Description of the Dr. Watson (Drwatson.exe) Tool

This article describes the Dr. Watson diagnostic tool included in Windows 98 and Windows Millennium Edition (Me).

Dr. Watson is a diagnostic tool that gathers information about your computer when a problem occurs with a program. The information gathered by Dr. Watson is called a snapshot. The snapshot includes information that:

• Identifies the program that has a problem.
• Offers a detailed description of the cause.
• May provide a resolution for the problem.

A Dr. Watson icon appears on the taskbar after you start Dr. Watson. You can create a snapshot using Dr. Watson by right-clicking the Dr. Watson icon on the taskbar, and then clicking Dr. Watson. To start Dr. Watson, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Information.
2. On the Tools menu, click Dr. Watson.

If you want to start Dr. Watson automatically when your computer starts, create a Dr. Watson shortcut in your Startup group. For information about how to create a shortcut in your Startup group, click Start, click Help, click the Index tab, type shortcuts, and then double-click the Adding to the Startup Menu topic.