Thanks for the comments (stlewis & Bob) - I agree with the remarks about not copying applications - there simply is no point in it because unless they are re-installed they have no value and cannot be used as applications per se. I do not pretend to know all the idiosyncrasies of Windows (and often wish I had gone the Mac route), I teach 'computers for beginners' to Seniors and stress these kinds of things. BUT, having never used this new system (WindowsOne Care) which has a backup function embedded in it, I wondered if the backup would include the registry keys and thus the 'paths'. If so, I reasoned that I would simply have to re-install my programs such as Xara, etc. and I would be able to continue, (with my learning !!)........with my re-installations finding all the data without problems.


and yes, Bob, I do have a second system which I am using for this purpose. Even tho the other one is functional now I am still waiting for words of comfort (seeds before swine) from the OneCare techie.

I guess the reason for this saga is to alert others to the fact that OneCare is available and appears to be useful (tho it is a pay system after the first 90 days) and also that there is not a lot of direction with the unpaid version even tho it does not appear to be crippled in any way. And because it is a Microsoft product I thought THEY should know how to take care of their own(?)

matelot