I agree with jafo. Another problem is that there are a certain amount of thigs that could be causing your problem, so many that you have to go down a list, and even if none of the things on the list of possibilities isn't individually wrong, then there are certain combinations of things that could be causing the problem. This is way it takes so much time to learn to become a computer technician, you may already know how yto fix most things but part of the comp tech training is learning how to quickly and efficiently recognize the symptoms of the problem, once you've mastered that it's either time to graduate or you've had job for awhile and finally got the hang of it

Before you buy anything, lets see if we can't figure out what it is and isn't first. Go here http://www.memtest86.com/ and download. When you execute it, it will put it on a bootable floppy. If you look at the contents of the floppy it will appear there is nothing on it, but there is. When you get home, boot your machine with this floppy and run at least 2 tests. If it shows an error then that's your problem...if you have more then one stick of memory installed then shutdown and remove one stick at a time and do the tests until you get a clean test. That will tell you which stick is bad....don't forget you can change the sockets the memory is sitting in. Many times, it's not the memory, but the socket. You should have 4....try them all.

Now, if all that comes up clean, then go after any PCI card you have installed. Sound, TV cards, modem boards, even your ethernet card, if you have one. (Don't need Internet on a dead machine). If it runs without them, then do the same thing as the memory.....one at a time until you find the culprit.

Finally. I am still not completely convinced that this graphic card is faultless. When you un-installed your drivers and it came up clean on the re-boot, it shouldn't have. It should have given you the new hardware found prompt and when you ran NFR, it should have showed the main driver back in the system folder from the backup folder.....it didn't do either. If it's possible, burn any 'Detonator' drivers in the 4x.xx series to a CD and try them. you can get them here ftp://download1.nvidia.com/Windows/

Now for the simplest test of the day....make sure your Bios clock matches your system clock and while you're in the bios, set it to either 'Failsafe' or 'Default' ...some have both, some only one.

If all these pass and you still get the BSOD then we're down to the CPU, the PSU or the motherboard itself. The first two would be the most likely, with the MoBo being a remote possibility.

If you can get to a computer at home (friends, what not) that works then let me know what happens so we can fix this damn thing.

See. Told ya there was lots that could be wrong...

Gary, right now I have a hard-drive with 1/4th of XP installed...and obviously it's not working. I'll try the memory tests...but if that doesn't work...I won't be able to do any other tests because I can't even install XP right now. On top of all that, I'm without a cable modem for atleast 2 weeks, I scheduled a service call for June 5th, it's the only day I'll be available. I'll run the mem tests when I get home, I can only let you know how things went tomorrow. Thanks for the input though...always appreciated!

Hus...

What motherboard are you using?

Or better yet, what on-board IDE controlled / RAID chipset? " Promise " by chance?

You might very well have to install the motherboard drivers while installing XP so it knows how to communicated with the chipset on the motherboard and such....

IP, the only think I know about my motherboard is that's its MSI and it doesn't have RAID. Other than that...I'm clueless. I could look through the manuals to find out who makes the IDE controller when I get home. I just pray it's bad memory...I'll be really stuck if it's a bad CPU/Mobo...I won't be able to afford a new one for atleast a few months.

if you know the model sku# for the motherboard it would be good to know.

It sounds as if it could be nothing more than needing the correct hardware driver installed so XP will make it through the initial OS boot up.

Your making it past system POST. Try turning on the extended memory check in the BIOS and let it put the ram through that. See if it comes up with a bad chip, it is not always caught with this test, but it would rule that out to some degree. If it fails right off you know you need ram, if not, I'd go with a motherboard drivers, or some such...

Also, on older BIOS Motherboards with the new large gig drives of 160 gig or more. You might have to prep the drive with the software on the CD that came with the drive so Windows won't freak because the BIOS and OS do not communicated the correct info to deal with the drive.

Well, IP, I've had XP installed on the same PC for almost 2 years without any problems. It's only recently things started going bad. So I don't know why it would work all that time...but now need new drivers.

I'll try all the memory tests tonight, and let you guys know how things went. I can't go online at work anymore though, they're on to me!

Thanks everyone for your help...I'd be lost without you guys! See ya tomorrow...

ok, I'll shut up and sit back and watch...

luck to you

Sorry I missed that last flurry...had a teleconference I actually had to listen to. I agree John that this is, in all probability, a driver problem. Something seems to be hitting the same memory range while it's occupied. Having said that, I wasn't aware he couldn't install XP so that leads me to believe it's a memory glitch if nothing else. If it's been running all this time, then I think it needs a repositioning or re-sitting of the memory sticks (although the MoBO should be beeping like crazy). MemTest will run without an OS, but I have serious doubts that it suddenly developed a bad sector. Those MSI boards are as solid as rocks, but my guess is it's a VIA chipset. It appears he updated his graphics driver at some point in time (since he doesn't know when, he probably got it from the Windows Update site). He needs to get the latest chipset drivers installed....if we can get XP to install. I'm leaning towards having him clear his Jbat jumper, but we'll see what the memory test gives us.

Hey guys, I wish I had some good news to tell you, but I don't. My floppy drive doesn't work either...which I had forgotten about, and only remembered last night. I never cared at the time because I never ever used the floppy. I did open the case, and I found that clear rubbery silicone stuff that they use to "glue" stuff together like on packages and stuff, all over the graphics card and RAM. I peeled most of it off, and switched the RAM sticks (2 slots, 2 sticks), after that, I cleared out some of the dust, and tried it again. I made it quite far on the install, it went all the way up to 38% on the format before it crashed...before it never got that high. Well, I'm about one more crash before I bust out my Louisville Slugger. I really don't want to put any of you through more of this headache, so I will see if I can borrow a few hundred dollars from one of my richer relatives, buy a new motherboard, CPU, RAM and GFX card...and the end with it. I swear...people program computers to break at a certain time. Just a few months after my warranty wore off, it breaks...go figure.

If you have any more suggestions, I won't give up just yet, just want you guys to know how much I really appreciate the help. It's just a reminder of how much I love this place.

wow dude. sticky stuff all over the components? 'sounds like you're buggered to me..

i was going to give another vote for ram but.. it just sound's like your eq is gummed up. floppy drive, hdd in and out? controller board...

shame, ram happens to be the most expensive thing right now 'cause of the market. they should have ram prices on the stock market, up there with gold, silver, and concentrated orange juice

Yikes...you opened the case and found a bunch of 'goo'?.

For what it's worth, disconnect that floppy (power cord and ribbon). Like any hardware, it will stop a boot or a new install.

Now for the 'goo'....there is nothing used like that anywhere in your 'puter.The cheapest route to go with this is to buy a motherboard and then buy things until it's working. If I was a betting man (and I am) I don't think you'll have to go any further then the mobo to get it running..

I was afraid it was gonna come to this. I've never installed a CPU into a motherboard, so I rather just get one that's pre-made with a warranty and all that. I might as well go all out and buy a new everything, 'cept for a Hard Drive. I'll get a mobo with as many on-board things as I can get, save a few bucks there, I have a good monitor, speakers, and all that, so all I need to buy is a new tower really. I'll start looking into it...and talk to my Uncle, who hopefully can loan me the money. I'll keep you guys informed...

Thanks again for all the input...really and truly appreciate it.

Ok, are you sick of me yet? No? Ok...listen up.

Abit NF7 mobo
AMD XP 2500+
512MB ram
Radeon 9200 128mb
and a nice lookin' case w/400w power...

$400 delivered...

That setup look familiar Gary? Whaddya think?