Perhaps you should try installing Windows 2000 instead?

Well, I wish I could - but this is a work machine - and I gotta stick with XP. I really like XP otherwise. It just seems like there should be some real simple setting to disable those dialogue boxes.

I did find in the Start menu advanced properties a check box to "Highlight newly installed programs" and I un-checked it. So, hopefully that'll solve THAT problem. As for the system tray - I don't know.

There is this tutorial in winguides for disabling error popups as a whole. I'm not sure what they mean by "error popups" though. I have a feeling they are referring to pop up system windows - and not the task bar dialogue boxes.

- trs