Reminds me how my Ubuntu wireless stopped working because an automatic update installed a new and broken driver. Ah and all the songs on my ipod were deleted without warning because I had plugged it into "the wrong" computer.<p>Seems nothing is ever going to save us from ignorance and complexity. There's no escape, at least when it comes to operating systems.
My favorite is the windows automatic restart when left unattended after certain updates. Back in College, I had this program that allowed me to snag released tickets to our basketball team (it was first come first served after release) for lots of friends. I went out and windows updated -- on the biggest game of the year.
I don't want to sound like a Mac fan boy here, but if (when) things like this happen the Genius Bar will help you right out. I know there have been cases where they don't help, but they're good for 90% of the problems that come in.
Yea I remember the days of obscure hacks and fixes for windows. The good thing is that lots of people use windows, so eventually you'll find it. But I can honestly say I've never had to do any weird hacks since I've switched to mac.