After 5 (count 'em. FIVE) excruciating weeks, Fusion is running normally again. I won't tell you everything I did because most of it was useless, but at the end I will include the steps I think solved the problem.
Warning: What follows is a pure, unadulterated rant.
It became obvious even to me that the problem had to be connected with the graphics driver and/or Fusion itself. I'm not especially computer-literate; I learn only as much as I have to learn to effectively run applications. In real life, I carve wood for a living. That puts me at a distinct disadvantage when trying to troubleshoot problems. Am I looking for A solution to A problem, or am I dealing with multiple solutions to attain multiple results? The help that came from all quarters was appreciated, believe me, but it was scattered, uncoordinated, and (I gotta say it) sometimes desperate, and sometimes just plain wrong.
Example 1: Do you have the latest driver for your video "card?" Check with Windows. "Yes!" Windows says. "Your graphics is up-to-date and working normally." Double check, Windows. Go out on the web and search for updates for my video driver. Don't need to, Windows reports a few moments later. "No updates available." Uh-huh. Go to the Intel website and make the same inquiry. "Your video driver is out of date. One new update available. BUT, if you have an OEM driver, such as from Dell, you should install that or you might lose additional functionality."
OK, so which decision is the right one? And if I install the wrong driver, and then later have to uninstall it, how many additional problems night I create for myself?
Example 2: Yo! Fusion! Does my version have all the latest updates? "Why, yes. You are up-to-date with all the latest!" OK, then why didn't my program run until after I reinstalled it? And why did your clean uninstall program abort when it "couldn't identify my audio codec?" My audio codec?
So, to all of you who have experienced this or other problems, here's my advice. Go out on the web, hit all the sites, and do everything any of them suggests. Keep hacking away at it night and day, and throw all the tech at it you can, and don't stop until somehow the program starts working again. Does this leave any lingering collateral damage? Who knows? But, speaking as one who has lived with personal computers since their introduction way back whenever, the ice under my skates always feels a little thin.
