Now the problem is we keep getting power interruptions, boot fails and repetitive disk checking. I suspect this may be down to a hardware problem (have changed the main cable which helped for a while) or overheating of the CPU (not sure the heatsink bonding is 100%). However, allied to the out of date OS and Apps, I'm getting the impression its a bit like tinkering with an old car and maybe its time for a new one......
Probably a good idea - sounds like the hard drive might be on it's last legs from that description.
Statement #1 I would make, is you've probably had your money's worth out of the existing tower, and things like W7 are going to fly on 64-bit capable hardware, which is where there's going to be a differentiation occurring shortly in the "new PC/old PC" market (which was masked for a while by the failure of Vista to take market share from XP).
What model is your Dell laptop?
I would suggest whilst you don't have a firm handle on your ultimate requirements, and are in a period of flux both technically and financially, the smart money would be on not spending a bean (other than on backing up that tower) and seeing if you can perform all your tasks on the laptop.
