Ok folks please be gentle with me as I'm a bit of a noob! How do I clean install xp on my system? I only have one hard drive - would it be easier with two?
You would make sure your primary boot drive is your CD/DVD drive (or press the boot selection menu key at the appropriate time), then you'd insert your Windows XP CD into the drive and (re)boot your computer. From there it's more or less selfexplanatory. Before you do all this you might want to make sure you have all the necessary drivers handy on another CD/DVD. Especially if Windows XP doesn't automatically recognize your network interface card.
However, you will want to back up all of your important videos/photos/documents/contacts/game saves etc. to a different drive before you do anything, unless you really are starting from scratch...
Sorry I'm not starting from scratch, the system is about 6 years old and I've never reinstalled the o/s. Do I need to format the hard drive first?
Once you've backed up, just pop the CD in the drive, boot from it and follow the instructions. It will allow you to delete the existing partition, create a new one and format it, before the installation itself begins. Or follow the Microsoft guide. Or use this handy Youtube video guide:
