I dont know anything about solvents, but if you dont mind the bumps, how about painting a small section and see if the paint adhered to the adhesive? If it does, you can just do the rest of the floor. I just painted my concrete floor (it was in good shape)and I painted over some latex primer drips and some wood chips that had adhered to the floor with the primer. Concrete paint seems to adhere to both the wood chips and the latex primer drops ok. I used Drylok.

I would simply replace the CD burner sudden like. See the paragraph below, I had originally suggested you upgrade to a DVD burner, but.......... If you need help on howto there are plenty of folks here who can and will guide you through the simple process. Well, before posting this I checked Best Buy, Staples and Officemax, right now they all seem expensive. I bought a Sony here in Canada for $50 a while back so I figured south of the border you might do better. So much for thinking. Try the flyers on Sunday, they may have them on sale next week.

I think it's probably more of a 'no-no' to prep over a dw if the dw is the only one in the kitchen and there is easily a different and better spot for it. The other argument I have heard is that your stomach might stick into the handle (??!) but I've never understood that one myself. Maybe possibly for morbidly obese people who'd have difficultly stirring a pot on a rangetop as well, but in real life as I'm sure you know it's totally fine. :) And no I don't think back to back dws would be terrible. Wouldn't be my preference because I spend a lot more time putting drippy stuff into a dishwasher than I spend getting a prep utensil from behind me on the range wall. But with a family of 5 and two dws running a lot of the time, there might be an advantage to having both dws outside of your prep zone and both the the cleanup side of the sink. I guess that's a long winded way of saying I don't think there's a best way to do it. Like you say, you just need to really think through how you and your family will use the kitchen space and design what works best for you. Good luck with your new kitchen, I'm sure it will turn out great however you decide.

Great info on Flor dots alternatives. They have held my tiles together for 16 years. I have another dilemma, though. Hopefully it's okay to ask it here. Unfortunately I did not read that carpet tiles could not be installed over the sealant on my concrete floors, nor did I realize that there is a sealant on the floor. I have wanted to redecorate my floors but am stymied by not being able to remove all the tiles. Does anyone have an idea on what to use to break the "forever seal" between the tiles and the floor. Some tiles came up easily while others are holding on tight whether they are a whole tile or partially torn tile. I have used most cleaning fluids, alcohol, vinegar, baking soda concoctions, etc. I'd prefer to not have to use a varnish remover, but that might be the only solution. Someone suggested a heat gun which I have not tried yet. Any thoughts are appreciated. Thank you!