I was the original poster and I don't use SQL server at all, so I doubt it was part of the issue I described.
I did find a solution though: I paid a guy to convert the report function from Crystal Reports to Microsoft Report Viewer. I distributed it as a free patch to my customers and (knock on wood) the reports of this issue and a number of other squirrely behaviors of CR, which I reported in other posts on these forums, stopped.
Free at last, free at last...
Charlie