Emily L. Ferguson Sure, and intelligent computer using consumer might benefit from knowing a bit about how to do regular caretaking on their equipment, as well as how to evaluate when it's time to upgrade and what the appropriate level of upgrade might be and what the implications of that will be for their pocketbook. But I can't imagine any real reason that anyone needs to know how to "actually use a computer" unless they're going to become an engineer or IT technician. Sorry. Computers are for making it less difficult to do the stuff that matters. and "actually use(ing) a computer" is not what matters to 99% of the people who use computers. on the last point Em, I think we were sold that line.. I was programming back in the unix days for the PLATO network and new my way around a computer pretty well, I left off computers for a number of years and when I returned it was to find Windows 95 was the thing. I decided I really didnt want to learn all about a new system and just wanted to 'drive' it. that lasted.. not very long (!) I had an experience many did back then, a problem I now know was small, but the nice PC repair man did the usual and reformatted the drive - which created even more probs as he lost the drivers for the sound card and the scanner! Not being connected to the net it was a royal mess to resolve. Then when I got it to rights there was the issues of the poor drivers for the sodding umax scanners - not Windows fault at all, Umax wrote invasive and messy drivers which played havoc with the system. I sighed and set myself the task of learning the rotten OS and machine. I can't off the top of my head think of many things computers have made 'easier' really. Mind you, I wouldn't be sinking $15 a month into World of Warcraft either without one! k
