I have just gone through a divorce. My ex wife had my computer for almost a year but finally sent it back. When I turned it on I found she had wiped the hard drive (I think because she thought I had porn on it which wasn't the case) Anyway, I got a Ubuntu disc and installed that on it but forgot my password, so I shelled out $20 and got a recovery disc from emachines. I installed it but when it gets to the black Windows XP screen the blue bar goes back and forth three or four times and then freezes. I have gone a Google search and tried putting it into safe mode which does the same thing. When I try to go back to the last configuration that works it says something along the lines of "Cannot find windows\window32\config" (Well thats not exactly it but I forget the exact words). Other advice I have read I would try except I have the recovery disc and not the actual Windows Xp disc.

I was wondering if there was anything else I could do to try and get it to work before I give up. The only thing I can think of is to try to get an actual Windows XP Home disc but that will be a headache or take it to Geek Squad and see if it might be an issue with the hard drive. If this exact situation has been addressed before then please direct me to that. Here are the specs on the computer

emachines w2925
2.66 ghz
Intel Celeron processor D
256 RAM
120 gb hd
Windows Xp

quick question
do you need anything that is on the hard drive?

if you dont:
use DBAN
That will let you format the hardrive

if you do need somthing from the hard drive

try reinstalling Ubuntu and access the old hardrive using ubuntu

if you have any question just ask

Sounds good except that this computer I am using, a Dell Optiplex GX110 doesnt have a cd burner and the floppy drive wont work either!
I tried to reinstall Ubuntu but it seems to take forever. I am in the process of moving so maybe when I am moved I will try it again.
Do you think its a matter of a bad disc, a bad hard drive or something else?

well i think wat happened tat the recovery disc needs a xp install and all you had was a ubuntu install

I did find a Dell disk that worked in reinstalling windows xp on my brother in laws computer. It isn't a recovery disc and except for the dell stuff on the front of the disc seems to act the same way. Would that disc work? I put xp on it 3 times which I think overwrote the ubuntu.

try using that disc, but rather that installing xp, on start up of the disc, type in R

when the recovery console starts, type in chkdsk /r

then restart the computer
see if that helps