I have an old Dell Optiplex GL-1 with XP Pro on it. In the middle of
doing something simple, I got an error notification that said something
like, Windows Hard Error. I clicked OK several times, and then it came
back, and I clicked it again several times. Then I got a longer error
message that said something like Windows cannot write to the resume
file. I powered the computer off, and then it wouldn't boot.

I tried booting from a Linux drive I had, and that worked fine, but the
internet wasn't working under Linux. This might not be related to the
current problem as I hadn't used Linux for a while. I tried resetting
the mobo BIOS by putting a jumper on the BIOS pins and then turning on
the computer. Not sure if this is the way to do it, but it's what I
did. The computer doesn't do anything like this, so I shut down, and
took the jumper off.

I pulled the CMOS battery, and it looks like it is dead. I'll
definitely replace it to see if that makes a difference, but since the
computer booted up into Linux, I have my doubts. And why would it
crash in the middle of a session?

The computer had been exhibiting the signs of a bad battery for a
while, forgetting the proper boot order being the main symptom. Didn't
know what that meant until now.

I'll post back to report the results when I install a fresh battery.