Microsoft released Windows XP on Oct. 25, 2001. That same day, in what
may be a record, the company posted 18 megabytes of patches on its Web
site: bug fixes, compatibility updates, and enhancements. Two patches
fixed important security holes. Or rather, one of them did; the other
patch didn't work. Microsoft advised (and still advises)
users to back up critical files before installing the patches. Buyers
of the home version of Windows XP, however, discovered that the system
provided no way to restore these backup files if things went awry. As
Microsoft's online Knowledge Base blandly explained, the
special backup floppy disks created by Windows XP Home "do
not work with Windows XP Home."
-- Charles C. Mann
"Why software is so bad ... ... and what's being done to fix
it" Technology Review July/August 2002
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/mann0702.asp