Once the PC is back in its home, and everything plugged in, I fire it up. Since this is a new windows install, it naturally finds new hardware & prompts me to install the software for the new hardware.

oh, look, the mouse doesn’t work. Oh, the keyboard doesn’t work either… Ah, they are wireless, so it should just be a matter of pressing those little “resynchronise” buttons on the KB & mouse & on the radio receiver… hmmm, that doesn’t work. Try again… nope. We try a few different combinations, but nothing works.

So I go to the car & get a wired KB & mouse, plug them in, restart the PC, then finally say: yes, please install that software for the new hardware that you found.

So what does windows do? it installs the software drivers for the wireless keyboard & mouse!!! Argghhh!

Now thats an interesting “catch 22” situation: wireless KB & mouse won’t work until the drivers have been installed, but cannot install the drivers unless we hit the OK button… but cannot hit the ok button unless the KB & mouse work… etc etc.

I tell you: wireless keyboards & mice are more trouble than they are worth.

Anyway, with that little hiccup out of the way, I finally reinstall the modem software (the bigpond software doesn’t work very well, but it eventually does something after a few reboots). sigh.

Check the web, setup email, and I’m finally finished.

phew!