[Hipshot]

Help, I set out to install windows XP on my moms notebok, which by the way is a DeLL Inspiron P2 333 and with 256 ram. When I start the installation the whole computer hangs when the Windows XP installer is in the install phase... the whole screen just blackout and nothing happens for hours, the same with 2k That really sucks, cause I dont want to install 98 again, I hate that system...

So please if you have any idea plz help me

[adamvjackson]

Have any significant changes been made in the bios? If so, try loading the default values, and reinstall. Also, I see that the memory has been upgraded. If loading the bios defaults does not help, maybe you want to pull the upgraded ram out, and then try the install. I have seen flaky ram cause many different problems. Good luck.

[DosFreak]

Yep, Most likely is the ram.

[Hipshot]

Oh, im sorry for some wrong info here, it cant be the ram, cause the computer only has 64

I got to of them in this house and one of them got 256, sorry this one got 64...

[DosFreak]

No. We are commenting on the fact that it may be BAD ram. Not that it wasn't enough ram.

Use this: http://www.memtest86.com/

[Hipshot]

Ok, ill check...

but the Win98 install went well, how can that be explained?

[adamvjackson]

During the install of Win9x and NT, hardware is probed differently. For example, you can load himem.sys during the booting of a 9x system, and have no problems, but when ntldr is loading, it either locks up or blue screens. Hardware is accessed differently thru the nt kernel.

[DosFreak]

If your planning on sticking with only 64m of ram. Definetly DO NOT. Stick Windows XP on there....or 2K for that matter.

Get some more RAM and stick 2K on there but definetly not XP with that slow processor.

[Jerry Atrik]

when i loaded xp on a older hp notebook i needed to update the bios.
(i have 256 meg ram)

[Hipshot]

Downloaded the latest BIOS and now it works great, thanks for the suggestion

[Jerry Atrik]

sweeet