An article in one of the national PC magazines prompted me to pick up this subject. It concerns the CDs that come shipped with your new PC, and what to do if you don't have them.
The history of all this dates back to the earliest days of the PC - the early 1980's. Back in those days, the operating system (if it could be called that) for PCs was DOS (Disk Operating System). DOS was so small that it could fit on a single floppy diskette. The IBM version was called PCDOS and the Microsoft version MSDCOS. Anybody could copy the diskette easily, launching Microsoft on a decades long quest for system copy protection. This was one factor which guided Microsoft into requiring that a copy of the operating system be shipped with each new PC - i.e. if each PC already had (and paid for) the new OS, there was no need to copy.
A second factor influencing Microsoft was the cost of the OS. Manufacturers complained that it was too high and inflated the final cost of the new PC to the end purchaser. By selling manufacturers the right (in effect) to copy Windows for themselves at a bulk license price, Microsoft still got revenue, did not have to manufacture anything, and the PC manufacturer picked up the responsibility for OS service and support. The term used for this was an OEM (Other Equipment Manufacturer) license. Microsoft still continued to sell the OS as a full, stand-alone product also.
Most PC manufacturers then had to decide how to include the CD for the OEM OS with their product. Most of them repackaged the OS in some way, usually distributing CDs that would completely reformat and restore your hard drive and return it to the same state it was in when you opened the box. Some manufacturers would allow you to just restore the Windows portion if necessary. Other manufacturers had a series of CDs that you would put in your PC to restore, and some would ship separate CDs for the OS, applications, and drivers, etc.
This went on for a number of years. However, as PC prices fall and profit margins grow slim, the manufacturers are looking to save a buck anywhere they can. The latest scheme is not to include the restoration CDs. There are various flavors of this:
On the Dell ordering webpage, they break the restoration CDs out as a separate, charged item. Do yourself a favor, and pay the $10-$20 fee and get the CDs with the system. Some other manufacturers have you order the CDs after you receive the PC - again, I recommend that you do this, and don't wait until there is a critical need.
A third variant is for the Manufacturer to include an "image" of the CDs shipped on your hard drive. They will provide a utility program that will actually write the CDs; you will need some CD-R blanks to do this. I do not recommend CD-RW for this purpose.
Now, if you get into trouble and you don't have the CDs, your options are limited. You may be able to contact the manufacturer and get them shipped to you, but that will take time. As long as you have your Windows license number (it should be on a sticker on the side of the PC case), you could in theory use a CD from another system to restore your PC. But this often will not work as there are unique drivers and tools for each system that probably would not work on your PC. You could get around this by hard work and searching for the right software on the Internet, but it isn't easy. I don't recommend that approach.
In any case, make sure you have the CDs on hand before trouble strikes.
(Bob Seidel is a local computer consultant in the Southport - Oak Island area. You can visit his Website at www.bobseidel.com or e-mail questions or column ideas to him at bsc@bobseidel.com. For specific inquiries, please call Bob Seidel Consulting, LLC at 278-1007.)