Windows XP Installation

Alright, you are going to install Microsoft's new operating system,
Windows XP. The GUI, (graphical user interface), is pretty, the commercials are
cool (not a good reason to switch operating systems), and if you're running
Windows 9x/Me and you want more stability and some slick new features, then XP
might be a good choice for you.

Make sure you are ready for the switch over

• Make a list of the hardware in your system and the software you
  use. If you're unsure and already have Internet access on the system, go to Belarc Advisor, and
  get an online listing of your systems specifications. If this is a newly built
  system, then you should have a list of your hardware.
  
• Check the manufacturer's website to find out if there are
  drivers for your hardware. Pay close attention to printers, scanners, pen
  tablets, and so on, and for software compatibility. For newly built systems, you
  should have driver disks that came with the hardware. You probably won't need
  them, but if you do, Windows 2000 drivers will usually work.
  
• Back up any existing data, (always a good policy even if you
  are not changing out operating systems).

Step-by-Step Instructions

These steps are for a
clean install of XP. If you intend to upgrade, please read the Guide we provide
for that purpose. Okay... let's get started.

1. First, you're going to need to change your CMOS settings of the
   BIOS for the boot order to boot from CD-ROM. Once you do this you'll then be
   able to boot your computer from the Installation CD. If your system will
   not boot from the CD, very rare... use the boot disk we provide in the
   download area to activate your CD Rom drive.
   
2. After changing the boot order in the CMOS settings of the BIOS,
   save the changes, and then reboot your computer. Make sure your Installation CD
   is in your CD-ROM. If it is you'll be prompted to press your space bar to
   directly boot from CD-ROM emulation. Press your space bar as soon as you see
   this message.
   
3. Wait a few minutes while the installation begins to copy the
   preliminary setup files to your computer. After this completes you'll be ready
   to start directing the install process.
   
4. You will be asked if you want to perform a new installation,
   repair an existing installation, or quit. In this case, you will be performing a
   new install. Press the correct key to perform a new installation.
   
5. Read the terms of the end user license agreement, and press F8
   to agree.
   
6. The next phase of the installation is real similar to that of
   Windows 2000. So, if you're familiar with the Windows 2000 installation process
   this should be very easy. Basically, you need to decide which partition of your
   hard drive you will install Windows XP on. You will have the opportunity to
   create and/or delete partitions or just allocate the available disk space to one
   partition. However, try to keep your partitions within reasonable size.
   
7. We recommend using multiple partitions of 4-8GB, preferably on
   more than one hard drive. This will help you back up your data and optimize
   system performance later on down the road. Once you have figured out which
   partition XP will be installed on it's time to format it.
   
8. Choose to format the partition to either FAT32 or NTFS
   (recommended for single OS install). You'll also see two additional choices to
   perform a quick format of each option. Stick with doing a full format of either
   option instead. After you've determined which option is right for you, press the
   correct key to format the partition.
   
9. This would be a good time to take a break and come back in a
   few minutes. The setup program will automatically start copying files after the
   partition is formatted.
   
10. From this point on, you're going to see each and every file
    name that's being copied over to your hard drive appear in the lower left
    corner. As the file names go from A to Z, the installation completion percentage
    will increase.
    
11. Choose the region and language.
    
12. Type in your name and organization.
    
13. Enter your product license key.
    
14. Name the computer, and enter an Admin password. Don't forget to
    write down your Administrator password. After the installation is complete it
    would be extremely wise to create a password restore disk in the event you
    forget your Administrator password someday.
    
15. Enter the correct date and time.
    
16. Choose your network settings. Leave on automatic if you use a
    dhcp server to assign IP addresses. If you have static IP address for broadband
    access, enter the settings that your ISP has provided you.
    
17. Choose workgroup or domain name.
    
18. Register this copy of Windows XP if you've installed all the
    current hardware on your machine. Otherwise, wait until you've finished
    installing any additional hardware so you don't have to activate your copy of XP
    again.
    
19. Add users that will sign on to this computer.
    
20. Log in, and update drivers.

Driver install

XP found drivers for all of the hardware in our test machines,
with the exception of a older network adapter that was added. Update all drivers
that had updates available for download.

It takes about 30 minutes to perform this installation. After
that, you will be a few personalized settings away from getting started on your
XP experience. With a little use, the GUI even starts to grow on you.