My computer crashed a while ago telling me there was a file mising or corrupt and to refix this problem to reboot from recovery cd. So i did this and instead of repairng the file in question it reinstalled windows, so then the second version crashed,then the third,so now i have 4 and not alot of memory left. When i enter comand promt it wont let me format my drive because somethig else is is using the drive even though i have nothing running. Also how can i enter command promt or ms dos before starting windows.

Get a Win98 boot floppy: http://www.bootdisk.com

I concur with the previous reply. Got to Bootdisk.com and get a copy of the Windows 98 Bootdisk. Start the machine with the disk inserted (only after you have written the floppy image). Choose the Start computer without CD-ROM support and when at the a:\> prompt, type: format c: /u Now, remove the floppy disk and insert your WinXP CD and restart your computer. BINGO! Done!

Might want to check out http://sft-cyber.com for more info. Good Luck

FORMATTING While running your current version of XP , insert the XP CD in the drive. When the setup menu appears, select "New Installation" (clean install) from the pull-down menu. Also, select "Advanced" and place checkmarks in the two boxes. 2. Next, your computer will start copying files and then reboot. At this point, select the same drive/partition that Windows XP is currently installed on. Select the option to "format" this partition using either FAT32 or NTFS. 3. After the drive/partition is formatted, XP will begin the setup process and install "clean". 4. After registering and activating XP, be sure to run a "Defrag". For details: http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxp_sg_clean.asp Note: It is important to visit the web site of the manufacturer of your computer to obtain any special XP drivers.