SITTING HERE IN SHOCK - don't think I can explain in a way that will make sense what I think might have happened to my music files but last Sunday night, after downloading the security update a few days before, my Limewire software starting freezing and I couldn't share files. The next morning I began to burn a CD, left the computer for a couple of hours - when I returned, it was still trying to burn the CD but had stopped at 67%. Strange, so I aborted the burn but out of curiosity decided to try to play it. It began ok then all of a sudden the whole pc went blank. When I rebooted the message on the screen said "No Operating System." Thinking that was impossible, I tried 3 more times - same thing. Took it apart, put it back together - nothing.

Out of desperation, as a last ditch effort I decided to format even though I still couldn't fathom how an entire operating system could just disappear. I keep my music files on a separate hard drive and was very, very careful when I formatted to make sure I protected that drive. After I reinstalled Windows XP, my drives were switched (C drive is now D) and my MUSIC had been obliterated although the few other files I kept on that drive are still intact.

This is a waking nightmare and I know there's no way to recover them but I've been working on these files extensively for the past 5 years. It's been my life! The ***** collection, contained many out-of-print recordings, rare files which I know I'll never be able to find again. I've download itunes but I'm getting a configuration error each time I try to install and if some of these songs are no longer in print, I doubt they would be available anyway. I AM HORRIFIED. I had only begun to create compilations from these files, and yes, at one time I had many of them on vinyl or tape but they went by the wayside several years ago. I rue the day I made the bad decision to give them away (frustrated because I could no longer get a needle for my old stereo) - at that time I had no idea technology would have made it possible to transfer to CD. Many of those files date back to the Napster days and searches I've done since then do not return those rare file requests. I had much contemporary ***** music too. I had over 1,200 songs in this category alone so now it's back to square one.

Please, if anyone has ***** music they will share, can they post here? I was always generous in keeping my files open for others. I am only a 56k'er so it has been and will be again a long, slow process.

Have only posted here once before and that was last Sunday night when this whole mess started.

I am one sad person today.

Ohmanon - Lives for music