Thanks for the offer, m2, but I'm far from Texas. Actually, I was hoping for complete access (programs and all), but it doesn't sound like that's possible. ~sigh~ How do I put the old drives in usb enclosures? That sounds like easy access without having to unplug my drives to let the kids on.
You can get 3.5" usb enclosures for SATA or IDE drives. Just go on Ebay and you can find some really cheap and then once you get the enclosure you open it up and hook up the hard drive to the data connector and then it's pretty much plug and play.
programs are better just reinstalled to be honest. there isnt a good way to migrate from one box to another. The problem is compounded if the OS version changed. Meaning the old system is XP service pack 2 and the new is windows 7, just an example. i mean you can copy the files and then export the registry keys and import them into the new system, but its a pain where you sit even for some geek like me (although i have done it before). ebay, frys, almost all computere type stores will have drive enclosures. let me know if i can help more.
see the link in my previous post for the best price on the least problematic usb/ide drive enclosure.
