Waving a fist at my laptop...kinda

So my 11-year old computer is finally starting to show its age. It won't take modems anymore, so it's great for word processing and a CD player (I like to use Windows Media Player and turn the visualization on full screen while I put on my tunes and clean). It's also my Flash 5 station since Matthew & I reinstalled my OS and the computer doesn't freeze over every little thing.
Now this laptop...
Like my computer, this laptop was given to me, so I didn't pay for it. It's my "middle child" technologywise. The computer's 11, this laptop is 7, and the iPAQ is a mere 3 (although for an iPAQ, that's supposed to be darn old). So I lost a bunch of pictures all random-like after Christmas last year. Then in March, I was having so many problems with this thing that Matthew & I just reinstalled my whole OS (unfortunately, it was at the COST of my data! Yep, I lost pictures and all kinds of stuff, but I had no choice). So I started to have like big fat problems again, and last week I attached my CD drive to it, inserted a Windows 2000 CD I borrowed from Matthew, and told it to repair. It told me that I needed the same CD I used to install my OS (this was not the same one apparently), and it told me to hit ESC to restart. I thought, "Lovely, won't this laptop make a lovely paperweight AGAIN." It started Windows, and I was shocked to find that it started up PROPERLY! It also didn't yell at me when I wanted to open programs. I had just one little problem with my AOL trying to get online, so I popped that CD in for a reinstall of my AOL software. It stopped on the middle of installation and said "We're sorry you have chosen not to install AOL at this time..." I was like "Oh, I DIDN'T want to? I was just sticking the CD in there FOR FUN? LOVELY..." But then my AOL let me online with no problems. WHAT THE HECK?! I guess I kind of waved a big angry metaphorical fist at my laptop. I first threatened it with another big fat reinstall of my Windows, and all of a sudden it cooperated. Then I threatened it with a reinstall of my AOL, and it was like "Ok ok! I'll behave I promise!! Please don't hurt me!" This metaphorical fist worked pretty well. I should do that with my other programs and see if I get even better performance...but I'm just not the type to be running around waving fists.