I made another big purchase for the computer this month. When I replaced the stolen one I made the case for the expansion space that I lost--I had a tall case with room for several drives yet. So I picked up one of those external hard drive boxes, and this week I filled it with a 300gig hard drive I found on sale.

I've debated how to transfer my Dad's music from LPs, cassettes, and reel-to-reel for ages--the good stereo equipment with the equalizers and such is in the living room. I have long cables to run into my office to my computer, but I'd still have to go back and forth for monitoring settings. Then I realized that I could use this portable hard drive and install it also on the kids' computer which is across the room (15 feet, instead of 50) from the good receiver and sound equipment. I can save my files to this hard drive, via wires run to their computer, then I can bring it back in here to work with and burn my CDs. I'll do my copying when they're not here and I can work on my computer at my leisure when they are.

I'll burn CDs as backups and I have another hard drive I use for Ghost backups of my entire system every month. This portable one will be handled carefully, and I'll scan the kids' computer and such before plugging it in. I think I finally have this project figured out.

I still have to do the darned insurance paperwork. Time is flying, only about six months left. I'm doing it this weekend, so I'm paid up by christmas.

SRS