Thomas,
Was the notebook that lost its hard drive a Dell? If so, turns out Dell had a severe overheating problem that was cured by downloading a 3rd party utility called i8kfan that sometines made my Inspiron sound like a Jumbo taking off. But it kept it cool!
Regards
j.R
"... They ne'er cared for us
yet: suffer us to famish, and their store-houses
crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to
support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act
established against the rich, and provide more
piercing statutes daily, to chain up and restrain
the poor. If the wars eat us not up, they will; and
there's all the love they bear us."
-- Shakespeare: Coriolanus, Act 1, scene 1