I've not been successful in any of my attempts to install Windows XP Home (full version) on an older Compaq Presario 7360 (AMD K5 500MHz, 100 MHz bus). I booted using Win98SE startup disk, then fdisk'ed (creating one new partition) and formatted the hdd. Rebooted with WinXP CD. Installation begins to copy files. I press F8 key to agree to MS's mumbo jumbo, then say to install XP on current partition. As soon as I press Enter, the setup thermometer appears briefly, the screen goes black, tiny squares of color begin to fill my screen, then the infamous BSOD appears with a cryptic STOP message (which, by the way, is different each time I try this). How do I get past this issue? Thanks for any help.

Could you post any of the Stop Error numbers?, the one that immediately follows the word Stop (0x000000??). Also look towards the top right corner of the Stop Error screen and see if you can see a filename there like something.dll or something.exe that will help to pin-point what the problem is. You may want to try using FDISK utility again, (make sure to set partition active), then use the XP setup to format for itself.

How big is the hard drive?

I've receive a new STOP message each time I attempt an install. Unfortunately, I did not make a note of the STOP errors. The HDD is a 10GB drive.