diff --git a/new/debug_windows.c b/new/debug_windows.c
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d044f33
--- /dev/null
+++ b/new/debug_windows.c
@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+// 25 february 2015
+#include "ui_windows.h"
+
+// uncomment the following line to enable debug messages
+#define tableDebug
+// uncomment the following line to halt on a debug message
+#define tableDebugStop
+
+#ifdef tableDebug
+
+#include <stdio.h>
+
+HRESULT logLastError(const char *context)
+{
+	DWORD le;
+	WCHAR *msg;
+	int parenthesize = 0;
+
+	le = GetLastError();
+	fprintf(stderr, "%s: ", context);
+	if (FormatMessageW(FORMAT_MESSAGE_ALLOCATE_BUFFER | FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM | FORMAT_MESSAGE_IGNORE_INSERTS, NULL, le, 0, (LPWSTR) (&msg), 0, NULL) != 0) {
+		fprintf(stderr, "%S (", msg);
+		// TODO check error
+		LocalFree(msg);
+		parenthesize = 1;
+	}
+	fprintf(stderr, "GetLastError() == %I32u", le);
+	if (parenthesize)
+		fprintf(stderr, ")");
+	fprintf(stderr, "\n");
+#ifdef tableDebugStop
+	DebugBreak();
+#endif
+	SetLastError(le);
+	// a function does not have to set a last error
+	// if the last error we get is actually 0, then HRESULT_FROM_WIN32(0) will return S_OK (0 cast to an HRESULT, since 0 <= 0), which we don't want
+	// prevent this by returning E_FAIL, so the rest of the Table code doesn't barge onward
+	if (le == 0)
+		return E_FAIL;
+	return HRESULT_FROM_WIN32(le);
+}
+
+HRESULT logHRESULT(const char *context, HRESULT hr)
+{
+	WCHAR *msg;
+	int parenthesize = 0;
+
+	fprintf(stderr, "%s: ", context);
+	// this isn't technically documented, but everyone does it, including Microsoft (see the implementation of _com_error::ErrorMessage() in a copy of comdef.h that comes with the Windows DDK)
+	if (FormatMessageW(FORMAT_MESSAGE_ALLOCATE_BUFFER | FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM | FORMAT_MESSAGE_IGNORE_INSERTS, NULL, (DWORD) hr, 0, (LPWSTR) (&msg), 0, NULL) != 0) {
+		fprintf(stderr, "%S (", msg);
+		// TODO check error
+		LocalFree(msg);
+		parenthesize = 1;
+	}
+	fprintf(stderr, "HRESULT == 0x%I32X", hr);
+	if (parenthesize)
+		fprintf(stderr, ")");
+	fprintf(stderr, "\n");
+#ifdef tableDebugStop
+	DebugBreak();
+#endif
+	return hr;
+}
+
+HRESULT logMemoryExhausted(const char *reason)
+{
+	fprintf(stderr, "memory exhausted %s\n", reason);
+#ifdef tableDebugStop
+	DebugBreak();
+#endif
+	return E_OUTOFMEMORY;
+}
+
+#else
+
+HRESULT logLastError(const char *reason)
+{
+	DWORD le;
+
+	le = GetLastError();
+	// technically (I think? TODO) we don't need to do this, but let's do this anyway just to be safe
+	SetLastError(le);
+	if (le == 0)
+		return E_FAIL;
+	return HRESULT_FROM_WIN32(le);
+}
+
+HRESULT logHRESULT(const char *reason, HRESULT hr)
+{
+	return hr;
+}
+
+HRESULT logMemoryExhausted(const char *reason)
+{
+	return E_OUTOFMEMORY;
+}
+
+#endif