Tom, I know you're right -- I am now going to have to look for a CD/DVD diagnostic program or write one myself. But, I built my first computer, for a junior high school science fair project in 1963 or 4 and if had kept all the hardware that I've ever owned... I threw away my 8 inch floppies about 3 years ago. I don't want to belabor this point anymore. There are 2 items that will help me with my move to Linux and maybe someone can point me in the right direction. Merrian-Webster has a utility that lets me highlight any word in a document or browser window and look-up the definition. I have become very fond of this feature, but it is not supported in Linux. Second, I am a member of Grid.org, so my XP computer is constantly running Ligand fits for Cancer, Anthrax or Smallpox research. United Devices, that runs the project, does not support the Linux platform, so is there another similar organization that does support a Linux platform? Thanks. Dwaine