New PC New XP. It sucks!

[fishoutofwater579]

I am currently in the process of building up an old PC for my grandma and I tried to install XP on it. It meets all of the requirements for it, it has a 450 MHz CPU, 98 MB of RAM and an 8 GB HDD. I realize all of this sucks and I will be upgrading some time this week. But when I go to install the OS it fails to load certain files, somewhere around 15 and in the end it will not get past the Pre-Installation (DOS looking setup). What am I supposed to do with this piece other than upgrade?

[Cactus]

The Hardware requirements for XP vary depending on who you get your Info from but generaly speaking the requirements are:

CPU 300 MHz (single CPU for Home edition, Single or dual for Professional edition)
RAM 128 MB
Disk Space 1.5 GB free
Video Card Super VGA (800x600)
Media CD-ROM or DVD

What they really mean is....

CPU 600 MHz (single CPU for Home edition, Single or dual for Professional edition)
RAM 256 MB
Disk Space 15 GB free
Video Card 1024x768

Even after checking to make sure that the computer you want to install XP on meets these minimum levels, you still may wish to do a little more investigating before you attempt an install or an upgrade, to make sure that all of your hardware is compatible with Windows XP.

Win98SE will load nicely on the sys you describe above.

Cactus

[fishoutofwater579]

So you are telling me that their requirements are wrong?

[Cactus]

Actually no...
I'm telling you the minimum req for XP that Microsoft says it will run at....
And I'm also saying the minimum that XP runs best at from what users say.
You're the one that will see how it operates,and both sets of Minimum req stated above should help you decide what to do.

Personaly I would not install XP on the sys you describe.

Cactus

[Ranger Bob]

I agree with Cactus. Personally I think your biggest problem is the amount of memory. XP likes a lot of memory and the more you have the better it runs. One of the nice things about XP is that it will use all the RAM very well and release unused RAM as it is freed up. You really need at least 128 MB of RAM and 256 MB RAM would be much better.

[fishoutofwater579]

Well I was trying to get it working for my grandma as fast as possible. We had Windows 98 on it but it wasn't the greatest(it was a used computer from my school). Anyway I will upgrade it tomorrow or the next day to a AMD 1.6 GHz and 512 MB RAM and a A7V8X-X motherboard. Everything else will be crappy but it will have to remain that way until I get enough money to buy better stuff. The 8 GB HDD should hold XP Proffesional right?

[Ranger Bob]

[liljim]

I agree with Ranger Bob,ram is whats holding you up.I have XP Pro running on a 233mhz but it has 256 megs of ram(runs suprisingly well).A full install of XP uses just over a gig of hdd space so just be careful what you install after the OS.Most programs offer a "minimum install" option,this would obviously be the better choice in your situation.