How to fix a laptop (that isn't really broken)

1. Spend all day trying to clean your registry, update antivirus software, get rid of spyware, defrag, etc.
2. Turn it off for a few hours.
3. Turn it back on and cry when it only runs at a reasonable speed for the first five minutes.
4. Stay up until 2 in the morning googling why the fan keeps making that really strange noise.
5. Find out that a legion of geeks have encountered similar problems before, and even written software that lets someone like me highjack my computer fans, which will probably on result in me setting my apartment on fire.
6. Turn it off and take the whole thing apart.
7. Put it back together, counting your blessings that the number of screws equals the number of holes that seem to require screws.
   
8. Blow on it like it's a NES game in 1987.
9. Enjoy a computer that works again (and may continue to do so for hours, maybe even days, maybe even weeks).

I really enjoy the fact that the most likely intervention of any consequence was blowing really hard to clean some of the lint and dust from around the fans. My CPU is at a cool 136 degrees at 1.2 mhz (why not at 1.7 like it was a few minutes ago, and is rated for, I have no clue). Great success! (until tomorrow)