[Hamburgler]

The new computer I bought a full month ago still ceases to work properly, much to my chagrin.

In any case, I've been running Ubuntu Linux on this comp because I can Live-Boot from the disk and install it that way- and that's the only reason, bear in mind. I just got a legit copy of XP for Christmas- I was sort of hoping it would, you know, function. No dice.
Same thing as happened with my 2000 disk. I pop the install disk in, it runs through all the pre-loading crap, and then when I hit enter to install XP, it tells me that it can't detect any hard drives.

I can find my 250 g SATA HD in the bios, though.

However, now that Ubuntu's installed on the HD, whenever I insert the motherboard disc and try to boot from the CD-ROM drive, Ubuntu starts up. Before I had Ubuntu, though, it would just let me know that no media storage was found.

So, in summary, my computer fails to find the hard-drives I can locate in 15 seconds through the BIOS. Clearly, it's fully functioning as Ubuntu boots off of it every time. What gives?

(Also note that I've made a driver floppy- I go to install it when XP is loading up, and it tells me that I'm 'installing drivers for <none>', and even after that it doesn't work. Maybe that's a clue. Also note that I don't understand jumpers, so it very well could be that, although I've tried booting in almost every jumper config.)

 

[Old Rich]

enter BIOS ( Setup ) and set the first boot device as CD/ROM. Put your XP Disc in the drive and disconnect all external peripherals except the monitor, keyboard and mouse, and be sure those are not USB, or wireless. Any internal USB card should also be removed.

Once you set your BIOS to boot first from cd . . when it restarts you will see a black screen with a prompt "Press any key to boot from CD" . . do that and you will be able to delete any or all partitions and recreate one or more, then proceed to formating and installing XP.

That message can pass quickly, so have a finger on the keyboard when you boot. This will delete all data on the drive so be sure you have your important data backed up. The prompt will appear after every reboot, but do not press any key on subsequent reboots. The setup process will continue with no action required from you.

If you do not get that message, and you have another optical drive, try the XP CD in the other drive.

If you are installing on SATA drive, there is an additional step:

http://xphelpandsupport.mvps.org/how_do_i_install_windows_xp_on_a.htm