As I have mentioned in the past, I am one of the few odd IT people who still use older equipment at home. My primary computer is still the Gateway Solo 2500 (link to non-related, but interesting article about installing Linux on a GWS2500) I purchased in mid-1999. While it may not be able to run the latest games and such, I worry not because it does what I need it to do and does it pretty well. I always run the latest and greatest software and some how this old machine figures out a way to manage, even with Windows XP, Office 2003, Photoshop and Illustrator.

The only thing about having an older PC is the simple reality that compatibility issues are sure to come up. Back when I finally relented and upgraded from Windows 2000 to Windows XP, one of these inherent issues appeared. Turns out the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) chip on my motherboard is not supported by Windows XP. The result: any time a power saving feature is enabled by the operating system, a critical error occurs and my system stops cold in its steps.

So far I have lived with this issue simply by turning off the power saving features such as hard drive spin-down and LCD turn-off. They were pretty moot to be anyway, as I generally put the system to sleep or hibernate when not actively using it. I decided the other day, however, that I wanted to go to sleep to the sounds of SomaFM a favourite streaming audio site. While it would have been simple enough to just close the LCD lid and hit the sack, I decided I wanted to try to nip this issue once and for all.

I searched around online and found the consensus solution for those not wishing to reformat (a process I already meticulously conduct every six months or so and recently just completed). It was a simple enough procedure: tell Windows your computer is not an ACPI-compatible machine. After a reboot, all system hardware is re-identified and installed and ACPI services are non-existent.

Since I turned on System Restore in case the situation hit the fan, I was ready to step-back the change because I immediately did not like the fact the power button no longer launched the Windows dialogue with options to sleep/hibernate, reboot or shutdown. Instead, it either acts as a power button or a sleep toggle, as directed by the BIOS. Sleep is no longer an option, only hibernate. I decided to let it stay for a while and just see how things operate.

It is absolutely amazing how much better my system now runs without the dark ACPI overlords stalking around. I always thought my video card simply sucked, but with ACPI gone, video (streaming and otherwise) are as fluid playing as they should. The obvious lack of sudden system lock-ups is to say the least, a plus. And the one problem I had succumbed to, destined to never find a solution: DHCP and intranetworking. Lo and behold, my system automatically accepted an IP and all networking goodies from the network AND every machine on the network can see every other machine on the network.

Amazing. Absolutely, incredibly amazing. I cannot even fathom how many countless hours I have spent trying to get all the machines on my network to operate as they should. And now, I just connected a foreign system to the network (a machine I am doing work on for a client) and *poof* with no hassle what so ever, the new system is visible by everyone and transferring backup files to my server.