My computer is very sick...

My HD is on life support, and that makes me sad. But! It also gives me the opportunity to learn more about how to fix a sick computer!

This is where I am in the process, maybe you can help.

• I hooked up my HD to my husband's laptop and retrieved the data (YAY!)
• I tried to boot from the Windows disk to reinstall Windows.
• Windows tried to "look for existing versions of Windows"
• During its search, Windows gets confused, and I have to shutdown :(

I read that I should disconnect all peripherals (like my scanner) so I will do that and try again.

My old IT guy also suggested I run a diagnostic on the HD. I will also try that and see how it goes!