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I'm writing this column from a hospital, specifically, its Critical Care Unit (CCU). They used to call these intensive care units, or ICUs. Before unit became current, they were wards. All the name changing causes confusion. I wonder if it's enough to cost lives. It's conceivable. Two doors down, they had a Code Blue this morning. Machines were wheeled in. Staffers hurried around, carrying clear tubes and bags of fluid. A chaplain paced in the hall. Groups of family members cried on each other's shoulders. They deal with life or death in here. A hospice worker a few minutes ago told me "a lot of the people in there are wheeled out feet first." Fortunately for me, I'm not a patient here. Unfortunately for my mother, she is, thanks to complications following a gallstone removal procedure. So I've been hanging around as a visitor for most of the past week. Every once in a while, I go over to the counter by one of the nursing stations, where a Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional logo floats on a black screen above a black keyboard and a mouse. When I move the mouse, the screen comes to life, offering me a choice between Staff Login and Internet Explorer. After clicking on Explorer, I surf the Net until it crashes on some site, bringing the rest of the machine down with it.