if a dealer is able to deny warrantys We all know the reasonable answer but here it from the horses mouth. I see you as lucky a different dishwasher makes things work. There would have been a cost to the dealer to fix the problem with 2 new cabinets as well. Assuming you can get the warranty I would not pay the final bill and just be happy to be done and realize you picked a company that you have learned to be dishonest and move on with life.

Just to jump in regarding working with an architect and timing - we started out the process working with an architect. This is our second build so we had a really good idea of what we wanted and thought we had a productive meeting with the architect. Then, it took 3-4 weeks to get the preliminary drawings, which weren't close to what we had in mind, and also which would have resulted in a home almost double our budget according to the first couple of builders we met with (the architect was aware of our budget and also supposedly "in the know" with cost to build a home and would make sure to give us a design that "would work" within our budget). So, we completely changed course and ended the relationship with the architect (luckily our agreement with him had various stages, so we only owed a small fee for the first round of drawings). When we met with builders we had a list of floor plan must haves & finishes and asked if they had any floor plans that met most of our must haves, with the level of finishes we wanted within out budget. We found a builder that had just built a house that was almost the exact floor plan we were looking for. I think this saved us a lot of time as we didn't have any back and forth with an architect and the builder could quickly/easily bid the job. I have to laugh looking back on it now because we essentially described that we wanted a colonial style (ie, basically a rectangle with a very simple roof line, so it should have been do-able and probably under our budget knowing what I've learned from the GW threads since then!). Not sure how the architect missed the mark on that one.