PS One thing I'd love to see is that things were not "dumped" on the desktop so often.
It seems to be the default that if you download something from the internet, for example, it appears on the desktop... I've had to help clients sort out their desktop just to find what's new as the whole screen is cluttered with junk from weeks and months ago.
I always suggest people have a folder on their hard drive called "Internet" and can then have more folders inside (eg music, etc) and set their browser to save anything they download into "Internet" so it doesn't appear on the desktop.
On the Desktop I normally add a folder called "KeepTidy" which means that lots of shortcuts and other items which get created when you install new software can be put tidily away off the desktop, but still easily found. You can add shortcuts to particular folders for documents, if you want, one client keeps a folder full of folders for different projects he's working on (handouts, marketing information, material for courses he gives), and notes etc in another set of folders, 1 folder per client.
"My Documents" is fine for some purposes, but in some ways it may be better for people to have an external drive plugged in with their documents on, so if their PC dies, the drive can be plugged into whatever machine they can beg, borrow, or steal to have minimum disruption.
There was a horror story on a Which? podcast about someone whose disk drive failed, he got it replaced under warranty and asked about what would happen to it. He was told it would be erased.
It was not erased but sold on Ebay (or more likely, sold with dozens of others to a dealer, who then decided to sell it on Ebay) and someone contacted him about having his old drive and asking him for money. It had about 15 years worth of data concerning his website clients, with lots of usernames and passwords for accessing their sites, settings for their e-mail and so on.
He spent a couple of weeks changing everything so those details would no longer work, and in the meantime, 'stalled' on buying the drive. Eventually paid about 60% in advance and was going to pay the remaining 40% but asked for a signed letter confirming there were no other copies. The person with the drive didn't confirm that, but then the Which? interviewer went on to ask how the chap felt.
He was still reeling from the fact that despite assurances from the hard drive maker, his drive had ended up available for anyone to buy. He was concerned about ID theft, and about his ex-wife and child, as there were some things (like names and addresses) which couldn't be changed as easily as updating passwords.
All in all, worth keeping your data on a drive separate from the PC and making copies of important items onto USB sticks perhaps.
(Sorry MrsAR - didn't want it to get really depressing but keeping stuff in "My Documents" does seem like a less ideal choice... an external drive can be disconnected and put away in a cupboard so all your photos, music and documents are safe if the PC dies!)