One thing to keep in mind when recycling your old computer (or selling it or giving it away): remove the hard disk. Re-formatting is insufficient to protect your personal data (doubly true of Windows). Take the hard disk out and physically destroy it (a hammer, safety goggles, and a hard surface work well for this). See this study by Simson Garfinkel at MIT for more info: http://tinyurl.com/2d8ysp Chris Woods