Joe wrote:

I will run seti only when I don't use the computer.

I used to run SETI all the time.

But the complexity and resource usage of software has increased over the
years.  Anti-virus program has gotten bigger, ZoneAlarm crashes if I sneeze,
and now there's a few new anti-spyware programs running in the background.

"SpyBot Search and Destroy" v1.3 is huge compared to 1.2.  If I'm going to
open its hard drive scanner, I had better close everything else possible on
the computer.

I think streaming content forced me to upgrade from Windows Media Player
(WIMP) 7 to WIMP 9, although I held out as long as I could.  I've been able
to stick with RealPlayer 8 instead of upgrading to "One," without any
problem.

I downloaded Winamp 3 last year, but I never use it.  Winamp 2 was created
in the same generation as this computer, and they seem to get along together
better.

Mozilla has been nice.  It doesn't seem to be too big, and it's stable.  (I
mostly use it for email, but if a webpage looks awful in Internet Explorer,
I open it in Mozilla, and it always looks better.  Still using Outlook
Express for my Newsgroups, but even O.E. would be happier on a bigger
computer than Win98 and a 450 MHz PIII...)

Last year, I had to uninstall McAfee -- the bloat got too big -- even though
I still had 6 months left on my subscription.  (Yes, they refused to close
my account and refund the balance.)  I'm sticking with free antivirus
software, and they do fine.

One day, I had to change my SETI-Driver to run at Low Priority, instead of
Normal.  More and more often, I have to close SETI because my [win98]
resources or Free Memory are running low.  Now, SETI is closed more than it
is open.

Been threatening to get away from "resource problems" by switching to WinXP.
Also, adding a router and a more modern computer or two.  Grow a farm.
Maybe one day...

Ciao,
        -Neil-