By "fill" I was referring to filling with clothes - a traditional agitator-type top loader is rougher on clothes when the water level is set for a partial fill. The vanes usually are usually largest at the bottom and will just violently shred your clothes, especially at the faster agitation speed. The worst in my experience were late-'80s and '90s Whirlpool (and related brands) that had an agitator that couldn't twist very far in either direction, and tried to make up for it by agitating very fast (most of them would automatically slow down to the "gentle" speed partway through the cycle, even if the regular or heavy-duty cycle was selected, but by then the damage was done). It was particularly bad in their apartment-size 24" wide washers, which had a small tub that didn't leave much room for the clothes to tumble; large items like pants or bed linens were particularly at risk. Other manufacturers of that era, like Maytag and Speed Queen, had a 180 to 210 degree arc to the agitation that allowed it to twist back and forth more slowly and still move water through the clothes. Actually, the only top-load washer with an impeller plate (not sure if that's the right term) I've used, an 8 year old Haier, is substantially rougher on clothes when washed or rinsed with anything but a full water fill; but the plate spins faster than most recent HE top loaders and it doesn't have a recycling waterfall or a spinning drum to help with washing so the rotating plate is the only mechanism for moving water. I'm guessing the new large-tub top loaders are more gentle.

I am so very happy to have an old-school top loader again. My front loader finally bit the dust and we didn't even bother to try to have it fixed. It was here in the house when we moved in - we're kicking ourselves for paying extra to keep the set, we should have installed our old ones - and these were awful from day one. The first pain was the kamikaze clothing that leapt out from both washer and dryer when the door opened or you pulled something big out. It sucks that something you've just washed has to wait to get cleaned again. Plus, with a bad back, I didn't like bending down so far. It is infuriating that you need to spend extra money on those pedestals to raise them up, and laundry baskets won't fit under either door without them, so, again, when the door opens, things can hit the floor, which is horrible. The machines come out of the box with this huge flaw and you need to spend $150.00 minimum to make them work as they should. They should just be taller from the outset. Also, I like pulling things up out of the washer and then putting them straight into the dryer without having clean wet clothes go into a basket that has previously had dirty clothes in it. Then came the smell. Now it's possible that the previous owner pre-fouled the thing, but that gasket? Where water ALWAYS was? Yak. Mold city. No amount of bleach and cleaning would keep this thing clean. My clothing is now much cleaner after just a week of having a top loader again. I'm very sensitive to detergent left in fabrics, and mine are once again clean and my towels are far more absorbent. It's possible that a new machine, for way more money than I just paid for my new GE top loader, might be better, but we didn't want to spend that much and are happy to have the old style machine back.

Coming in on late with this, but since I have an HE toploader, I thought you might like some input: I bought a Maytag Bravos MTW6700 in May. It's an Energy Star top loader with the HE advantage - no agitator, huge capacity (4.6 cu ft), very efficient when it comes to water and electricity. I've not had any problem at all with mold, mildew, or vibration. I leave the top open after I've put laundry into the dryer (as I've always done with any washer); it's only shut when clothes are washing. Because my washer is a top loader, it can go on either side of the dryer with no problem. ALL my experiences thus far with this washer have been excellent - far beyond good. There haven't been any cons to this point. I like it that the washer has a soak cycle, and also a setting for clothes which are stained/very dirty. It also has a handwash cycle, delicates cycle, wrinkle-control cycle, sheets cycle, bulky cycle for comforters, sleeping bags, etc, whites cycle, jeans/colors cycle, and more. There is also a Delay cycle, which means you can load the washer and delay it for up to 10 hours. The settings are very easy to use. I like it that I can choose water temp, spin speed, everything. It's unbelievably quiet, even when spinning. All I ever hear is water going in or draining out. It's a good thing it has a chime to alert me when a load is finished! I like the detergent, bleach, and fabric softener dispensers. When I wash towels, I use vinegar in the f/s dispenser, which helps to keep the towels soft and fluffy (there's no residual odor), and also cleans out the dispenser. I can wash many more clothes or laundry items per load in this washer than in the traditional top loader I had, which had the largest capacity on the market at the time I bought it. I have washed king-size comforters and bed pillows in my washer with no problem. Whereas I used to wash at least one, often two or three, loads each day, now I'm down to washing about five loads each week (for a family of six, including three teens) because I can wash so many things at once. This washer gets my laundry much cleaner than any other washer I've ever owned, and it is gentle, even with the fast spin. When I wash a load of sheets, they do not tangle nearly as much as they did in my old washer w/agitator, and they dry much smoother, too. I haven't had any problem with my clothes wrinkling. I do get them out of the dryer when the chime sounds (it has a LO or HI or OFF setting) and immediately fold or hang them. The machine spins so well, laundry dries in much less time than it did with my old washer. The dryer is finished before my next washing is done, which gives me time to unload the dryer before putting the next load in. I don't use regular laundry detergent, for I've read the sudsing can cause damage to HE machines, as well as invalidate a warranty. I read an article which compared using regular laundry detergent in an HE washer to using regular dish detergent in a dishwasher. I've used liquid Tide HE w/ bleach for whites and towels. I've also bought Sears HE Detergent w/OxiClean, and it works well, plus is very inexpensive. I use Sears HE Ultra Stain-Fighter powdered detergent (very inexpensive) for everything else except dress clothes and delicates. I like liquid Cheer HE ColorGuard for nice dark clothes, and Woolite HE for delicates and light dress clothes. ALL of these detergents clean very well in my washer, at any temperature. You said you have little ones: One big advantage of this washer, as compared to a front-loader, is that the controls are on top, in the rear. Children cannot reach the controls or open the door - which means they can't get in the washer, as they could with a frontloader when the door is left ajar to avoid mold/mildew. (Also true for pets) I hope this helps you in your decision-making. I was right where you are a few months ago. One of my main reasons for getting an HE toploading washer is because I have back issues which would make it difficult for me to do all the bending required to load and unload a frontloader - and the pedestals are expensive. This washer is sold in a number of places, but the site I've linked below gives detailed information about it, plus a number of reviews. www.maytag.com also has a good demo of the washer in action. Here is a link that might be useful: Maytag Bravos MTW6700 washer

If you have Windows XP, here's a nice, easy way to resize photos. Download and install the XP Image Resizer Powertoy from Microsoft via the link below. Once installed, all you have to do is right-click on an image file (I know it handles jpg/gif files and it may handle others as well). You will now see an option to "Resize Pictures." Click on "Resize Pictures" and you will be given a menu that looks like this: Choose the option that you'd like and click OK. You can use the advanced button to enter a custom size. The tool will leave your original picture untouched. It simply creates another file named "imagename (small).jpg" or medium or large, etc. You can easily resize multiple pictures this way by selecting multiple items from your explorer window (using the CTRL or Shift key), right-clicking and selecting "Resize Pictures". It's a really nice little tool that most people don't know exists and it's much easier than doing the same thing via image editing software. And it's free. Feel free to ask questions if my instructions above are unclear. Here is a link that might be useful: Microsoft Windows XP Image Resizer Powertoy