please help with this xp problem.?

Question

my pc keeps crashing (blue screening).
i have xp prof sp2.
i have tried uninstalling and reinstalling programmes to find the problem to no avail.
i would like to take xp back to when it was first installed, befor i put any programmes on it.
i had windows 2000, but got an xp upgrade disc, so the only xp disc i have is an upgrade one.
i never had a 2000 install disc.
if anyone could recomend a simple, easy to understand tutorial i would really apreciate it.

Answer 1

That must be very frustrating, for sure. If that were my problem, do you know what I would do? I would go over to the computers and internet column here on Yahoo! Answers and start reading some of the replies to questions similar to yours, because what you need to do is to find someone who will not put you down for asking for help with this. I am just a novice myself, but everyone is not mean spirited or rude about people who want to learn more about computers. I know there are individuals "out there" who would frankly be delighted to walk you through a solution to this problem for you, and others problerms you might have, as well. Start reading other questions about computer problems, and you will find someone you can send an e-mail to who will probably be flattered you asked, and you will have the beginning of an answer which will get your computer back up and running - no, purring - in good shape again. I began a year ago last February and I am 63 years old. Can you imagine tackling the world of computers starting at 63? What a challenge! But at this writing, I am examining the subject of ActiveX things and how to handle them. I have learned or taught myself how to free up space on my C drive - my gosh, I can even send and receive attached files, and I am beginning to believe in myself. If I can do it, you can find your answer. What you really need is a good mentor. I wish it could be me, because I would be a good one, as I am extremely patient. But the problem you have is a bit over my head - so head over to computers and internet questions and keep your eyes open and have some faith and before you know it, you will have a computer you will be proud of. I believe you can find the answer to your question. Just don't give up! - Chris!

Answer 2

There are a lot of possibilites why your computer is giving you BSOD (blue screen error msgs), software incompatibility, hardware failure, driver error etc. It's either software or hardware related, or Windows XP or Hard drive (or something else like the memory or motherboard). You need to run some diagnostics first to determine the cause, I suggest you call the computer's manufacturer for help on running the tests.
Unfortunately, if it's caused by a software failure, you really need to reinstall the OS, but since you only have the XP upgrade, you will not be able to do this. you have 2 options. either get the 2000 CD, install it then the XP upgrade disk, OR, get a retail version of XP and install it (you can get this from any computer store or even from ebay). that's it. Good luck.

Answer 3

There are so many reasons that this could be occurring, but if your computer worked OK after you upgraded to XP and then all of a sudden started handing you the BSOD, then I would try System Restore.

For Instructions:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306084

Back up all of your data that you cannot afford to lose before running System Restore

Please remember, reformat your Hard Drive only as a last resort, there are ways to fix OS problems without reformatting. Too many people do this and wind up losing items that they really did not have to, either by not properly backing up or from disk errors when they try to retrieve the saved data............Just be careful!!!!!!!

Answer 4

If you have tried everything and failed I suggest contacting the manufacturers, giving the the model and serial No. and request that they forward you the master CDs.(they may cost about £40) you will have to download a recovery disc from their website (free).Back up your files and run the discs,your computer will then be set to factory condition. But try all free alternatives first, you might even try the makers helpline first and see if they can talk you through a recovery.
Good luck
p.s. Somebody elses master CDs won't work' it has to be for your specific PC.

Answer 5

Blue Screen of Death

The Blue Screen of Death (sometimes called "bluescreen", "stop error" or just abbreviated as "BSOD") is the popular name for the screen displayed by Microsoft's Windows operating system when it cannot recover from, or is in danger of being unable to recover from, a system error (the Microsoft term is Stop error). There are two Windows error screens that are both referred to as the blue screen of death, with one (Windows NT 4/2000/XP/Vista) being significantly more serious than the other (Windows 9x). There are several causes of the blue screen popping up. It can be a poorly-written device driver, bad memory, damaged registry or usage of incompatible versions of DLLs (see more on the "Types of blue screens" section).

The blue screen of death in one form or another has been present in all Windows operating systems since Windows version 3.1. It is the successor of the less well-known black screen of death that occurs in OS/2 as well as MS-DOS[1]. In early builds of Windows Vista it was complemented with a red screen of death, used for boot loader errors.

Blue Screen of Death – Link to fixes

http://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=slv8-fp&p=fix%20blue%20screen%20of%20death

See if these fixes can help you.
Otherwise, have you tried a system restore?

Answer 6

One option might be using System Restore? This tool should take your system back to the state that is was in at a given date.

Click -
Start | Programs | Accessories | System Tools | System Restore....
....from the options which you are given choose "Restore my computer to an earlier time".
...Then select the date to which you would like to restore your PC.

NB If this doesn't work you can undo it by following the same process and selecting "Undo my last restoration" when you start System restore.

Hope this helps.

Answer 7

You can use the upgrade disk for a full install as long as you have a previous version disk like 98, ME, 2K. Borrow the previous disk and when you go to do the setup it will ask for the prev. disk to see if you qualify for this upgrade. It won't install the prev. but it will ask you to put your XP back in and restart. Then setup as full install.

Good Luck, I have done this a lot of times.

Answer 8

it is possibly because of the over heating of processor. ascertain that your laptop is unfastened from dirt and CPU Fan is rotating precise. As you have already reformatted your laptop so subject should not be there regarding domicile windows. there is a few hardware it is turning out to be the challenge, so attempt to reinsert RAM, photograph Card etc. If extra hardware is put in detach and reattach it one by one till you isolate the challenge.

Answer 9

e-mail [e-mail] ---------------I think if you had a 2000 disc it could solve your problem .
By the way I think that the answer from Chris is the best answer I have ever seen on this forum and not just because I am in the same age group.

Answer 10

You can do a system restore back to the date when you started to use your computer