Dealing with old file formats: Kodak PCD - how to install Photo CD.8BI so you can open those old photos

I can't think of anything more aggravating than wasting time on the computer trying to solve what should be a minor, minor problem (give me an afternoon sitting around at the DMV, any day). Having wasted a good day on this, I'm hoping I can spare someone else out there some grief.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of computers, I love the digital era. But for those of us (which has to be a WHOLE lot of us) who've been archiving our artwork since the pre-digital days (i.e., old fashioned transparencies and slides), and the early digital days, we may find from time to time that we can't access our old files.
Have some of your artwork (or favorite family photos) stored on a Kodak Digital Science Portfolio II disc? Tried to access it lately, only to find that your latest version of Photoshop (CS3 or up) won't open it? And of course since it's outmoded file format, neither Kodak nor Adobe will offer any support on what can't be an uncommon problem.

Here's the (kinda-sorta) simple solution: locate a copy of a plug-in file, namely Photo CD.8BI and place it in your current make and model of Photoshop plug-ins file.

Here's the rub: You have to have an old version of Photoshop from which to grab the plug in (luckily I did). Supposedly you just need the installation disc, but I had to actually install the old program in order to even locate the plug-in. Which led to error messages galore but I digress.
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The truly simple solution: (For Windows users)
Download the Photo CD.8BI plug-in by clicking here and follow the instructions.
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If you're an Apple aficionado, try this:
On Mac OS, copy the PhotoCD.plugin file from the Goodies\Optional Plug-Ins\Kodak PhotoCD folder on the installation CD to Applications/Adobe Photoshop CS3/Plug-Ins/File Formats.