Thank you, everyone. Raven, you hit the nail on the head...I wasn't using my regular AOL password. DUH. :) It works perfectly! Thank you, daylilydazed, for the heads up about checking the web AOL spam folder from time to time. This is such a great group of people. You are willing to share your time and talents and it is greatly appreciated. One more question. If I wanted to add my husband's AOL screen name so he can use Thunderbird, too, do I just go through the same steps I went through to set up the account? Is creating a new email user the same as creating a new account? Thank you. Pam

I think he's talking about email from agnostic sources - Yahoo mail, Gmail, etc., You can change your ISP as frequently as you like and still have the same address to use. Which brings up a thought to share - sometimes you can save money on your internet connection by changing your supplier periodically. Most offer cut rates for new customers. Switch to take advantage of that, and then when the reduced price period ends, switch to another provider (maybe the one you left originally) who likely also offers a deal for new customers. Many mail services - like Gmail - can be set up to collect email messages from multiple accounts and concentrate everything in one central place. It helps you avoid the annoyance of multiple logins, but if you do that with non-work related email accounts, it does bring into question why you need more than one account in the first place. Oh, and for the OP, really there's no advantage or disadvantage to using a mail program. Maybe you prefer the user interface, but there's likely little difference between any one and the web experience using a browser

Hi RC,I've followed this thread from beginning to end and understand what is posted here. What I need to know now is where is this snapshot of the os image stored for future use? Surely it's burned to a dvd,a secondary hd or an external hd, etc. Am I on track so far? Somewhere in the future the original hd crashes, malfunctions or just quits. Do I then physically remove it, set the secondary hd on which exists the snap shot, to primary function, if this be my chosen media, and boot up? If I had chosen to go the dvd route, do I replace the old hd with a new one and use the dvd to install the snap shot image? And in case of an external hd, can it's content incuding the snapshot image be copied over to the new hd? I realize we're covering a lot of ground here and I beg your patience. Please keep it simple as possible. I'd like to get this issue staight in my mind one time. I also understand this can only be done with the original computer the os was installed on. Thanks.

I assume you do not currently have a softener in place. Please confirm. I will try to go through your questions in order. Conductivity: This will always be higher than TDS. It has to do with they types of ions in your water. Your conductivity is on the high end of the scale based on your TDS, but not out of line. Other analysis: Do you have any rusty, brown, or black staining on fixtures? If so - test your water for iron and manganese. Sediment filtration: Two cartridge filters is certainly a viable option. Install them in parallel so that one cartridge may be changed without interrupting water supply to your home. Make sure to use 4" diameter, not 2". Big Blue is a very reliable brand. I like the clear housings for a visible indicator, but that is just my personal preference. All cartridge filters are a pain to change. If you currently have to make frequent cartridge changes you may wish to consider a backwashing sediment filter instead of cartridges. It would be similar in appearance to a softener, but pretty much no work on your part to operate. Softeners: Kinetico softeners are very reliable, but expensive (as you mentioned). If you are willing to spend the money up front and like your local dealer, they would be a good choice. Regeneration time is not an issue with any twin-tank softener, whether Kinetico or Fleck, since one tank is always available to provide soft water while the other is being regenerated. A Fleck of Clack twin tank softener would take up significantly more space than a Kinetico because you would have to purchase a larger softener to accommodate the higher flow rate for your jacuzzi tub. Sprinkler system: Yes, bypass the sprinkler system. There is no sense paying to soften all that extra water. RO: Any RO system will last longer if fed softened water. The minerals you get from water are in minute quantities - even heavily mineral laden water would be insufficient to provide the minerals your body needs. Additionally, your water has nitrates. If you want them removed from your drinking water, RO is the only reasonable way to do so. Why do you want a carbon filter? What, specifically, do you want removed from your water? Certainly two would be overkill. Once may be as well, unless you have a specific contaminant in mind. Softener bypass: Here is a picture of what a three-valve bypass should look like. And a drawing of a setup: