[nuguy]

Nickles: Sorry to hear that...

1) had you been getting successful updates prior to trying this method?

2) the hourly update dll is in the directories already, try running the link in the windows startup directory after you get a successfull update, then update again.

3) are you restoring anything after the hard reset, or just trying to get WP working first (get wp working first).

4) have you tried s-k-tools, or memaid to see if you have some nasty reg entries? I am always checking and cleaning, perhaps that could have made a difference.

5) maybe try a nice simple WP theme to get going, not the phat finger, or larger ones, might make a difference...