Thanks for the replies about the nVidia graphics card. I sorted that
out by re-installing XP, but this time XP home, which I bought on eBay
a while back. Now it wporks a treat.

BUT I now have another very curious problem. Or rather two: first off,
although my speakers are connected, via a simple quarter-inch jack, to
the Dell Ibought, I get no sound and the PC reports 'no sound device'.
Also, although I had no trouble connecting to the net via an ethernet
broadband connection before re-imstaling XP (albeit Home), now (since
XP home was installed) the Dell rpeorts that there is no LAN
connection. This is stupid becuase there was before when I was running
the Dell with XP Office (it came pre-installed) and I have made no
changes apart from re-installing the OS. So what gives? As I said
before I am used to Macs, but not PCs. Please help and advise, Patrck.

pfgpowell wrote:
> Thanks for the replies about the nVidia graphics card. I sorted that
> out by re-installing XP, but this time XP home, which I bought on eBay
> a while back. Now it wporks a treat.
>
> BUT I now have another very curious problem. Or rather two: first off,
> although my speakers are connected, via a simple quarter-inch jack, to
> the Dell Ibought, I get no sound and the PC reports 'no sound device'.
> Also, although I had no trouble connecting to the net via an ethernet
> broadband connection before re-imstaling XP (albeit Home), now (since
> XP home was installed) the Dell rpeorts that there is no LAN
> connection. This is stupid becuase there was before when I was running
> the Dell with XP Office (it came pre-installed) and I have made no
> changes apart from re-installing the OS. So what gives? As I said
> before I am used to Macs, but not PCs. Please help and advise, Patrck.
>

You probably need to install the drivers for the sound card and the NIC,
and probably some others as well. If you don't have a disk from Dell
with the required drivers you will have to download them.