If you read last month's Bugs and Fixes, you will know that laptop users have the hardest time upgrading to Windows 98. One common sticking point involves going into or out of standby mode. Fortunately, Microsoft has come up with a free tool that can locate and even fix the problem. The Power Management Trouble Shooter tool is already on your Windows 98 CD-ROM (look for pmtshoot.exe in the Tools\Mtsutil\Pmtshoot\ directory), but Microsoft recommends that you download a more up-to-date 158KB version from its Web site at ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/softlib/mslfiles/pmtshoot.exe (it's also on our CD).

After you've installed the utility, it will launch automatically whenever you start Windows 98. When you put your computer into (or resume from) standby mode, the Trouble Shooter identifies the program or driver that's causing the problem. The newer version of the program may even be able to resolve the problem for you. Once you've finished tracking down the errors, uninstall the utility using Control Panel's Add/Remove Programs tab.