Help! Another XP install problem.

[Rubicon]

Have just built my PC, but have operated them for years. Have not had XP before, but trying to install my new home edition to the new Western Digital hard drive, it stopped installing after several pages of licencing agreement... when it seemed as if it was not going to continue.. (I could not page up to go back, so I presume it froze.......) After trying F! that I agreed... it did nothing, so tried ESCAPE and then I THINK it was when I hit CTRL/ALT/DEL, a screen came up about rebooting and a long narrow window (like something loading) appeared and filled up with red. Something else was printed, but I don't know what.

Since then, nothing will happen except I can get the BIOS same as before. Did I KILL XP or what? I need HELP and do so appreciate reading other very helpful folders at this site.

Rubicon

Asus MB P4P800-VM
Pentium 4/2.26GHz
Western Digital HD 80Gig
1 gig memory Crucial
Samsung DVD/CD combo

[pam123]

Despite the temptation you can't actually kill XP.
I can't really tell if something balked your XP install, it's usually hardware, or if you just got impatient during one of XP's "thinkinkg it over" pauses.
In either case it's back to the beginning, remove partition and start from scratch.
I don't think you'll need to zero out the drive but if you do get this : http://www.killdisk.com/ and follow the instructions.
If the install hangs on you again, I mean really hangs not just a few minutes, note where it hangs .
If it happens when it asks you to hit one of the F number keys to continue it might be nothng more than you having the F lock on on your keyboard.

[Rubicon]

Thank you so much, pam123. Could you tell me what "remove partition" means? I don't know how. I'm glad I probably haven't killed XP. Right now, all I can get are are the BIOS. Nothing else, but black screen with the little flashing dash in upper left corner. Thanks again.

[pam123]

Originally Posted by Rubicon Thank you so much, pam123. Could you tell me what "remove partition" means? I don't know how. I'm glad I probably haven't killed XP. Right now, all I can get are are the BIOS. Nothing else, but black screen with the little flashing dash in upper left corner. Thanks again.

I just re-read your post, my bad for not paying full attention the first time around, you didn't get to point where you could partition a hard drive (Partitioning is what you do just before you install the operating system).
Do you remember anything about what came up on the screen?
Since you can get into the bios does it still recognize everything correctly?

[Rubicon]

As far as I can tell, it does recognize everything correctly. Of course, in some cases it could recognize them incorrectly and I might not know the difference. When asked in the BIOS if I wanted to load default setup... I didn't answer. Should I have said yes?

Somehow, if anything came up about partitioning, I missed it. I do admit not understanding everything in the Asus manuel, but, if it is in plain ole ordinary English, I do. haha

[pam123]

I sympathize about the jargon.
Like I said, you didn't get that far so no partition messages.
The hdd should be recognized as primary master, the cd-rom you're using as secodary master.
If it's a 12X (or whatever) cd-rom drive it should show up as such.
Please tell me if your keyboard has an F-lock key since that maybe what caused the problem in the first place.
The other possibility, it happened to me, is that the cd-rom drive isn't working right.
Yes, since you're having problems use default settings, they can be changed later, just make sure the cd-rom remains first in the boot order (hit save after you load the defaults, go back and check the boot order and change it if necessary, hit save. Put in the XP cd and exit the bios.).
If you get any error messages read them and take note.
If you still get a blank screen then it's time try something else.

[Rubicon]

Pam, I'd already gone back after leaving here and checked. The hard drive is definitely the primary master and the cd-rom the secondary. Keyboard has an F-lock key, but it is off. I did all the mentions above and still get the black screen. grrrrrrr... it looked so good last night loading xp... I thought I was nearly donel

Haven't had any error messages.

[pam123]

Okay, it looks like hardware.
Do you remember anything at all about the error messages?
To start go to your hard drive manufacturer's website and dowload the diagnostic for your hard drive and arrange to borrow another cd-rom from a friend.
Also go download memtest from here : http://www.memtest.org/
Those are the usual problems that stop XP installs ( I think it's more likely to be one of the drives that the memory but you never know.).
Check to make sure that all cabels and power connections are tight.

[Rubicon]

There weren't any error messages.... I found a site http://tinyurl.com/5stx showing the screens of an XP install. What I saw are screen 1, 2, 3, 4 and 14. Screen #4 was licensing agreement, most was in English, then one paragraph was French. The page where it froze had said something about Australia licensing and then it stopped in the middle of the screen. Stayed that way so long without anything else... I decided to abort and try again... after hitting ESC and DEL 2/3 times, next thing screen #14 suddenly came up... the red filler... and just as I was hitting ESC I realized it said it would reboot, but then it was off. And nothing has changed.

Took a CD-Rom out of an old computer I have. It was working last time I had that machine on, which may have been 2 years. Installed it, but nothing changed. I could hear it running so presumed it was working.

Right now, I'm sick of it... I hope it isn't precursor of future behavior.

[pam123]

Given the number of people who've been ready to throw their computers out of windows the sentiment is widespread.
Give yourslef a break and then run the hard drive diagnostic later this weekend when you no longer feel the urge tio "kill the computer".
Since you know the cd-rom drive is good that eliminates one of the possibilities.

[Rubicon]

Thanks.

[glc]

The F-lock must be *on*, not off.

[pam123]

Originally Posted by glc The F-lock must be *on*, not off.

There's also the possibility, now that you've reminded me, that he needs to try another keyboard.

[Rubicon]

Aha! The F lock being ON, may be the answer to what I came here for today. I hope so.

Pam, I learned over the weekend my new machine had reset itseft in the boot sequence. I reset it for CD-Rom to be #1 and then the machine RECOGNIZED XP once again and started loading.

It loaded until the end of the end-user licensing agreement and stopped. I waited nearly an hour giving it time to think it over... and I hit F8 on every page. HOWEVER, F lock was OFF... so now, I'm hooking the sucker up again to see if that is the problem.

Am feeling so much better just knowing it isn't the hard drive or cd-Rom... )))))))
Will be back later...

[Rubicon]

F lock key was the answer~ Yippee! XP is now installed and the mysteries solved... Ahhh... the simplest so easily overlooked. My keyboard is sorta new and if the old one had a lock I was never aware of it. I often used F8 to get safe-mode, so I don't think there was an on or off.

NOW, all I need doing is figure out which cable connects sound... sound is contained within the MB. Also the floppy drive is not recognized, so, the hookup is not right, but it SEEMS to be. Even so, I'm elated to know I built this so and so and it WORKS!
Thanks for helping.