Live Dangerously

By Anita Hamilton

Call me a masochist. Most people have learned the hard way to treat their computers gingerly, but last week I deliberately tried to cripple mine. First, I deleted every cheap program that came pre-installed on my year-old PC, wiping out a sea of icons cluttering my screen. Then I took a dozen programs off my bookshelf and installed them one by one, praying for disaster. I hooked up a joystick. I installed a video card. When warning signs sprang up, informing me of the potential hazards of my rampage, I ignored them. Finally, I clicked on the Windows system file that controls my PC and deleted files at random.

What drove me to such insanity? Blame it on Windows Millennium Edition, the latest version of Windows, set for release this week. The best--and arguably only--reason to pay $59 for Windows Me, as it's known, is to get the new "system restore" features designed to make your software indestructible. By automatically taking a snapshot of your hard drive every day (or any other interval you designate), Windows Me lets you go back after a crash and restore the computer to its previous settings--something Windows never did before. It also stops you from deleting essential files needed to operate your computer.

Just knowing I could revive my computer so easily inspired me to experiment. And that's the whole idea behind Me. The free programs Microsoft throws in--digital photo and video-editing software, a home-networking wizard, quick links to online games, and the latest versions of Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer--are all meant to encourage you to break out of your dull computing routines.

Truth be told, you don't need any of this stuff. While most consumer PCs will come with Windows Me preinstalled, there's little reason to upgrade an older PC. The browser and media player have been available as free downloads since July. And if your computer has anything less than a Pentium-150 with 32 MB of memory, the bloated Windows Me (which can gobble as much as 2 GB of disk space) won't work.

Me can be fun, though. After snapping some pictures on a Kodak digital camera, I plugged it into my PC. A few seconds later, up pops a window displaying every image in the camera. I could view them in slide-show format, click on the ones I liked, then either save them to my hard drive or attach them to an e-mail.

Digital video was another story. Using the software was easy, but equipping myself for the project was not. After borrowing a Sony digital camcorder, I learned that I needed a $99 video-editing kit (Pinnacle's Studio DV) to get the Firewire ports, video-capture card and cable I needed to hook up my camera. Even then, nothing worked until I reinstalled all the software and tried again.

Mac fans know that video-editing software and Firewire ports are already standard issue on most new Apples. And it's no coincidence that Apple will release a beta (trial) version of its new operating system, OS X, the day before Me hits stores. If it were a beauty contest, OS X's watery blue interface would win hands down over boring little Me. Then again, the much-delayed OS X is still vaporware, so beta users would be wise to tread lightly. Meantime, I'll still be hammering on Windows Me.

You can read past technology columns at time.com/personal or e-mail questions for Anita to [email protected]