Win XP has two identical instances of OS

[mkstein1]

My son tried to add a memory stick to wifes pc, Win XP Home SP2. When booting up, wouldn't. Removed stick and runs POST + boot to end of count down to start OS. Gets to zero and freezes. Tried safe mode, freezes. Tried the CD and made boot disk from MS website. Changed bios to boot from A: Runs then freezes looking for hardware configuration... When trying to boot normally, at the point of starting the OS it has two identical lines: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition

How can that be and what can I do about it?

[faulkner132]

The two instances of XP listed is normal, so don't worry about that.

If your boot process is freezing immediately after selecting the OS, it sounds like a hardware issue. When did it start happening?

[mkstein1]

My son added a stick of memory and tried to start the pc. It wouldn't boot. I have since removed the memory, virtually returning it to original state (prior to problem) and same results. It gets to the count down for OS to run and it freezes at 0.

[faulkner132]

Go into the BIOS and make sure your memory is detected correctly. Does your computer post correctly (1 beep only) when booting?