<!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en"> <html> <body text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" link="#0000EE" vlink="#551A8B" alink="#FF0000">   NBrian Trout wrote: <blockquote TYPE=CITE> <blockquote TYPE=CITE><style></style> Hi list, Any of you computer types out there care to offer an opinion? I'm typing this on a new laptop computer.  I love it.  It's 3 times the computer my old one (only 1 1/2 years old) is/was. I'd really like to retrieve some of the old information from my old computer, but I'm not sure I can.  Basically, it has begun hard drive failure, and most of the information that I would like to access is there on the hard drive.  It will boot up, but it will not run Windows, even in the 'safe' mode.  I've tried running the Scandisk program that was onboard, but it keeps finding errors it can't fix.  When it gets to the disk scan, it keeps finding sections of the hard drive that are "about to fail" and moves the info to another part of the disk.  And talk about slow... the Scandisk program files tell me that it 'should' take about 10 minutes for a disk scan... it took 4 hours to go through 10% and then quit because it couldn't handle the job. Anybody have any suggestions?  Do you think a program like Norton utilities or another similar program would be able to help me?  or is it too late? I've been a bad boy for not backing up my work earlier.  I'm thinking of replacing the hard drive on the old computer, and perhaps looking into a zip drive for a little more secure backup.  I'm also in the market for a program like Norton utilities, or a similar product.  But I sure would like to have some of that old info... The upside is, now I have a portable computer and can play with the Tunelab program I downloaded!! Anyway, if you have an idea, thought, suggestion, or note of sympathy, I'm receiving them all with open ears.  :-) Thanks, Brian TroutQuarryville, PA<a href="mailto:btrout@desupernet.net">btrout@desupernet.net</a></blockquote> </blockquote> Brian.... Dont assume its a hard drive problem unless you have a puter expert look at it and tell you it is. There are several situations that can look just like a hard disk failure and turn out to be something completely different. Sometimes the processer can actually be screwed up in such a fashion  that the condition you describe above exists. Take the thing into a puter shop and have it looked at Richard Brekne I.C.P.T.G.  N.P.T.F. Bergen, Norway </body> </html>